Beijing Food Safety Policy and Strategy Research Base, China Agricultural University, Haidian District, 100083 Beijing, P. R. China; College of Economics and Management, China Agricultural University, Haidian District, 100083 Beijing, P. R. China.
Wageningen University and Research, Animal Production Systems Group, Wageningen 6700 AH, the Netherlands.
J Dairy Sci. 2021 Aug;104(8):8554-8567. doi: 10.3168/jds.2020-19733. Epub 2021 Apr 23.
This study provides a deep insight into Chinese consumer trust in the Chinese dairy value chain, as a lack of trust due to the 2008 melamine scandal has been widely recognized as a barrier to the development of the domestic dairy industry in China. Based on face-to-face interviews with 954 Chinese consumers in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shijiazhuang, this study measured consumer trust in farmers, manufacturers, retailers, the government, and third parties. Consumer trust was studied by measuring the effect of beliefs on the trustworthiness of actors (i.e., competence, benevolence, integrity, credibility, and openness), and current experiences regarding the melamine scandal and the media. The results showed that the level of trust in dairy chain actors varied. The government and third parties were relatively highly trusted, whereas retailers were considered less trustworthy. The importance of consumer beliefs about trustworthiness are different among actors. Consumer belief of competence determines trust in farmers and manufacturers. For retailers, the government, and third parties, respectively, benevolence, credibility, and openness are the most important factors. Trust in dairy chain actors is still strongly negatively affected by current experiences regarding the melamine scandal, even though it occurred more than 10 years ago. Using social media to directly provide more information and establish continuous daily communication with consumers could help manufacturers and third parties to strengthen consumer trust.
本研究深入探讨了中国消费者对中国乳制品价值链的信任，由于 2008 年三聚氰胺丑闻导致的信任缺失已被广泛认为是中国国内乳制品行业发展的障碍。本研究通过在北京、上海和石家庄对 954 名中国消费者进行面对面访谈，衡量了消费者对农民、制造商、零售商、政府和第三方的信任。消费者信任通过衡量信念对行为者（即能力、善意、正直、信誉和开放性）可信度的影响，以及当前对三聚氰胺丑闻和媒体的经验来研究。结果表明，对乳制品链行为者的信任水平存在差异。政府和第三方相对受到高度信任，而零售商则被认为不太值得信赖。消费者对可信赖性的信任信念在行为者之间的重要性不同。消费者对能力的信念决定了对农民和制造商的信任。对于零售商、政府和第三方，分别来说，善意、信誉和开放性是最重要的因素。尽管三聚氰胺丑闻已经过去了 10 多年，但消费者对乳制品链行为者的信任仍然受到当前对该丑闻的经验的强烈负面影响。利用社交媒体直接提供更多信息，并与消费者建立持续的日常沟通，可以帮助制造商和第三方加强消费者信任。
