The role of garlic attributes in shaping Indonesian consumers’ purchase intention: results from an online survey

Garlic is a commodity that is highly needed by consumers, both for culinary, health and medicinal purposes. Because of the importance of this commodity, Indonesia has become the largest importer of garlic because its production is unable to meet demand. It is important to identify garlic attributes shapes Indonesian consumers purchase intention so that strategies can be developed to improve the quality of local garlic. This study was conducted specifically to determine the level of importance of several garlic attributes from the perspective of consumers. We conducted an online survey in the Greater Jakarta Area and Bandung, involving 493 respondents, to investigate what attributes they consider when buying garlic, in addition to asking several other descriptive questions. Majority of respondents give a high importance to bulb size, clove size, aroma, colour and price. Meanwhile, for the production location and packaging attributes, the majority of respondents gave a low importance. Our survey results surprisingly showed that more than 70% of respondents did not know where the garlic they consumed was produced. The conclusion from this survey show that physical attributes are still important for Indonesian consumers, so the development of local garlic really needs to pay attention to these physical attributes, for example through breeding programs and cultivation practices that can produce garlic characteristics in accordance with consumer wants.


Introduction
Indonesia faces a notable disparity between the high demand for garlic within its borders and the insufficiency of its domestic production capacity, resulting in a heavy reliance on garlic imports, which account for over 95% of the country's garlic supply [1].As of the year 2021, Indonesia's garlic imports soared to a substantial 602,9 thousand tonnes, effectively establishing Indonesia as the preeminent global garlic-importing nation, contributing 24.4% of the total world import volume [2].
In response to the imperative need for self-sufficiency in garlic production and the overarching goal of mitigating import dependency while concurrently addressing trade balance deficits, the Indonesian government has embarked upon a strategy aimed at bolstering domestic garlic cultivation since 2016.This comprehensive approach encompasses initiatives, including production development programs and regulatory measures restricting garlic imports [3,4].These import restriction regulations encompass provisions mandating that importers engage in the cultivation and production of garlic within the Indonesian territory as a prerequisite for securing an import license, specifically requiring that importers must undertake the planting and cultivation of garlic equivalent to 5% of their imported volume, fostering partnerships with local garlic farmers [3][4][5].
Thus far, the garlic development program has exclusively concentrated on enhancing production, with little regard for market dynamics.Additionally, the local garlic quality which lags behind the IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1338/1/012072 2 imported counterpart aggravates the situation.This circumstance further complicates the endeavor to sway consumer preferences deeply entrenched over a span of more than 25 years towards imported garlic.The inferior quality also exerts downward on local garlic prices.Consequently, the confluence of market-related factors and price stability necessitates comprehensive consideration in the pursuit of augmenting garlic production [3,[6][7][8] Consequently, farmers encounter formidable marketing challenges, resulting in a diminishing cultivated area as their enthusiasm for garlic cultivating [3,7,9].
To date, there has been a notable absence of research devoted to studying garlic consumers, which is a crucial aspect to investigate within the framework of the Indonesian garlic industry, as it holds the potential to influence garlic production on the upstream side.The exsisting knowledge pertaining to consumer preferences primarily comprises descriptive narratives, often lacking the depth of scientific and detailed explanations.Investigating consumer preferences and behavior holds the promise of yielding numerous advantages, including the capacity to gain a deeper comprehension of market demand, formulate precisely customized marketing strategies, and elevate the overall quality of products.Notably, within the garlic industry, the significance of comprehending consumer preferences and behavior has not been adequately addressed, particularly in relation to distinct garlic attributes.This research endeavors to rectify this gap by conducting a comprehensive analysis of Indonesian consumers, especially to understand what garlic attributes shape Indonesia's consumer purchase intention so that strategies can be developed to improve the quality of local garlic.

Methodology
To address the objective of this study, online surveys were conducted.These surveys targeting consumers who lives in Greater Jakarta and Bandung areas.A set of questions were prepared, and Google Form were utilised as the media to collect data [10,11].The link of the questionnaire from Google Form were then distributed through social media such as WhatsApp and Facebook, to reach out to the respondents.
The questionnaire was divided into two sections.The first section is the demography and consumer buying behaviour, and the second section aims to collect information on the importance of garlic attributes.In the first section, questions including age, occupation, income, education, and their behaviour in buying garlic such as the place of purchasing, frequency of purchasing, and volume of purchasing.In addition, we also ask the respondents about whether they know the place of production of garlic they consumed.In the second section we ask respondents to rate the importance of garlic attributes using the 1-5 Likert scale.Garlic attributes examined were bulb size, clove size, aroma, colour, origin, packaging, and price.K-mean cluster analysis was conducted using R studio to identify the differences of importance between different characters of consumers [12,13].

