Examining the engagement of young consumers for religiously sanctioned food: the case of halal food in India

Religion plays an important role in promoting and inhibiting consumption of goods and services. Halal food, for instance, represents one such food permitted by Islam. Within a broader category of consumers for religiously sanctioned products such as halal food, young consumers represent an important segment, as they have a high lifetime value, thereby requiring special attention. This study aims to identify and examine individual and social factors that can foster young consumer’s engagement for halal products.

An inductive research approach using the Gioia method has been used to develop broader themes for discussion. The authors have also proposed a model for engaging young consumers for religiously sanctioned dietary products.

The paper provides empirical insights into the interplay of identities and value sources that encourages or forbids consumer engagement for halal products.

Globally, the halal food industry has been estimated to be worth $580bn, and it is growing at an average rate of 7 per cent annually. Marketers, thus, need to be aware of diverse consumers’ needs to provide a customized offering; they have to cater to adherent customers of these religiously sanctioned products by being sensitive to intricacies that make such food items consumable. The study will help marketers to better align their promotional strategies with the needs and requirement of young consumers.

In this paper, the authors have operationalized repeated interaction and associated consumption in the context of halal food to understand how religion and other factors play a role in strengthening or weakening consumer engagement. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no study has been done to understand young consumer’s engagement for halal food products in the Indian context. India being a land of multi-religion and multi-culture, such studies can provide rich insights.