The role of information quality in designing effective nutrition education programs for pecans

Abstract

Pecans have many health benefits and are known for being part of a heart-healthy diet. Nutrition education is a key component in increasing pecan consumption among young consumers. In an effort to improve the efficacy of nutrition education targeting a younger demographic, this study aims to investigate how the information quality of a nutrition education program affects consumers' nutrition knowledge, trust, and intentions to recommend and try pecans. A total of 271 usable questionnaires were collected from college students at a southeast university. Our findings indicate that information quality could directly influence consumer knowledge and trust in an information source and indirectly influences consumers' willingness to recommend or try a product. This study also showed that improved consumer knowledge and trust in an information source could strongly affect their willingness to recommend pecan products. The findings of this study can be used to increase the efficacy of educational marketing strategies in the pecan industry and drive an increase in consumption among younger populations.

Keywords

• pecan
• nutrition education
• information quality
• willingness to recommend
• intent to try