A choice experiment model for beef: what US consumer responses tell us about relative preferences for food safety, country-of-origin labeling and traceability.

摘要

Several food safety issues have prompted questions regarding the role of country-of-origin labelling, traceability, and food safety inspections in consumers' perceptions of food safety and quality. The importance of origin-labelling and traceability have been discussed in the EU for some time. North American cases of mad cow disease have led to increased discussions of these topics in the USA, however, relatively little research has been conducted to examine the value US consumers place on these attributes. Choice experiments were used to analyse US consumers' relative preferences and willingness-to-pay for these meat attributes in labelled ribeye beef steaks. Relatively speaking, consumers value certification of USDA food safety inspection more than any of the other choice set attributes, including country-of-origin labelling, traceability and tenderness. As a result, indication of origin may only become a signal of enhanced quality if the source-of-origin is associated with higher food safety or quality..