A cross-section of farmer and consumer typologies: identifying points of convergence to better support changes in livestock farming

Presentation by Jeanne Cottet, Ifip engineer, at the 57th Pig Research Days in February 2025

Society’s changing views on environmental impacts and animal welfare are forcing farmers to change their farming practices and/or systems. Against this backdrop, sociological studies performed by technical institutes such as IFIP and Idele, and organizations such as LIT Ouesterel, have examined the attitudes of farmers and consumers to the challenges facing livestock farming. These studies have led to the creation of typologies that focus on specific points: farmers’ motivations for change and perceptions of the profession and the human-animal relationship, as well as consumers’ perceptions of livestock farming and purchasing behaviour. The aim of this study was to highlight farmer-consumer pairs that respond to the multiple challenges facing livestock farming. Typologies were then cross-referenced by comparing the different profiles in terms of this challenges, and then combining the most similar profiles to form new profiles. The new farmer and consumer profiles were then compared to produce farmer-consumer pairs. These pairs provide keys to improving how farmers communicate with their typical consumers, as well as key points of understanding for consumers. This cross-disciplinary approach can be applied for advising farmers and will help them, through better communication, training and support tools, to cope with the changers ahead, while considering their individual sensitivities, aspirations and constraints, as well as the specific characteristics of consumers. It could also be used by retailers to communicate more effectively with consumers about production systems and better target different products.

Video available on Ifip-WebTV here.