Product evaluation according to external characteristics: Sustainable packaging and quality perception in food products

This study aims to investigate consumers' approach to packaging while purchasing organic or traditional food. In order to determine consumer behaviors such as perceived quality and purchasing behavior towards the product, this study is covered within the scope of Theory of Planned Behavior, one of the most frequently used theories in Social Sciences. The model of the research was developed by adding the dimensions of Theory of Planned Behavior, attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control variables, which can affect consumers' perception of product quality, as well as environmental concern factor that can be effective in purchasing decision. The data were collected by convenience sampling method which is one of the quantitative data collection methods from 920 consumers living in different cities of Turkey and consuming tomato puree, using the online survey technique. SPSS 22 and SmartPLS 3 software were used in the analysis of the data. One of the Structural Equation Model approaches, Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used in testing of the structural model of the study. Findings of this study showed that perceived quality of both normal and recycled plastic packaged products negatively affects the purchasing behavior of consumers. Considering the quality of the product, consumers prefer glass-packed food products more and it is seen that glass-packaged food products are perceived as higher quality.