Assessing Consumer Acceptance and Willingness to Pay for Novel Value-Added Products Made from Breadfruit in the Hawaiian Islands

Abstract

Breadfruit is a high yielding tree crop with a long history in the Pacific Islands, with the potential to improve food security under climate change. Traditionally, it has been grown and used extensively as a food source in Hawaii, but in the past decades, it has been neglected, underutilized, and supplanted by imported staple foods. Revitalization of breadfruit is central for reducing dependency on food imports and increasing food resiliency and self-sufficiency in Hawaii. Such a process could potentially be strengthened by the development of novel value-added products. This empirical study investigates consumer acceptance and willingness to pay in two scenarios: with and without detailed product information about breadfruit and its cultural significance, nutritional benefits and potential contribution to increase local food security. A total of 440 consumers participated in the study. Participants receiving descriptive information had a higher level of acceptance and were willing to pay a higher price compared with participants who were not informed that the product was made from breadfruit: 1.33 ± 0.15 acceptance on the hedonic scale and 1.26 ± 0.23 USD (both p < 0.0001). In conclusion, repeated exposure and building a positive narrative around breadfruit products may increase consumer acceptability.

Interactions between People and Breadfruit in Hawai’i: Consumption, Preparation, and Sourcing Patterns

“…A total of 438 people participated in this survey. Overall demographics match well with state census data, indicating that survey participants generally represented the state population (Table 1) [22]. Of the respondents, the largest representations were Caucasian (59.1%), Asian (39.2%), and native Hawaiian (34.0%) ( Table 1): 21.5% of all respondents were of multiethnic backgrounds, which is a suitable value to reflect the State demographics that estimate about 24% of the populous to be two or more ethnicities [23].…”

“…As previous studies have suggested, consumer knowledge appears to play a role in consumption. Educational strategies to improve consumer awareness of nutrition and cooking methods may be determined with a basic understanding of consumer behavior, which is heavily influenced by individual attitude, self-identification and past associations, among other factors [22,24]. Therefore, education would be most effective if it stimulates positive attitudes toward health and well-being and relates to both traditional and modern-day breadfruit usage and cultivation.…”

“…While breadfruit has been examined from ethnographic, agronomic, and postprocessing perspectives, consumption of breadfruit has been scarcely investigated. Only a single study that addresses breadfruit consumption was identified in Trinidad, West Indies [21], and a recent study in Hawai'i examined consumer willingness to pay for breadfruit products [22]. It is important to understand the behavior of breadfruit consumers in order to support the development of the market and keep the crop relevant in the conversations of food security, food sovereignty, and human nutrition.…”

Resilience of breadfruit agro-ecosystems in Hawaiʻi during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…This trend is supported by findings of Fardkhales and Lincoln ( 2021) who conclude that 83% of food hubs increased their purchasing of local food from Hawaiian farmers during COVID-19. In effect the COVID-19 pandemic has had a positive impact on the narrative around local food which could offset important change for the future of the breadfruit crop in Hawaiʻi thereby increasing consumer acceptability of breadfruit in line with needs expressed in a study by Lysák et al (2019).…”

Linking Cork to Cork Oak Landscapes: Mapping the Value Chain of Cork Production in Portugal

“…These products are often sold at higher prices whilst communicating the values of the specific certification (García-Martín et al, 2020). Together with an increase in consumer awareness about production conditionsespecially food products (Ilbery and Kneafsey, 1999)-there is an opportunity for landscape products to integrate or promote sustainable management practises and a chance for an increased number of producers in rural areas to access the global market (Rueda and Lambin, 2012;Lysák et al, 2019).…”