Muslim immigrant's attitudes and perceptions towards Halal meat in Spain

During the last decade the Muslim community in western countries is growing and consequently the Halal niche market is gaining in importance. For the case of Spain Muslim Immigrants represent a 2.3 per cent of the total population. The aim of the present study is to shed some light on the Halal meat consumption behaviour by means of a survey on 292 Muslims immigrants that are currently living in Barcelona (Spain). First, we explore the key determinants of purchasing intention and consumption behaviours of Halal meat. Second, we focus on the evaluation of individual’s willingness to pay (WTP) for certified Halal chicken, mainly for certified as “Garantía Halal” from the “Instituto Halal”, the most important Halal certification body in Spain. Third, observed and unobserved heterogeneity of individual is also considered in order to establish possible market segmentation according to individual’s WTP. The study is divided in two main parts. The first part validates a proposed decision making structure defined based on an extended version of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) analyzed using structural equation modelling (SEM). The second part focuses on the evaluation of the potential of Halal meat Market in Spain. Stated choice experiment and random parameter modelling (Mixed logit) were used to explore observed and unobserved individual’s heterogeneity. Our results show that religiosity, social pressure, perceived behavioural control, knowledge, perceived availability and individual’s awareness about Halal meat production conditions are key determinants of the intention to consume Halal meat. The choice experiment revealed that, search attributes (Freshness and Color) are more valuated than credence attributes (certification as Halal) by Muslim immigrants in Spain. Furthermore, factors like gender, age, education, origin and time of residence in Spain make a difference in the Muslims immigrant’s WTP, permitting to targeting individuals according to their preference, being an important marketing implication