Vol. 11, Special Issue 11 (2022)

Author(s):
Dr. Pratick Monda and Dr. Debabrata Basu

Abstract:
In India rice is grown in 43.86 million ha, the production level is 104.80 million tones and the productivity is about 2390 kg/ha which feeds more than 60 per cent population of India. 100000 metric tonnes of rice has been consumed in our country 2018 which clearly shows just how much the consumption of rice is and what impact this has on the country’s agricultural economics. Presently, consumers are brand conscious especially in urban and semi urban areas. They are showing more trust and belief with a packaged and branded product than any loose items in terms rice. So to keep up with the present consumer demand, the production sector should also adapt with the current changes. In this study, consumers’ decision making process was studied and the factors affecting the decision making and were observed. The study was conducted in the township of Kanchrapara of North 24 Parganas district under Barrackpore subdivision in West Bengal state in India Among the 24 wards of Kanchrapara, two wards were selected randomly within which 180 people were selected with the help of random number table. Then personal and socioeconomic attributes of the consumers were measured. They were then also asked about attribute importance and actual choices for rice brands. It was observed from the study that coefficient of correlation (r value) for all the independent variables were significant with the amount of rice consumed per day. Coefficient of Correlation (r value) of seven independent variables with loyalty of rice brands were found significant. The expectation and choice of 115 consumers on four rice brands i.e. India Gate, Dawat, Kohinoor and Lal Baba were identified. The combination of expectancy and choices depicted the nature of preference and choice made. Out of 16 possible combinations, the same preference and actual choice of brand, 325 such situations (70.65%) were obtained. Χ² test was done against the hypothesis (H₀). Χ² value was found significant at 0.01 level which supported that there was indeed a strong association between them. As rice market is ever increasing in India and the business of branded rice product is booming, this type of market information about consumers’ behaviour can be really helpful to understand the behaviour and attitude of the consumers towards a particular brand. The producers, processors (rice mills), packaging industries, and marketing channels that have stakes in the whole process will be benefitted from the research.