What comes first, origin or production method? An investigation into the relative importance of different attributes in the demand for eggs

Abstract

IntroductionConsumer food demand is not only driven by food product prices and consumer income as stated by traditional economic theory but increasingly by four classess of quality attributes for food products being those of sensory, health, process and convenience. Moreover, recent changes in consumer behavior have made consumers' demands more dynamic, complex and heterogeneous which are subject to cultural differences (Grunert, 2006). As a consequence, different consumer segments can be found in the food market with a different interpretation and preference for the four quality attributes (Grunert, 2006). Because of these differing segments a product differentiation strategy within the food market may provide producers a way to compete in the competitive and saturated food market.One of the quality attributes for which consumers are increasingly showing an interest are process attributes, the way and where a food product has been produced (Pouta et al., 2010). The reason behind this growing interest is related to the series of food scares in Europe, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) being the most prominent (Grunert, 2006). These have increased consumer interest in food production particularly in specific aspects such as the method of production and the origin (geographic) of production. In this paper, we focus on consumer preferences regarding the method and origin of production to better understand consumer demand in order to understand added value and differentiate food products that meet those consumers' demands.The literature studying consumer preference for different methods of production such as organic pro- AbstractThis paper analyses consumer preferences for different eggs attributes to assess the importance placed by consumers on the origin and method of production when shopping. The data comes from an experiment conducted in Spain during 2009. An Error Component Random Parameter Logit model is used to estimate the effect of different eggs characteristics on consumers' utility and derive their willingness to pay. Results suggest that consumers positively value the freerange and organic method of production and the local and regional origin and that they are willing to pay an additional € 0.85 for each package of six free-range or organic eggs, € 0.77 for locally produced and € 0.27 for regional produced eggs. Hence, the least valued eggs for consumers are those produced in cages and outside the region. Relative to this product, the highest willingness to pay corresponds to free-range or organic eggs followed by locally produced eggs and finally, by the regional eggs. Thus, we can conclude that Spanish consumers give more importance when shopping for eggs to the method of production than to the origin of production.

Exploring Perceptions of Raspberries and Blueberries by Italian Consumers

“…The price was not included in this classification, consistent with studies by Grunert [4] and Lopez Galan et al [49]. These previous studies emphasised that food demand not only is driven by the price of a product and the income of the consumer, as stated by classic economic theory, but is also increasingly driven by more complex and heterogeneous attributes.…”

Eliciting Egg Consumer Preferences for Organic Labels and Omega 3 Claims in Italy and Hungary

“…In Denmark, consumers are ready to pay a significant price premium (58%) for organic eggs [38]. In Spain, 80% of consumers were willing to pay a price premium for organic eggs (EUR 0.85 for a six package) [39] and organic and local claims were complements for many of the consumers [13]. For Italian occasional organic consumers, locally produced foods (including eggs) are considered to have a higher quality level than organic, as the latter was found to be more distant [40].…”

Consumer preferences for food labeling: What ranks first?

“…Moreover, empirical studies on consumer preferences for several types of food quality labeling in Europe have indicated that the most prevalent food labeling schemes in Europe were also the most analyzed and found to provide the most value to European consumers. Most empirical studies conducted in Europe have focused on assessing consumer preferences for processed methods (organic, animal welfare) and the origin of production (regional, local) (Andersen, 2011;Aprile et al, 2012;Denver and Jensen, 2014;Gracia et al, 2014;López-Galán et al, 2013;Olesen et al, 2010;Pouta et al, 2010;Resano et al, 2012;Yangui et al, 2014 to name only few of the most recent ones). However, several empirical studies have also analyzed preferences for these two claims together with other attributes such as health (nutritional information, health claims) and environment/sustainability (food miles, footprint) (de-Magistris and Koistinen et al, 2013;Øvrum et al, 2012).…”