The importance of garlic attributes
In terms of bulb size, a significant portion of consumers, accounting for 52.63%, consider it important, while 28.54% find it very important.Clove size is another crucial factor, with 55.47% of consumers deeming it important and 27.73% marking it as very important.Aroma also plays a vital role, as 49.60% of consumers find it important, and 24.90% consider it very important.The color of garlic is significant to 47.57% of consumers, with 19.23% marking it as very important.
When it comes to the origin of garlic, 25.71% of consumers find it somehow important, while 10.93% consider it important.Packaging holds importance for 15.59% of consumers and is very important for 1.42% of them.Price, a crucial factor in consumer decision-making, is important for 46.36% of consumers, and 25.30% find it very important.Interestingly, consumer preferences vary for different attributes.For example, while bulb size and clove size are highly important to consumers, the origin and packaging of garlic are relatively less critical factors in their decision-making process.Both the origin and packaging of garlic are perceived as less important attributes by consumers, with 55.26% and 43.93% respectively categorizing them as "Less important."These percentages indicate that a significant portion of consumers do not prioritize the specific origin or packaging of garlic when making their purchasing decisions.This suggests that while these factors do play a role, they are not as influential as attributes like bulb size, clove size, aroma, color, and price, which are considered more

The importance of garlic attributes
The next step is conducting cluster analysis to discern distinct clusters of consumers who share similar preferences concerning garlic attributes.This analysis can reveal intricate patterns that might not be immediately apparent, allowing for a deeper understanding of consumer segments and their varying priorities.In the first cluster (144 respondents or 29.15% of total respondents), the majority of consumers consider Bulb Size (56.94%) and Clove Size (55.56%) as important factors when choosing garlic.A significant portion of consumers also values Aroma (43.06%) and Color (40.97%).Origin is perceived as less important, with only 14.58% of consumers within this cluster rating it as "Somewhat important," while the majority (70.14%) regard it as "Less important."Similarly, Packaging holds minimal importance, with only 11.11% of consumers considering it "Somewhat important," and the majority (56.25%) deeming it as "Less important."Additionally, a considerable segment of consumers in this cluster prioritizes Price (43.75%) as an important factor in their garlic purchasing decision.Very important ratings are relatively low across all attributes, indicating a balanced and nuanced approach to garlic attribute importance within this cluster of average consumers.Due to characteristics in this cluster, we named this cluster as "Average consumers" cluster.
We named the second cluster as "Perfect consumers" cluster, due to the high ratings they give to several attributes.In the Perfect consumers cluster (186 respondents or 37.65% of total respondents), a substantial majority of consumers prioritize Bulb Size (50.00%),Clove Size (56.99%),Aroma (57.53%), and Color (52.15%) as important attributes when choosing garlic.Origin is regarded as less important, with 57.53% of consumers rating it as "Less important," indicating that while some consideration is given to the source, it's not a dominant factor.Packaging is perceived as less significant, with 73.12% of consumers in this cluster deeming it "Less important" and 26.88% finding it "Not important."Price is also crucial, with 45.70% of consumers viewing it as important and 19.35% rating it as "Very important." In the third cluster (164 respondents or 33.20% of total respondents), Bulb Size and Clove Size hold significant weight, with 51.83% and 53.66% of consumers rating them as important, respectively, indicating a keen interest in specific garlic sizes.Aroma and Color also play vital roles, valued by 51.83% and 59.76% of consumers, emphasizing the sensory and visual aspects influencing purchasing decisions.Origin, although important for 39.63% of consumers, sees a divided opinion, with 38.41% considering it less important.Packaging emerges as a crucial factor, deemed important by 53.66% of consumers, underlining the significance of attractive and practical packaging designs.Additionally, Price holds substantial sway, with 49.39% of consumers finding it important.The price of imported garlic is strongly and positively associated with the domestic price of garlic, even an increase in its price can cause inflation [14].Because respondents gave quite high ratings to origin and packaging, we named this cluster the "Credence consumers" cluster.The income distribution varies across the segments.In the 1-5 million IDR range, Average consumers have the highest representation (50.00%), while Credence consumers have the lowest (30.49%).In the 5.1-10 million IDR range, Perfect consumers show the highest percentage (50.00%),indicating a significant presence of consumers with higher incomes.Moreover, Credence consumers have a relatively higher representation (20.12%) in the 10.1-15 million IDR range.Education in Average Consumers were dominated by high school and bachelor degree graduates.In Perfect consumers and Credence consumers, majority of respondents were bachelor degree graduates.Surprisingly, more than 70% of respondents do not know where the garlic they purchased was produced.According to the available data, among those who do have information about the origin of their garlic, a significant portion is aware that it comes from China, with 35.29% of Average consumers, 58.82% of Perfect consumers, and 60.32% of Credence consumers being aware of this fact.A smaller percentage of respondents knows that their garlic comes from specific local regions, such as Central Java (ranging from 0.00% to 5.88%) and Lombok (ranging from 1.59% to 8.82%).Additionally, a considerable number of consumers are aware that the garlic they purchased is sourced from abroad, with 36.51% to 50.00% across the different consumer clusters.

