Analyzing hobby-gardeners' purchase intentions for peat-reduced potting soils in Germany, UK and USA – An extended theory of planned behavior approach

Peat is an important raw material for high-quality potting soils in horticulture. Since this use is associated with the release of greenhouse gases, governments, especially in Europe, are striving to reduce the proportion of peat in potting soils. As consumer reactions are hardly analyzed in this field, we investigate the purchase intention for peat-reduced potting soils in Germany, the UK, and the US using an extended framework of the theory of planned behavior (TPB). The results show a limited power of the classical TPB model parameters in explaining the differences between the three analyzed countries. Concerning the extended framework, variables related to the situation at the point of sale show the strongest influence on the purchase intention. Based on these results, we derive recommendations for marketing activities for peat-reduced potting soils to increase gardeners’ interest in such products.