Purchasing and consuming pattern for pork

Almost half the respondents (43.6%) did the meat shopping for their household, with the majority of the purchases being made at supermarkets (65.1%). Only 7% did the purchasing from meat speciality shops. Those who did not shop for their pork depended on other members of their household to do the shopping and cooking. It would mainly be the foreign domestic worker (FDW) doing this job as they play an important role in household chores like cooking for the family of their employers. In 2006, there were approximately 160,000 FDWs working in Singapore, i.e., about one in six households employed an FDW (MOM, 2007). Most respondents (85%) consumed pork more than once a month, whilst only 9% ate pork every day (Table 3.6).

The most popular method for cooking pork (Table 3.1) was boiling (69.1%). The Chinese population uses this method mainly in making soup with other herbs and spices. The next most popular method was pan-frying (43.2%) and stewing (45.2%). Microwaving (Other category) was the least often used method for cooking of pork (1.2%).

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Table 3.1

Percentage of respondents who used different cooking methods for pork (Chinese population only)1

Cooking method Percentage of respondents who

used the cooking method (%)

Grill 10.6 Pan-fry 43.2 Roast 32.1 Stew 45.2 Boil (soup) 69.1 Deep fry 37.5 Others 1.2

1 _{Based on Chi-square test for goodness of fit, there were statistically significant differences among the}

cooking methods as p < 0.05.

3.3.3 Reasons for buying pork

Results in Table 3.2 show that Singapore consumers in this survey liked pork for a variety of reasons with “taste” cited most often (69.0%). This was followed by “availability” (38.4%), “nutrition” (29.3%), “versatility” (28.8%) and “price” (12.5%).

Table 3.2

Reasons for purchasing and consuming pork by Singapore consumers (Chinese population only)1

Reason for purchasing pork Percentage of respondents who gave

this as a reason. Availability 38.4 Nutritional quality 29.3 Versatility in cooking 28.8 Taste 69.0 Price 12.5 1

Based on Chi-square test for goodness of fit, there were statistically significant differences among reasons for purchasing pork as p < 0.05.

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The survey results suggested that Singapore consumers depend on information about the country of origin of the pork as an indicator of the taste of the pork, which was the main reason given for purchasing pork (Table 3.2). Results in Table 3.3 indicate that pork from China (77.3%) and Indonesia (82.7%) was considered as tastier compared to that from Western countries. Pork is easily available for purchase at all supermarkets and wet markets in Singapore. In supermarkets, chilled pork from Australia is the most common sight on the shelves. In wet markets, fresh and chilled pork from Indonesia and Australia respectively can be purchased. The available cuts were mainly loin, fillet, ribs and shoulder butt. Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, France and US pork can be obtained from selected supermarkets and meat speciality shops. More specialty cuts of pork are also available at these shops. Singapore consumers can also buy New Zealand pork from selected organic food shops.

Versatility (28.8%) and nutritional quality (29.3%) scored almost equally as reasons for purchasing and consuming pork. The versatility of pork in cooking is illustrated by results in Table 3.2. The price of pork is relatively cheaper than beef and mutton in Singapore, with pork prices ranging from $13 - $22 per kg for fresh pork (Indonesia) and $16 - $22 per kg for Australian chilled pork. The price was also dependent on the country of origin, with Canadian pork at about $18 - $25 per kg and New Zealand pork (organic) at $25 – 30 per kg.

Australian pork had a score of less than 50% for its perception as a “tasty meat” (Table 3.3). Consumers purchased Australian pork because “it is easily available” (85.4%), “safe to be consumed” (84.2%) and “reasonably cheap” (68.2%). Canadian pork, on the contrary, was not seen as readily available by the respondents (15.1%). In addition, it scored low in flavour (27.4%) and was not considered cheap (23.2%) by these Singapore consumers. Unlike New Zealand beef, New Zealand pork is only available for sale in meat speciality and organic food shops. At the point of survey, Trim Pork from New Zealand was available at some Cold Storage supermarket outlets. New Zealand pork scored 90.3% for being “safe to be consumed”, which was a far cry from the score by China pork. Indonesian pork had a score of 75.9% in “versatility to use in cooking”, a characteristic that was probably associated with its high score as a “tasty meat” (Table 3.3).

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Table 3.3

The frequency (%) with which respondents agreed with various “reasons for purchasing and consuming pork”, when the pork was from China, New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Canada or others countries1 (Chinese population only).

Product features Country-of-origin (% that responded for each feature) 1

Australia Canada China Indonesia New

Zealand

Others (Brazil, USA)

It is easily available 85.4 15.1 50.2 69.2 9.3 10.0

It is versatile to use in cooking 66.5 55.5 73.4 75.9 62.9 60.3

It is reasonably cheap 68.2 23.2 78.0 73.7 20.9 24.5

It is a tasty meat 46.3 27.4 77.3 82.7 33.8 35.2

It has a good texture 50.4 45.3 70.1 69.0 43.9 46.5

It is safe to be consumed 84.2 86.9 10.7 67.9 90.3 54.7

1 _{Responses to the question: “What are your reasons for purchasing and consuming pork from these}

countries? (China, New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Canada and others)”

Pork from other countries like Brazil and USA was only available in selected shops, and was not common in the main Singapore supermarkets with popular household names like Fairprice and Cold Storage. Pork from these countries had a score of less than 40% as “a cheap meat” and “tasty meat”. In terms of texture, the purchasing intent and consumption scores were similar for Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Brazil and USA with close to 50% of the respondents giving this as a reason.