Consumers’ Valuation of Farmers’ Varieties for Food System Diversity

Claudia Meier and Bernadette Oehen
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Claudia Meier: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, 5070 Frick, Switzerland
Bernadette Oehen: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, 5070 Frick, Switzerland

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 24, 1-29

Abstract: To increase the diversity in the food system from seed to fork, participatory on-farm breeding schemes have been proposed. For participatory on-farm breeding schemes to be successful, consumers need to be willing to compensate farmers for their efforts in breeding and in diversifying their cultivation. Using vegetables as an example, we investigated whether consumers of four selected European countries liked the idea of having farmers breed their own varieties and whether they would be willing to pay a premium for farmers’ as compared to standard varieties in a supermarket setting. The data was collected in an online survey and a willingness to pay was elicited using a contingent valuation approach. After providing respondents with information about the problem (diversity loss), solution (on-farm breeding), and the benefits of farmers’ varieties, consumers’ acceptance was very high and consumers were willing to pay a small premium. Our findings suggest that farmers’ varieties can be appealing to a wide range of consumers if the appropriate information is provided, as they not only address the increasing demand for more sustainable products but also for more food diversity and tasty products. To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine consumer preferences for farmers’ varieties for food system diversity.

Keywords: farmers’ varieties; food system diversity; agrobiodiversity; participatory on-farm breeding; willingness to pay; contingent valuation; price sensitivity meter; targeted information (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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