THE IMPORTANCE OF THE OCCUPATIONAL FACTORS IN LOCAL FOOD CONSUMPTION BEHAVIOR

In the context of tourism and regional development, local food consumption has become one of the popular research topics in recent years. Despite this importance, there are no studies specifically addressing the impact of the occupational factors on local food purchasing behavior, while the role of age, gender, education, income and belief in purchasing behaviors is among the demographic components of most of the researches. In this study, local food consumption behaviors of individuals from different occupations were investigated and results were evaluated from the perspectives of tourism, sustainability, regional identity and development. The research was conducted in Adiyaman province of Turkey, where the traditional production continues and the consumption of local food is widespread. As the results of the research, occupation have been influential on the local food purchasing behaviors of participants in the fields of housewifery, healthcare, agriculture and food. Moreover, the income also has been influential factor on the purchasing behavior of local food of self-employed and workers.