Price determinants in top-quality e-auctioned specialty coffees

We analyze the price determinants of specialty coffees traded at e-auctions. We hypothesize that since specialty coffees are a highly differentiated product, prices will be determined by both sensory and reputation attributes. To test our hypotheses, we estimate a hedonic price function using data from Central and South American e-auctions and calculate the implicit prices of sensory and reputation attributes. The results show that market clearing prices are a function of sensory characteristics and reputation variables including third-party quality ranking, country of origin, coffee variety, and quantity. The additional attribute information disclosed at e-auctions results in substantially higher prices relative to conventional commodity coffee market prices.     

A hedonic approach to estimating the supply of variety attributes of a subsistence crop

The article extends the household hedonic model by estimating a supply function for variety attributes of a subsistence crop in a developing economy. The model is applied to bananas in Uganda, making use of disaggregated data on variety‐specific farm‐gate banana bunch prices and attributes, while accounting for the semisubsistence nature of banana‐producing households. The article is motivated by the need to understand the attribute trade‐offs made by farmers at the farm gate in light of targeted variety improvement efforts and their impact on banana markets. Whether variety improvement will pay off at the market level requires a more detailed examination of the relative worth of banana attributes within the structure of consumer preferences and production technologies related to bananas in Uganda. The results confirm the importance of consumption and production attributes in selling behavior. Quality and bunch size are found to be complements at the farm gate. Banana bunches that capture a premium at the market will be those that provide bundles of desirable consumption and production attributes simultaneously. By revealing important price–attribute relationships, the findings provide guidance for crop improvement efforts and diversification choices, while taking into account implicit market signals for output attributes.     

Trade-offs between consumer concerns: An application for pork supply chains

This paper studies, by means of customized conjoint analysis, the trade-offs that Dutch consumers make between multiple pork-production attributes, and their relation to consumer concerns. Results show that attributes that deal with animal welfare and food safety are on average perceived as the most important pork-production attributes. Not surprisingly, they are less important than the product attributes taste and price. Still, a number of market segments can be identified in which taste and price are relatively less important. Results support the implementation of differentiated chain designs with distinct and innovative decisions on trade-offs to be made, such as with respect to the housing of pigs and the use of genetic modification.     

Shadow pricing diversity in U. S. national forests

Tobit estimation of the market value of timber sales in national forests of North Carolina demonstrates the important effect of stand diversity on the formulation of bid prices for mixed-species timber tracts. The hedonic model generates a shadow price for diversity according to changes in bid prices, an effective shift in the demand curve for auctioned tracts due to stand diversity attributes. This approach contrasts with traditional shadow price analyses that focus on the supply effects of environmental constraints. Results are corrected for the effects of bidder participation, market conditions, production costs, and other stand attributes. Econometric results demonstrate that stand heterogeneity is a highly significant factor influencing the market value of timber sales from national forests of the Appalachian region. Greater heterogeneity results in lower bid prices for timber sales, indicating a positive shadow price for maintenance of stand diversity.     

Segmenting the Wine Market Based on Price: Hedonic Regression when Different Prices mean Different Products

Many economists have estimated hedonic price functions for red and white wine. However, estimating a single hedonic price function imposes the assumption that the implicit prices of the attributes are the same for any red or white wine. We argue that even within these two categories, wines are differentiated, and disregarding this heterogeneity causes an aggregation bias in the estimated implicit prices. By estimating hedonic functions specific to price ranges, we show that the wine market is segmented into several product classes or market segments. We find that a model accounting for the existence of wine classes has greater ability to explain the variability in the data and produces more accurate and interpretable results regarding the implicit prices of the attributes.     

