A study on the customer's perception of Korean traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do

ABSTRACT

This study was conducted to investigate the consumption pattern and perception of traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products in male and female adults aged 19 and over in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do areas in order to promote the development of the products' industry. The survey was conducted between October 1 to October 15, 2011 among 294 male and female adults aged 19 years and over in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do areas. The gender distribution of the subjects was 33.3% males and 66.7% females. For a perception on traditional dietary life, the degree for enjoying meals with cooked rice as the staple food revealed that 32.3% of the subjects responded 'strongly agree'. The intake frequency of traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products in the subjects of the study showed that in the case of doenjang, 49.7% of the participants consumed it twice a week and 21.4% consumed it once a week. For gochujang, 59.9% consumed it twice a week and 19.0% consumed it once a week. The perception on the preparation method for traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products showed a low level for traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products. The reason for purchasing traditional foods showed that 77.6% of the subjects made purchases for convenience and 8.2% purchased it for its small package. For the subjects, the priority for purchasing traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products was as follows in the first rank, ingredients & origin made up 33.7% and price comprised of 26.2% of the priority. Regarding satisfaction for soy sauce and soybean paste products in the market, the degree of satisfaction was high for gochujang. With regard to gender difference, female subjects showed a significantly lower satisfaction for cheonggukjang and kuk-ganjang, and a significantly higher satisfaction for chin-ganjang, compared to the male subjects. The results of the study depicted that consumer's requirement was high for traditional soy sauce and soybean paste products in the market, particularly for the safety of the products in the market. Consumer satisfaction was relatively positive yet, some efforts are needed in order to improve the quality of cheonggukjang and kuk-ganjang.