Public Preferences for Farmed Landscapes: the Case of Traditional Chestnut Orchards in South Tyrol

Fedrigotti Valérie Bossi (), Troiano Stefania (), Fischer Christian () and Marangon Francesco ()
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Fedrigotti Valérie Bossi: Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Italy
Troiano Stefania: Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Udine, Italy
Fischer Christian: Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Italy
Marangon Francesco: Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Udine

European Countryside, 2020, vol. 12, issue 1, 99-118

Abstract: Sweet chestnuts are, from a farming point of view, a marginal crop in South Tyrol, though historically rooted. Chestnut orchards represent a cultural heritage, as well as an important aesthetic element of the cultural landscape, besides assuming a high ecological value for many animal and plant species. Public awareness towards this ecosystem is generally higher in autumn, when fruit consumption sees its peak and events take place. Using a Choice Experiment, we assessed whether seasonality interferes in people’s willingness-to-pay for a traditional chestnut orchard and its ecosystem services. We also investigated the importance of respondent origin (residents vs tourists) and, finally, a Latent Class analysis allowed us to depict segments of society in relation to their preferences. Our results show that tourists are ready to pay more than locals for chestnut orchards and for fruits, whereas seasonality has generally a low impact.

Keywords: Tourism; farming; chestnut orchards; ecosystem services; choice experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:vrs:eurcou:v:12:y:2020:i:1:p:99-118:n:6

DOI: 10.2478/euco-2020-0006

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