Conclusion and implications
The findings from the survey indicate a significant emphasis placed by respondents on specific physical attributes such as bulb size, clove size, and colour, along with a notable importance attached to price within the context of consumer preferences, even though they are came from different clusters.Conversely, attributes related to packaging and origin are relatively less influential in shaping consumer choices.It is worth noting that this study contributes valuable empirical evidence to the existing body of knowledge on Indonesian consumers' garlic preferences.Prior research in this area has primarily relied on descriptive narratives, lacking the depth of scientific substantiation provided by this study.

Acknowledgement
IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1338/1/0120723 crucial by a larger percentage of consumers.Figure1presents a comprehensive overview of respondents' rating about the importance of various attributes associated with garlic.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.The level of importance of garlic attributes examined by respondents.

Table 1
presents the respondents' sociodemographic based on the clusters.In the Average consumers group, the highest percentage falls within the 31-40 age range (43.75%), followed by the 41-50 age group (23.61%).In the Perfect consumers segment, a significant proportion is found within the 41-50 age category (41.49%), while the 31-40 age group constitutes 36.17% of the respondents.Interestingly, Credence consumers exhibit a different pattern, with the highest percentage in the 41-50 age range (45.73%), followed by the 51-60 age group (25.00%).Private company employees are predominant among both Average consumers (31.25%) and Credence consumers (30.49%), while entrepreneurs constitute a significant proportion of Perfect consumers (18.09%).Housewives are another substantial group, representing 22.87% of Perfect consumers and 15.97% of Average consumers.Interestingly, the occupation profiles vary significantly among these segments, with Perfect consumers having a higher percentage of entrepreneurs and Credence consumers having a relatively larger representation of housewives.

Table 2
[15]s the respondents' buying behaviour of garlic.According to the table, 50.00% of Average consumers purchase garlic once a week, whereas 43.62% of Perfect consumers and 45.73% of Credence consumers do the same.Several times in a week is the preferred frequency for 47.92% of Average consumers, 42.02% of Perfect consumers, and 38.41% of Credence consumers.Interestingly, a small portion of Average consumers (2.08%) buy garlic several times in a month, while 13.83% of Perfect consumers and 15.24% of Credence consumers follow the same pattern.buyingbehaviour of garlic is important to note because one of the leverage factors that affect garlic development in Indonesia is consumption levels[15].According to the table, 72.22% of Average consumers buy garlic in the range of 100-500 grams, while 82.45% of Perfect consumers and 80.49% of Credence consumers prefer the same quantity range.Between 500 grams and 1 kilogram is the choice for 27.08% of Average consumers, 17.02% of Perfect consumers, and 19.51% of Credence consumers.Interestingly, only a small percentage of consumers across all clusters (ranging from 0.00% to 0.69%) opt for a minimum of 1 kilogram of garlic.According to the table, 93.75% of Average consumers and 87.77% of Perfect consumers prefer buying garlic from traditional markets, while 87.20% of Credence consumers do the same.Mobile greengrocers are a popular choice as well, with 83.33% of Average consumers, 93.62% of Perfect consumers, and 75.00% of Credence consumers opting for this option.Shops near the house are chosen by 78.47% of Average consumers, 60.64% of Perfect consumers, and 59.76% of Credence consumers.Supermarkets attract 61.81% of Average consumers, 48.40% of Perfect consumers, and 62.20% of Credence consumers.Online platforms are preferred by a small percentage of consumers across all clusters, ranging from 3.47% to 19.51%.Additionally, there are other unspecified sources chosen by 9.72% of Average consumers, 11.70% of Perfect consumers, and 20.12% of Credence consumers.

Table 2 .
Respondents' buying behaviour of garlic