The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment, through the Directorate General for Agri-food Quality and Local Produce, has published the data from the second part of the Study of Food Consumption and Origin in Mallorca 2023. The main objective of this document is to find out the most valued purchasing decision factors about the food that is bought, as well as to observe the evolution of consumer attitudes in comparison to 2016 and 2018. The main data extracted is that 89.6% of those surveyed consider food quality to be the most important factor when making a purchase. The fieldwork was carried out in different parts of Mallorca and a total of 1,019 people between the ages of 25 and 65 (79.98% women and 20.02% men) were interviewed.

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Nine out of ten consumers in Mallorca consider the quality of food to be the most important factor when making a purchase

Among other aspects, the study also reveals that the fact that the food is fresh is very important for 79% of people (it is the second most important factor in their purchasing decision). In third place, economic aspects (price and supply) and origin can be grouped (these factors are very important for more than 60% of people). On the other hand, less relevant is the brand and the fact that the food is organic (important for 40% of respondents).

When compared to the previous studies, which were carried out in 2016 and 2018, about the purchase decision, a positive development can be observed in favour of the origin of the food and whether the product is on offer. On the other hand, it is negative in terms of the importance of the brand.

In the words of Joan Llabrés, Director General for Agri-Food Quality and Local Produce, the data show that “consumers increasingly value the origin of foodstuffs and the quality of the products. On the other hand, we see that the brand factor is becoming increasingly irrelevant in the purchasing decision”.

Thus, the study data reflect that, in the evolution of what is taken into account to make the purchase, from 2016 and 2018 to 2023, there are no major variations in the importance given to the quality, freshness and price of food, as these three factors continue to occupy the top three positions. However, the fact that Llabrés highlights the most is that “the evolution of the origin factor has been increasing year after year, since in 2016 only 31% marked it as very important and today this percentage has risen to 62%”.

Another fact that can be observed is that in 2016 the supply factor was only very important for 50%, while in this latest study it is already very important for 63%. However, other notable aspects are that the indicators that refer to the presentation of the product or the habit of consuming it have remained stable from 2016 to the present day. In this sense, if seven years ago the presentation factor was important for 42% of respondents, it is now important for 39%. As for the factor of the habit of consuming food, in 2016 it was important for 45%, while now it is important for 43%.