Product Differentiation with Credence Attributes and Private Labels: The Case of Whitefish in UK Supermarkets

The retail market for seafood is dynamic with substantial competition both amongst retailers and between private labels and national brands. New product attributes are added in attempts to differentiate products and to attract consumers. Credence attributes, in particular those related to eco‐labels and fishing method, have become more common. But little is known about how these and other credence attributes are valued in the retail market. In addition, little is known about price differences between private labels. To estimate the value of these attributes, weekly in‐store observations of selected frozen whitefish products were conducted in seven UK retail chains in the city of Glasgow. An estimated hedonic model shows a substantial price premium for fishing method (line‐caught), a premium for both home (Scottish) and non‐home country of origin (Icelandic) and a premium for the Marine Stewardship Council eco‐label. An uncertified eco‐label owned by a large seafood manufacturer leads to reduced price. The study also reveals substantial price differences between private labels for whitefish. The results contribute new insights regarding opportunities for differentiation by credence attributes which may lead to more sustainable and effective resource use along the value chain for frozen whitefish.     

A Hedonic Analysis of Nutrition and Health Claims on Fruit Beverage Products

This paper investigates the effects on prices of nutrition and health claims for foodstuffs, in addition to other attributes, using fruit beverages as a case study. The model estimation is based on revealed purchasing behaviour for fruit beverages in the north‐east of Italy. Applying an hedonic price model, the price of a product is explained as a function of product attributes. The model estimate identifies the implicit retail‐market‐level price of specific attributes such as nutrition and health claims, ceteris paribus. Nutrition and health claims significantly affect retail prices. Our findings suggest that retail price response to nutrition and health claims differs in relation to other product attributes, showing a strong reduction of price variation among flavours when such benefits are claimed on the label.     

Effects of perceived product quality and Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability (LOHAS) on consumer price preferences for children's furniture in China

The effects of perceived product quality and orientation toward Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability (LOHAS) on consumer price preferences were studied with the use of survey data of the children's furniture market in two metropolitan cities of China: Shanghai and Shenzhen. Based on the results from a factor analysis and logistic regression, consumers’ perceived product quality of children's furniture was identified as a four-dimensional construct: ‘supplier attributes’, ‘extended product attributes’, ‘basic product attributes’ and ‘environmental quality attributes’. Consumer price preferences were discovered to be negatively influenced by ‘basic product attributes’, but positively influenced by consumer orientation towards LOHAS, gender and education level. In conclusion, China's children's furniture market presents a high-end niche segment with growth potential for both furniture producers and wood material suppliers.     

A Case Study in the Marketing of "Wolf-Friendly" Beef

This study examines an effort in New Mexico to establish a niche within the domestic beef market. The beef was marketed under environmental attributes with the slogan "Wolf-Friendly." Two environmental groups, Defenders of Wildlife and Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics, endorsed the management practices of the ranch producing the beef. A kick-off event for the "Wolf-Friendly" Beef was held at the Albuquerque Zoo at the onset of the market test. Two retail grocery stores and the zoo participated in a month-long market test. A survey was conducted at the zoo kick-off to determine participants' views on public land use, riparian protection, and predator preservation issues, and consumer willingness to pay for beef products that foster these environmental attributes. Sales and survey data from the market test were analyzed.     

Heterogeneous Demand and Supply for an Insurance‐linked Credit Product in Kenya: A Stated Choice Experiment Approach

We employ a discrete choice experiment to elicit demand and supply side preferences for insurance‐linked credit, a promising market‐based tool for managing agricultural weather risks and providing access to credit for farmers. We estimate preference heterogeneity using primary data from smallholder farmers and managers of lenders/insurers combined with household socio‐economic survey data in Kenya. We analyse the choice data using maximum simulated likelihood and Hierarchical Bayes estimation of a mixed logit model. Although there are some similarities, we find that there is conflicting demand and supply side preferences for credit terms, collateral requirements, and loan use flexibility. We also analyse willingness to buy and willingness to offer for farmers and suppliers, respectively, for the risk premium for different attributes and their levels. Identifying the preferred attributes and levels for both farmers and financial institutions can guide optimal packaging of insurance and credit providing market participation and adoption motivation for insurance‐bundled credit product.     

