Abstract There is increasing demand for organic food products throughout the Western world. Health concerns have frequently been found to be the main motivation of consumers purchasing organic products, but the literature on consumer preferences and behavior is less clear about what ‘health’ means to consumers of these products, and because of this it remains unclear what exactly drives consumers to choose organic products. This article investigates health from the perspective of consumers, and analyzes negotiations of, and justifications behind, their consumption preferences. The analysis is based on a focus group study conducted in Denmark in 2016. Three different understandings of health can be found when consumers explain their preferences for organic products: Health as purity; Health as pleasure, and a Holistic perspective on health. The first two are familiar from the literature on food. The third, which reflects principles behind organic agriculture, is less documented in the context of consumption. Health as purity was the dominant understanding of health used by the participants when explaining why they purchased organic food products. When participants discussed healthy eating in general, detached from a specific context, most employed a purely nutritional perspective as a definitive argument in supporting claims about healthy eating. The paper’s findings have implications for future research on organic consumption. They also have practical implications for organic food producers and manufacturers.

中文翻译：

---

健康食品有营养，但有机食品健康，因为它是纯净的：丹麦有机食品消费者对健康食品选择的谈判

摘要 西方世界对有机食品的需求不断增加。人们经常发现健康问题是消费者购买有机产品的主要动机，但关于消费者偏好和行为的文献并不清楚“健康”对这些产品的消费者意味着什么，因此尚不清楚究竟是什么驱动因素消费者选择有机产品。本文从消费者的角度考察健康，分析消费者对消费偏好的谈判和背后的理由。该分析基于 2016 年在丹麦进行的焦点小组研究。当消费者解释他们对有机产品的偏好时，可以发现三种对健康的不同理解：健康即纯度；健康即快乐，以及对健康的整体看法。前两个是从食物文献中熟悉的。第三个反映了有机农业背后的原则，但在消费方面的记录较少。健康即纯度是参与者在解释他们购买有机食品的原因时对健康的主要理解。当参与者从特定的背景下大体讨论健康饮食时，大多数人采用纯粹的营养观点作为支持健康饮食主张的明确论点。该论文的发现对未来有机消费的研究具有重要意义。它们对有机食品生产商和制造商也具有实际意义。健康即纯度是参与者在解释他们购买有机食品的原因时对健康的主要理解。当参与者从特定的背景下大体讨论健康饮食时，大多数人采用纯粹的营养观点作为支持健康饮食主张的明确论点。该论文的发现对未来有机消费的研究具有重要意义。它们对有机食品生产商和制造商也具有实际意义。健康即纯度是参与者在解释他们购买有机食品的原因时对健康的主要理解。当参与者从特定的背景下大体讨论健康饮食时，大多数人采用纯粹的营养观点作为支持健康饮食主张的明确论点。该论文的发现对未来关于有机消费的研究具有重要意义。它们对有机食品生产商和制造商也具有实际意义。该论文的发现对未来有机消费的研究具有重要意义。它们对有机食品生产商和制造商也具有实际意义。该论文的发现对未来有机消费的研究具有重要意义。它们对有机食品生产商和制造商也具有实际意义。