Purpose: This article aims to analyse various wine differentiation strategies (price, origin, type and production system) to counteract the commercial success of new wine producers compared to traditional ones.Design/methodology/approach: The methodology consisted of a survey of 400 Castilla‐La Mancha wine consumers during the month of March 2004, whose preferences were determined through several multivariate techniques.Findings: Three consumer segments were identified: the first shops for wine mainly by price, the second, by origin and the third, by a combination of price and type of wine. In this sense, except for the first segment, where competition by a cheaper wine from other places could endanger the local market, possible strategies would be to continue emphasising origin in a traditional approach and to search for a new wine differentiation based on organic production. Both strategies, which can be carried out jointly, would require government backing in addition to support from the business sector.Originality/value: This paper contributes to a greater knowledge of Spanish consumer habits by analysing the degree of influence that various factors have on attitudes towards the purchasing of wine.

Purpose – The paper aims to measure the degree of influence that attributes such as price, origin, type and production system have on Spanish consumers when purchasing cheese, while also analysing various cheese differentiation strategies. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology consisted in a survey of 420 Madrid (Spain) cheese consumers during the month of December 2006, whose preferences were determined through several multivariate techniques. Findings – The first result derived from this paper is the negative influence of the organic production system attribute on the cheese consumer preference structure. Therefore, this attribute becomes an inadequate differentiation strategy for cheese, while origin is the most adequate differentiation. In this sense, three consumer segments are identified: the first, shops for cheese mainly by type, the second, by a combination of origin, type and price and the third, by an origin of cheese. In this sense, except for the first segment, where competition by a type of cheese from other places could endanger the local market, possible strategies would be to continue emphasizing origin in a traditional approach. Originality/value – The paper highlights organic differentiation in products already differentiated and accepted by the consumer does not always contribute additional utility to the consumer. It does not matter whether this differentiation and acceptance comes from origin and/or traditional production, as is the case of Manchego cheese.

The current demand for healthy and sustainable foods has encouraged the development of new alternatives even in traditional products. Improved foods may be produced by reducing the amount of some ingredients, adding new ones, or replacing traditionally used ingredients for others. By reformulating their products, manufacturers can offer healthier choices for an ever-growing number of consumers interested in maintaining a balanced diet. In addition, the market demand for more sustainable foods contributes to a lower environmental impact in their production. In this regard, current areas of interest include the production of foods using a lower number of inputs, as well as the utilization of food by-products, to improve the amount and quality of available foods. Another aspect to be considered is that not all consumers are willing to eat foods produced with new ingredients or novel technologies. Hence, the development of innovations in food products should take into account the influence of so-called “consumer food neophobia”.