Abstract:
As Sri Lankan mushroom industry is still in an infancy stage there are only few varieties
and few mushroom products available in the present market.
In this research, researcher‘s intention is to find out the factors effect for the consumer
preference in mushroom purchasing.
In this study 100 Consumers from CMC area was selected as the sample size.
Demographic profile of the respondents was examined at the beginning. The results
indicated that majority (94%) of the respondents are aware of the different mushroom
products available. With the increase of age and education level it shows a clear
increase of the awareness. The main mushroom product that the consumers were aware
is the dried mushroom (47%) which is followed by a larger distance by canned
mushroom and Mushroom Chutney. Most of the consumers (86%) are willing to
consume Mushroom products and the main reason is different taste of mushroom
followed by high nutritiousness. Majority of the consumers (93%) have consumed a
mushroom product and most of those consumers have consumed (51%) mushroom as
fresh mushroom. The most popular (31%) mushroom variety is Oyster Mushroom. The
main factor (47%) that affect the consumer preference is the flavor of the product. There
is a clear association between satisfaction and the variety of the mushroom and the type
of the mushroom product. Majority of the respondent (81%) consumers considered
price as a critical consideration for the purchase decision. Most preferred place (38%)
to buy mushroom by the respondents is any retail shop which revealed that the close
Copyright © ICSUSL-Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka 2017 2
proximity is important for the place of purchase of mushroom. Majority of the
consumers (88%) are willing to change to a more improved mushroom product and
they like to be informed about new products through suggestion of someone (33%) who
has already consumed the product.
