Estimating willingness-to-pay for neonicotinoid-free plants: Incorporating pro-environmental behavior in hypothetical and non-hypothetical experiments

Abstract

This study investigates the extent to which individuals’ perceptions and attitudes toward pesticides and pollinator related labeling influence their preferences for eco-labeled products. An incentive compatible second-price auction and a hypothetical discrete choice experiment were used to elicit individual preferences for ornamental plants grown with or without controversial (neonicotinoid) pesticides. Positive attitudes toward pollinators, neonicotinoid labeling regulations, and labeling of sustainable production methods were found to be significant predictors of individual choice behavior. Individuals with attitudes expressing concern for pollinators and agreement with mandatory labeling and disclosure of neonicotinoids, showed a stronger preference for neonicotinoid-free plants. Our results suggest that both hypothetical and non-hypothetical experiments are consistent in predicting the general direction of consumer preferences despite the elicitation mechanism. Implications for relevant stakeholders are discussed.

Effects of Benefits Messaging on Consumer Purchasing of Plants

“…Compared with the average spending for US households on lawn and garden activities ($458.26), the sample spent much less ($134.07) in 2021 (Whitinger and Cohen 2021). This is similar to results in Knuth et al (2018Knuth et al ( , 2020 and Wei et al (2021). Participants purchased an average of 2.54 plants in 2021.…”

Evaluation of the most popular annual flowers sold in the United States and Europe indicates low visitation rates by pollinators and large variation among cultivars

“…This has been documented in surveys of garden center consumers. Pollinator-friendly plants, or plants labeled in this way, tend to be preferred by consumers and may support a higher price ( Khachatryan et al 2017 , Khachatryan and Rihn 2018 , Wei et al 2021 ). Unfortunately, plants may be marketed as pollinator-friendly when they are not very attractive to pollinators or have been treated with insecticides ( Garbuzov and Ratnieks, 2014b , Garbuzov et al 2017 , Lentola et al 2017 ).…”

Attitudes Toward and Preferences of Florida Consumers and Growers Regarding a Proposed Scientifically Based University Certification Process for Wildlife-friendly Plants

“…According to the National Gardening Survey, lawn and garden participation in the United States is at a 16-year high of 78% (Whitinger and Cohen 2022). Consumers are willing to pay more for plants advertised as pollinator-friendly (Khachatryan et al 2021;Wei et al 2021). At the same time, gardeners are becoming more concerned about the use of insecticides, like neonicotinoids, during the production phase of pollinator-friendly plants (Khachatryan et al 2014;Rihn and Khachatryan 2016).…”

“…Campbell et al (2017) found that the lack of labeling was a barrier to purchasing pollinatorfriendly plants for consumers. There is an opportunity for green industry stakeholders (growers) to participate in labeling strategies that communicate their production practices while educating consumers about a the environmental contributions of a plant (Campbell et al 2017;Khachatryan et al 2021;Krebs et al 2022;Wei et al 2021).…”