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Provenance, Purity & Price Premiums: Consumer Valuations of Organic & Place-of-Origin Food Labelling (Executive Summary)

Paull, John (2006) Provenance, Purity & Price Premiums: Consumer Valuations of Organic & Place-of-Origin Food Labelling (Executive Summary). University of Tasmania , School of Geography and Environmental Studies.

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Document available online at: http://eprints.utas.edu.au/690/


Summary

China is now the world’s largest food producer for many food categories, and has recently embarked on a major conversion to organic agriculture. Australian farmers have described their industry as in crisis due to increasing competition from imports; they have called for strengthening of country of origin labelling on food. Priestley (2005) noted the absence of data on the premium Australian consumers will pay, if any, for Australian food produce. Halpin (2004) has reported that the current premiums on organic food are well beyond what Australian consumers are likely to be willing to pay, and that this will probably inhibit the growth of the industry in Australia. Vogl, Kilcher & Schmidt (2005) declare that consumers expect organic produce to be labelled with a regional identity. The present study set out to establish the values consumers place on organic, on provenance, and on faux-organic claims (Type II eco-labels), and to determine the interactions between these factors.
Australian consumers (N=221) were surveyed online. Organic was valued at an 8.12% premium, and Certified Organic was valued at a 15.63% premium. The provenance Australia was valued at a 25.98% premium over China, and Tasmania was valued at a 31.59% premium over China. Both Natural and Eco added value, 2.48% and 2.84% respectively.
Certified Organic attracted a lower premium when coupled with China (11.62%). This Organic x Provenance interaction was consistent with respondents declaring they lacked trust in Chinese labelling. Interaction effects for eight demographic variables, including age, education, and place of residence, are reported. Gender and income do not have a significant influence on consumer values.
This study found that adjunctive labelling offers both Australian and Chinese producers the opportunity to add value to their produce. It found that Australian producers would be beneficiaries from implementation of the Fair Dinkum Food Campaign's call for Country of Origin Labelling (CoOL), which is currently lacking on processed food. It establishes that organic is a path for both Australian and Chinese producers to add value. It suggests that China’s push into organic production has the potential to lead the world to an organic future, and continuing on this path may give China the opportunity to redefine the standard for internationally traded food as Certified Organic.


EPrint Type:Other
Thesis Type:Master of Environmental Management
Keywords:Country of Origin Labelling (CoOL), Place of Origin Labelling (PoOL), organic food, price premium, eco-labels, eco-labelling, natural, eco, China, Australia, Tasmania, consumers,consumer valuation, adjunctive labelling, food provenance.
Subjects:"Organics" in general > Countries and regions > Australia
Knowledge management > Research methodology and philosophy
"Organics" in general
Values, standards and certification
Values, standards and certification > Consumer issues
"Organics" in general > Countries and regions > China
Research affiliation:Australia > University of Tasmania
Deposited By: Paull, Dr John
ID Code:11587
Deposited On:17 Oct 2007
Last Modified:12 Apr 2010 07:35
Document Language:English
Status:Published
Refereed:Peer-reviewed and accepted
Additional Publishing Information:Full text available at: http://eprints.utas.edu.au/690/

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