Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-fbnjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-08T21:35:29.115Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Does Price or Income Affect Organic Choice? Analysis of U.S. Fresh Produce Users

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 January 2015

Travis A. Smith
Affiliation:
Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C
Chung L. Huang
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Biing-Hwan Lin
Affiliation:
Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C

Abstract

This study analyzes consumer purchasing behavior of organic fresh fruits and vegetables using the 2006 Nielsen Homescan panel. An ordered logit model was estimated to quantify the impacts of economic and socio-demographic factors on the probability of a household belonging to a specific organic user group—devoted, casual, or nonuser. Results suggest that price and income, to some extent, affect consumer purchases of organic produce. Additionally, the profile of an organic produce user is most likely to consist of an Hispanic household residing in the Western United States with children under 6 years old and a household head older than 54 years with at least a college degree.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bellows, A.C., Onyango, B., Diamond, A., and Hallman., W.K.Understanding Consumer Interest in Organics: Production Values vs. Purchasing Behavior.” Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization 6(2008): Article 2.Google Scholar
Bertrand, M., and Mullainathan., S.Do People Mean What They Say? Implications for Subjective Survey Data.” The American Economic Review, American Economic Association Meeting Papers and Proceedings 91 (May 2001):6772.Google Scholar
Buzby, J.C., and Skees., J.R.Consumers Want Reduced Exposure to Pesticides on Food--Charting the Costs of Food Safety.Food Review 17(1994): 1922.Google Scholar
Dettman, R., and Dimitri, C.Who's Buying Organic Vegetables? Demographic Characteristics of U.S. Consumers.” Journal of Food Products Marketing 16(2010): forthcoming.Google Scholar
Dimitri, C., and Oberholtzer., L. The U.S. Organic Handling Sector in 2004. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Economic Information Bulletin No. 36, 2008.Google Scholar
Durham, C.Organic Purchase Dedication: A Fractional Probit Model.Agricultural and Resource Economics Review 36(2007):304—20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fromartz, S. Organic, Inc.: Natural Foods and How They Grow. New York: Harcourt Trade Publishers, 2006.Google Scholar
Govindasamy, R., and Italia., J.Predicting Willingness-to-Pay a Premium for Organically Grown Fresh Produce.Journal of Food Distribution Research 30(1999):4453.Google Scholar
Hartman Group. Hartman Organic Research Review: A Compilation of National Organic Research Conducted by the Hartman Group. Bellevue, WA: The Hartman Group, Inc., 2002.Google Scholar
Hartman Group. Organic2006: Consumer Attitudes & Behavior, Five Years Later & Into the Future. Bellevue, WA: The Hartman Group, Inc., 2006.Google Scholar
Hill, H., and Lynchehaun., F.Organic Milk: Attitudes and Consumption Patterns.British Food Journal 104(2002):526–42.Google Scholar
Huang, C.L.Organic Foods Attract Consumers for the Wrong Reasons.Choices (New York, NY) 6(1991):1821.Google Scholar
Huang, C.L.Consumer Preferences and Attitudes toward Organically Grown Produce.European Review of Agriculture Economics 23(1996): 331-42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Huang, C.L., and Lin, B.-H.A Hedonic Analysis of Fresh Tomato Price among Regional Markets.Review of Agricultural Economics 29(2007):783800.Google Scholar
Li, J., Zepeda, L., and Gould., B.W.The Demand for Organic Food in the U.S.: An Empirical Assessment.Journal of Food Distribution Research 38(2007):5469.Google Scholar
Lin, B.-H., Smith, T., and Huang., C.L.Organic Premiums of US Fresh Produce.Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 23(2008):208—16.Google Scholar
Maddala, G.S. Limited-Dependent and Qualitative Variables in Econometrics. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1983.Google Scholar
McFadden, D.Econometric Models of Probabilistic Choice.” Structural Analysis of Discrete Data with Econometric Applications. Manski, C.F. and McFadden, D., eds., pp. 198272. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 1981.Google Scholar
Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ). Organic Markets Overview. Cleveland, OH: Penton Media, Inc., 2008.Google Scholar
O'Doherty Jensen, K., Larsen, H.N., Mølgaard, J.P., Andersen, J.-O., Tingstad, A., Marckmann, P., and Astrup., A.Økologiske Fpdevarer og Menne-skets Sundhed [Organic Foods and Human Health].” Denmark: Danish Research Center for Organic Farming, Report No. 14, 2001.Google Scholar
Roddy, G., Cowan, C., and Hutchinson., G.Consumer Attitudes and Behaviour to Organic Foods in Ireland.Journal of International Consumer Marketing 9(1996):4163.Google Scholar
StataCorp. Stata Statistical Software: Release 10. College Station, TX: StataCorp LP, 2007.Google Scholar
Stevens-Garmon, J., Huang, C.L., and Lin, B.-H.Organic Demand: A Profile of Consumers in the Fresh Produce Market.Choices (New York, N.Y.) 22(2007): 109–15.Google Scholar
Thompson, G.D.Consumer Demand for Organic Foods: What We Know and What We Need to Know.American Journal of Agricultural Economics 80(1998): 1113–18.Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Agriculture-Economic Research Service (USDA-ERS). “Data Sets: Organic Production.” Internet site: http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/Organic (Accessed November 17, 2008).Google Scholar
Wier, M., Jensen, K.O., Andersen, L.M., and Millock., K.The Character of Demand in Mature Organic Food Markets: Great Britain and Denmark Compared.Food Policy 33(2008): 406–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilkins, J.L., and Hillers., V.N.Influences of Pesticide Residue and Environmental Concerns on Organic Preference among Food Cooperative Members and Non-Members in Washington State.Journal of Nutrition Education 26(1994):2633.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williams, P.R.D., and Hammitt., J.K.Perceived Risks of Conventional and Organic Produce: Pesticides, Pathogens, and Natural Toxins.Risk Analysis: An International Journal 21(2001):319–30.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zepeda, L., and Li., J.Characteristics of Organic Food Shoppers.Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics 39(2007): 1728.Google Scholar
Zhang, F., Huang, C.L., Lin, B.-H., and Epperson., J.E.Modeling Fresh Organic Produce Consumption with Scanner Data: A Generalized Double Hurdle Model Approach.Agribusiness: An International Journal 24(2008): 510–22.Google Scholar