Milk and milk products consumption pattern, preference and purchase behaviour in communal areas of the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa

A study was carried out between June 2014 and May 2015 using a pre-tested structured questionnaire and face to face interviews to characterize the consumption pattern, preference and purchase behaviour of milk and milk products in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. A multi-stage area probability sampling was used to select five hundred households from five districts within the Eastern Cape Province (100 from each district). The data was analysed using the IBM, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. The communal average family size in the province was between 5-10 members with a monthly income of ZAR1340 per household. The monthly mean of raw milk consumption pattern was (2.196± 1.423) 2-5 litres of cattle milk, (4.780±0.785) 2-5 litres of goat milk and (4.980±0.692) 2-5 litres of sheep milk per household. Pasteurised milk was found to be the most regularly consumed and preferred milk product with an average consumption of 4.78±0.84 litres per household per month. Monthly cattle milk product consumption were 0.5 kg-1 kg of powdered milk and 2-5 litres of sour milk. Household composition and consumer preference were (P<0.05) significantly the primary reasons for the consumption of milk and milk products. The standard price for milk and milk products ranged from R8.50-R9.50 per litre of fresh milk, R7.50-R8.50 per litre of sour milk, R33.00-R35 kg of powdered milk and R11.50-R12.50 litre of pasteurised milk. The study concluded that socio-demographic characteristics such as household size, household composition, gender of the household head and marital status   greatly affected consumption patterns of milk and milk products in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa.