The Effect of Environmental Awareness and Perceptions of Quality, Price, and Organic Labeling on the Intention to Purchase Organic Rice, with Trust as a Moderating Variable Trust

Abstract

Organic rice consumption in Indonesia is increasing alongside growing health and environmental awareness; however, purchase intention remains inconsistent because consumers continue to have concerns regarding price, quality, labeling credibility, and trust. This study aimed to examine the effects of environmental awareness, perceived quality, perceived price, and perceived organic labeling on organic rice purchase intention, as well as the moderating role of trust. A quantitative explanatory design with a cross-sectional survey was employed. Data were collected from 184 organic rice consumers across Java using purposive sampling and a seven-point Likert-scale questionnaire. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS 4 and bootstrapping with 5,000 subsamples. The results showed that perceived organic labeling had a significant positive effect on purchase intention (B = 0.31, p < 0.05), while trust also had a significant direct effect (B = 0.26, p < 0.05). Environmental awareness, perceived quality, and perceived price had no significant effects on purchase intention. Moreover, trust did not significantly moderate any of the proposed relationships. The model explained 50.5% of the variance in purchase intention. These findings indicate that credibility, particularly through trustworthy organic certification and consumer trust, is a primary factor shaping organic rice purchase intention in Indonesia.