Table I illustrates the demographic profile of respondents. There were 54 female respondents and 46 male
respondents in this study (46 percent), hence making a total of 100 respondents. In terms of race, a majority of the
respondents are Malays (73 percent), followed by Chinese (14 percent) and Indians (13 percent). A majority of the
respondents (62 percent) were from the younger age group (21-30 years of age) while the 41 –50 years old made up
29 percentof the respondents. In terms of job employment, most of the respondents were in the areas of
management, corporate and professional industries. With respect to the income levels, the highest percentage was
35.0% for those earning a monthly income between RM 2001 and RM 3000, whereas the smallest percentage was
those with a monthly income of less than RM 1000 with only 17.0 percent.
The respondents were also asked to choose the type of organic food products they frequently buy. A list with 10
types of organic food products were given to the respondents. The list included sauces, seasoning, bread/cereals,
pasta/noodles, beans/grains, spices, beverages, snacks/treats, vegetables/fruits and meat/poultry. 36 respondents say
they bought mostly vegetables and fruits followed by breads and cereals (23 respondents). The next most frequently
bought item was organic meat and poultry (20 respondents).
The respondents were presented with statements and asked ifthey disagreed or agreed with the statements (Table
2). The survey shows respondents are aware that organic food products have nutritional value and that organic food
products are good for health. Almost 81% of respondents agree with the statement ‘organic food products do not
contain any chemicals’ and 72% agree that ‘eating organic food products does not give any side effects to one’s
health’. This suggests that consumers are aware of the benefits of organic food. In addition, this group of
respondents was from the 21 to 40 years of age and thus may have been exposed to information regarding organic
food products through media or family and friends.