Low-carbon agricultural product adoption and purchase intensity in South Korea: associations with health claim types and protein consumption

Abstract Low-carbon agricultural certification has seen limited consumer adoption despite its promising role in mitigating climate change. This study identifies purchasing patterns associated with low-carbon agricultural product adoption and purchase intensity by analyzing claim-related purchasing and protein purchasing patterns. The analysis draws on consumer panel data from 1270 households collected by the Rural Development Administration of South Korea. The dataset encompasses grocery purchase transactions from 2022 to 2024. A two-part model was applied to separately estimate adoption probability and purchase intensity among adopters. The results show that sustainability-related claim purchasing was positively associated with both adoption and purchase intensity among adopters. Among health claims, reduction-focused claim purchasing was positively associated with adoption, whereas addition-focused claim purchasing was negatively associated with adoption. Frequent egg protein consumption was positively associated with low-carbon adoption, whereas plant-based protein consumption showed a positive association with intensity only among adopters. By disaggregating health claims into addition- and reduction-focused claims, this study demonstrates that health claim types are differentially associated with low-carbon product purchasing. Furthermore, the finding that habitual protein consumption patterns are associated with low-carbon certification engagement alongside external product cues offers targeted implications for marketers and policymakers seeking to expand the low-carbon agricultural product market.