Taste of home: Birth town bias in Geographical Indications

Giuliano Resce (giuliano.resc@gmail.com) and Vaquero-Piñeiro, Cristina (marco.ventura@uniroma1.it)

Economics & Statistics Discussion Papers from University of Molise, Department of Economics

Abstract: We investigate the role of local favoritism in the Geographical Indications (GIs) quality scheme, one of the main pillars of agri-food policy in the EU. Taking advantage of a rich and unique municipalities' geo-referenced database over the 2000-2020 period, we evaluate whether the birthplaces of Regional council members are favored in the acknowledgment of GIs in Italy. To address the potential confounding effects and selection biases, we combine a Difference in Difference strategy with machine learning methods for counterfactual analysis. Results reveal that councilors' birth municipalities are more likely to obtain their products certified as GIs. The birth town bias is more substantial in areas where the level of institutional quality is lower, there is higher corruption, and lower government efficiency, suggesting that the mediation of politicians is determinant where the formal standardized procedures are muddled.

Keywords: Political Economy; Geographical Indications; Political representation; Electoral success; Local Development. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 L66 Q18 R11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 32
Date: 2023-02-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-big, nep-cmp, nep-eur, nep-geo, nep-pol and nep-ure
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