The Influence of certification on perceived product quality of livestock food products

Product safety in the livestock food product industry needs to control several factors that potentially cause health problems. Product certification regulation becomes one of the important requirements to ensure that offering livestock products is safe for consumers. This study aims to investigate the effect of product certification implemented in Indonesia for livestock food products that were MD, Halal, Organic, and NKV on the perceived product quality of fresh and processed livestock food products. This experiment involved student participants as surrogates of livestock food products consumers. This research was conducted with laboratory experimental between-subjects design and participants were placed into experimental groups using matching assignments. Eggs and processed milk were used as the research objects to represent fresh and processed livestock food products respectively. Product packaging and labels of eggs and processed milk were designed as experimental instruments, including certification attached to the product label. Manipulation check was conducted to ensure the effectiveness of experimental treatments. Data was analysed using ANOVA. The results indicated no difference in perceived product quality (p > 0.05) between control and treatment groups on fresh livestock food products. However, the effect of certification on the perceived product quality of processed livestock food products was significantly different. Furthermore, the post hoc test indicated the difference in perceived product quality in processed livestock food products was between Halal and NKV certifications (p ≤ 0.1).


Introduction
Food plays an essential role in providing nutrition for human life and in Indonesia contribution of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to deliver food is huge.The MSMEs conduct economic activities of producing goods or services for commercial sale.In economic activities, MSMEs are viewed as more resilient to economic crises than big corporations [1] therefore MSMEs contribute to economic growth.However, MSMEs still face some constraints in food safety regulation [2].Research results from [3] show that the factor determining the sustainability of MSMEs is increasing consumer trust to ensure product hygiene and sanitation of the surrounding environment, ensuring consumer goods' safety as supported by [4][5][6][7].Food safety is a component of product quality that attracts the public's attention due to the prevalence of food safety issues.[8,9] explained food safety in developing countries is a significant concern for the food industry and government, particularly for consumers who cannot readily assess food safety risks.
Product certification is one of the regulations taken by the government to ensure that food products on the market are safe to consume.Certification is a component of product quality, which is regarded as one of the most significant determinants of food preference [10].Given the diversity of food products and the abundance of information on the market, certification labels are intended to encourage consumers to select more nutritious and environmentally friendly options [11,12].A variety of certifications were circulated in Indonesia, such as Makanan Dalam (domestic food, hereafter MD) issued by Badan Pengawas Obat dan Makanan Republik Indonesia or BPOM RI (The Indonesian Food and Drug Authority), Halal, released by Lembaga Pengkajian Pangan, Obat-obatan dan Kosmetika Majelis Ulama Indonesia Indonesia or LPPOM MUI (Ulema Council of Assessment Institute for Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics), Organic, issued by Lembaga Sertifikasi Organik or LSO (Organic Certification Union) and Nomor Kontrol Veteriner (Veterinary Control Number) hereafter NKV released by the Ministry of Agriculture specifically for farming, processing and distributing livestock food product.Product certification informs consumers that the product's name is protected and witnesses to the product's authenticity and safety [13].
Research results by [13] indicated that consumers have a preferred impression of the certification label, which significantly influences their tendency to purchase and pay for products based on their perceptions of product quality and attitudes toward regionally certified products.The quality assurance dimension enhances perceptions of product quality, while the economic support dimension strengthens attitudes toward regional products certified on the basis of regional economic support.Perception of product quality is an important variable in addition to variables of quality assurance, economic support, and attitudes towards regions that influence consumer desire to determine product or brand choices.A similar conclusion was explained by [14] that the quality and safety of certified products are important to foster customer loyalty.According to [15].Regarding product quality, certification plays an important role in demonstrating the accuracy of product quality standards.Thus, this study aims to investigate the effect of MD, Halal, Organic, and NKV certification on consumer's perceived product quality.This information is important for all stakeholders in the food industry to understand how consumers evaluate various food certifications used in Indonesia.

