Cited by 360Economic and Environmental ValuationOrganic Food and AgricultureEnvironmental Sustainability in Business

Meta-analysis of consumers' willingness to pay for sustainable food products

Open access
Li, Shanshan, Kallas, Zein·2021·Appetite

Abstract

There is a continuous increase in the number of studies dealing with consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) price premiums for sustainable food products. This research focused on a broad area of sustainable food products, including different sustainable attributes using a meta-analysis of 80 worldwide studies. The publication bias was verified using the funnel plot and Egger's test. In addition, the subgroup analysis and meta-regression were applied to classify the source of heterogeneity. The results suggest that the overall WTP premium for sustainability (in percentage terms) is 29.5% on average. Furthermore, gender, region, sustainable attributes and food categories influence the average WTP estimates and their heterogeneity. Results also indicate that the WTP estimate conducted by hypothetical approach (choice experiment and contingent valuation method) is higher than non-hypothetical one due to hypothetical bias. In addition, the WTP estimate from the CVM is higher than that from the CE. Additionally, the WTP value of organic attribute is higher than the other sustainable attributes. The subgroup analysis indicates that the fruit &vegetable category has the highest WTP estimate while the seafood receives the lowest one. Results also highlight that Asian WTP estimates, in percentage terms, are higher than those obtained in North America and similar to those from Europe. In addition, positive WTP estimates are shown independent of the food categories, region or methods, denoting the presence of great market potential for sustainable products worldwide. The findings of this research can be used as a guide by food producers, marketers and policymakers when making decisions related to the sustainability of food products.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.appet.2021.105239

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Authors
Li, S., & Kallas, Z.
Affiliations
Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (ES)
Corresponding author
  • Li, Shanshan
  • Kallas, Zein
Venue
Appetite
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2021-08
Volume
163
Pages
105239
ISSN
0195-6663 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3140641139
Cited by
359
References
118
Citations by year
2026: 82 · 2025: 93 · 2024: 82 · 2023: 54 · 2022: 39 · 2021: 9
FWCI
8.99
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Appetite (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • UPCommons institutional repository (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Economic and Environmental Valuation
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Organic Food and Agriculture
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Environmental Sustainability in Business
Keywords
willingness to pay, sustainable food products, price premium, organic food, discrete choice experiment, contingent valuation, hypothetical bias, food categories, gender differences, regional variation, publication bias
MeSH terms
Consumer Behavior, Europe, Fruit, Humans

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