Materials and methods
Respondents are consumers of livestock products who experienced buying fresh and processed livestock products that were eggs and processed milk products for their own or household consumption.Eggs dan processed milk products were selected based on exploratory research with 38 respondents.The result showed that 57.9% of respondents chose egg and 45.9% chose processed milk as the most often fresh and processed livestock food product to consume.The treatment in this study consists of MD, Halal, Organic, and NKV certifications.The selection of the four types of certification is based on various types of certification that during this research being implemented for livestock food products in Indonesia.The certification used was also determined based on Indonesian laws and regulations, which were the Regulation of the Food and Drug Authority Number The experimental between-subjects design was conducted for this investigation.A matching assignment was used to assign participants to the experimental group.A questionnaire consisting of 5 items to measure perceived product quality was developed using Likert scale from one to five, ranging from very disagree to very agree.The items used in the questionnaire were (1) Eggs/milk products shown is quality product; (2) Eggs/milk products shown is produced by companies with expertise livestock food industry; (3) Eggs/milk products shown provides daily nutrition; (4) Eggs/milk products shown is credible; and (5) Eggs/milk products shown contain rich nutrition.
Product packaging design for eggs and processed milk products was used as a research instrument (Figure 1), with four types of certification as experimental treatments for fresh and processed livestock food.Manipulation checks on 33 respondents were conducted to ensure the effectiveness of experimental manipulations.Manipulation check result showed that all respondents noticed that certification logos or names were put on the food label of product packaging.Moreover, 78.80% and 100% of respondents agreed that certification was important for eggs and processed milk respectively.Furthermore, there were 231 participants in this investigation, who were assigned into nine experimental groups (Table 1).There were no conflicts of interest declared during the entire duration of the research.The data were analysed using ANOVA and the Games-Howell post hoc test to test the difference between experimental groups for both product categories.

Results and discussion
Table 2 showed that the mean score of perceived product quality for all groups was high, more than 2.67, indicating that eggs and processed milk were perceived as good quality, nutritious, and provide daily nutrition needs, and offered by producers with expertise in the food industry.All food packaging in the experiment is presented with food labels that provide information about the manufacture/farm and nutritional content of the products and certification from a third party showed additional attributes such as organic or hygiene sanitation as well as assurance not contain any haram material, except for the control group.High perceived quality in all groups was found consistent with a previous study by [16] that showed nutrition labeling is one of the important factors in the consumer decision-making process.The Levene's test on experimental groups both for egg and milk products was not significant (p>0.05).This can be said that the dependent variable variance between treatment and control groups was homogenous for both product categories, egg and processed milk.Moreover, ANOVA test on egg products showed that there was no different effect between the treatment groups of Halal, Organic, NKV, and Control groups.This result indicated that even though attention and concern for food safety were increased, certification did not increase the perceived product value of fresh livestock products than the uncertified products.Participants perceived eggs as good quality livestock food products and nutritious no matter whether they have been certified or not, the products were of the same quality.However, the result for processed milk products showed that there was a different effect on perceived product quality between the control and treatment groups of MD, Halal, Organic, NKV, and Control groups.Games-Howell post hoc test showed the difference occurred in perceived product quality between Halal and NKV-certified milk products with a mean value of perceived product quality on Halal-certified milk was 4.02, while NKV-certified milk product was 3.66 (Table 3).This result indicated that NKV certification did not increase perceived product quality more compared to Halal certification.
Certification is necessary prior to the product's commercial stage, as many Indonesian consumers are concerned about certain certifications of the food to consume [17] and according to regulations and laws, the most prevalent certifications in Indonesia are MD, Halal, Organic, and NKV.However, the majority population in Indonesia is Moslem (86.1%), therefore concern about awareness of halal and haram foods is high compared to other certifications.Moslems consistently place a high priority on Halal issues when buying food, meat, or choosing restaurants [18].Awareness of Halal food is important for consumers because food products in Indonesia consist of various local and imported foods produced by all ethnicities, both Moslem and non-Moslem [19].Consumers believe that Halal food provides health benefits and animal-friendly attributes, which motivates them to buy the product [20].Halal certification attracts attention in comparison to NKV certifications since Halal certification has been widely accepted in Indonesia [20] to access food in accordance with religious rules.The existence of Halal certification in food today is no longer seen as a matter of religion but has entered business and trade requirements [21].Halal is not merely considered in terms of market share or product profitability, but also-and this is more important-the actual creation of a good or service [22].Findings by [23] revealed that non-Moslem consumers in Indonesia also have a significant level of awareness of Halal products.This is sufficient evidence that non-Moslem groups have incorporated halal cuisine into their lifestyle choices, and it is obvious that this situation has consequences for halal food producers.Most consumers contend that processed foods bearing Halal certification are healthy and safe to eat [24].Therefore, regardless of the faith practiced, customers who are well-informed on Halal items will be very interested in making additional purchases [19].Consumers are less interested in NKV certification than they are in Halal certification because, besides assurance of not containing materials that are not allowed to be consumed, Halal certification is also recognized for safety and hygiene assurance [16].
The influence of Organic and NKV certification on perceived product quality was not different.According to [25], Java and Bali have a sizable organic market possibility, however, it should be noted that these findings only apply to office workers who are part of the middle-class Segment, earn over IDR 9 million, reside in five of Java and Bali's largest cities, and are already aware of the health advantages of eating organic food.Nevertheless, the majority of Indonesians do not eat organic food regularly and perceive similar benefits between organic and non-organic food [26].This element is most likely brought about by customer views and preferences toward organic goods, which nonetheless do not adhere to the traits of true organic goods.As opposed to developing nations, where consumers tend to believe that organic food is safer than regular food and does not contain dangerous substances therefore 90% of organic food sales were reported in some countries in North America and Europe [27], This result is similar to sanitation hygiene still limited to become the concern on some consumers can pay more [28].
Furthermore, the use of MD, and NKV certifications is accepted not different to the control groups.The MD certification is shown on product packaging in an effort to reassure customers that the food they are consuming is safe and will not harm their health [29].Meanwhile, NKV certification guarantees that livestock food products have complied with sanitation and hygiene standards.The results that there was no difference in perceived quality between control and MD, NKV groups in this study contradict those conveyed by [30] that the legality by third parties on food packaging for MSME products is the main determining factor for consumers in assessing and choosing products that ensure product safety.Understanding the role of third parties is important to increase because as found by [31], unmet standard hygiene sanitation practices in Indonesia are still found in the selection of foodstuffs, presentation, transportation, and personal hygiene of food handlers.This result indicated that concern for hygiene and sanitation aspects could be fulfilled by Halal certification [16].However, less attention to hygiene sanitation certification showed lower consumers' concern about the hygiene aspect than in developed countries [28,32].

Conclusion
This study concluded that certification of MD, Halal, Organic, and NKV did not affect perceived product quality for egg or fresh livestock products.In other words, certification had no impact on increasing egg-perceived product quality.Furthermore, NKV certification influence was lesser in increasing perceived product value compared to Halal certification.Then, NKV, MD, and Organic certification did not differ in increasing perceived product quality.The result led to the understanding that not all certifications applied to livestock food products are well-considered by consumers in product evaluation even though the trend regarding food safety is a critical issue in the food industry today.
27 of 2017 concerning the Registration of Processed Food, the Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 33 of 2014, the Regulation of the Minister of Agriculture Number 64/ Permentan/ OT.140 /5/ 2013, and the Regulation of the Minister of Agriculture Number 11 of 2013.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.The research instrument (a) Product packaging design for eggs and (b) Product packaging for processed milk.

Table 2 .
Consumer perceived product quality on livestock food products certification.
Notes: *.The mean difference is significant at the 0.10 level.

Table 3 .
Games-Howell Post hoc Perceived Product Quality test results on dairy products.
Notes: *.The mean difference is significant at the 0.10 level