Fish market integration and demand analysis: a Mediterranean case study

This study discusses the importance of delineating market boundaries prior to undertaking demand analysis. The Northern Adriatic Sea is considered a good case study by which to test this approach, given the richness of species landed there and their heterogeneous distribution across the space involved. Three groups of demersal species (whitefish, cephalopods, and crustaceans) are chosen for the study. First, geographical market boundaries are defined for each product (species) using price–price relations between market places. Second, demand is analyzed inside the defined market area through the linear approximation of the inverse almost ideal demand system. Geographical market integration bears several patterns of complete or partial integration, depending on the species. It could be said that integration is higher for species of high economic relevance among regions where large quantities are landed. For all product groups, our estimations suggest that moderate substitution effects do exist among species. The characteristics of the fleets and of the buyers, as well as the biophysical attributes of the sea basin (i.e., species richness and heterogeneous spatial distribution) are discussed as explanatory variables of market integration/segmentation.     

Hedonic wine price functions with different prices

This study examines the impact that recommended retail prices, actual market prices and the release of a prominent wine guide have on Australian wine hedonic price estimates, for attributes such as sensory quality, winery reputation and grape region. In general, hedonic price estimates appear to be independent of prices employed. The main identified differences in estimates relate to the size of the producer and some regional impacts. For market prices only, increases in producer size are estimated to reduce prices. This implies the existence of supply chain quantity discounting price practices. The impact of an authoritative wine guide appears to have a negligible influence on prices in Australia. In the absence of market transaction prices, the common practice of employing recommended prices for hedonic wine price estimation is defendable.     

The Value of Product Attributes,Brands and Private Labels: An Analysis of Frozen Seafood in Germany

It is well known that the price of a food in general and fish in particular is a function of a number of attributes such as species, product form, processing form and size. However, limited attention has been given to the influence of private labels, production method, eco‐labels and promotions. We use a unique dataset which identifies these attributes in the German seafood market. We estimate a hedonic price function, and our results highlight the importance of brand and labels for seafood prices in Germany. Our results also suggest that private label products are discounted by 20%, while branded products achieve substantial price premiums, as do fish products from aquaculture.     

The incidence of agricultural policy on the land market in Poland: Two-dimensional and multilevel analysis

Research has shown that the reform of the CAP which broke the link between subsidies and production (the decoupling reform) has had little effect on farmers’ demand for land under the SPS (Single Payment Scheme) system. For this reason, in the conditions of the SPS, there is petrifaction of the structure of agricultural land, and an upward trend in prices on the market for agricultural land should not be expected to continue in the long term. Under the conditions of the SAPS (Single Area Payment Scheme), which applies in the EU-12 new Member States, the position in the market for agricultural land is different. However, most research carried out in Europe relates to the SPS system, where marginal changes in the value of land are identified as a result of the incidence of agricultural policy, as well as quantitative and qualitative attributes of particular properties. Under SAPS, these issues have not been sufficiently investigated. The authors have attempted to fill that gap, constructing a two-dimensional and multilevel econometric model for land prices in a leading agricultural region of Poland based on a sample of 653 transactions in the years 2010–2013. The aim is to determine how policy, as well as various quantitative and qualitative features, including location factors, affect the prices of land under SAPS. The results indicate, among other things, the key importance of the functional type of rural areas – properties in agrotouristic areas gained 43% higher prices on average than those in agricultural areas. Another finding of interest is that LFA and agro-environmental payments decapitalise the value of land.     

土地隐形市场的经济学分析

从经济学角度对土地隐形市场进行了分析,认为进入土地隐形市场的产权都具有一定的垄断性,对消费者剩余最大化的追求是买方进行土地隐形交易的动机,隐形交易所承担的风险成本决定人们进行交易的积极性,并提出了土地隐形市场规模的数学模型。     

Land-property markets and planning: A special case

Land use policy often intervenes in land-property markets. This raises a question that may have critical implications for land use policy: are these normal markets? This paper addresses that question: are land and property ordinary market goods, or do they lack some of the preconditions necessary for markets to work properly? We find that land-property has limited substitutability, due to the critical factor of location; qualified by location, land is limited and sometimes unique. These attributes make land and property investment assets risking speculation, warranting public intervention to mitigate negative social consequences. Land-property markets need market or administrative support to work, which planning provides through public and private agents. The paper reviews the different forms of planning and development control in land-property markets.     

Assessing Consumer and Producer Preferences for Animal Welfare Using a Common Elicitation Format

We assess pig farmers’ willingness‐to‐accept (WTA) higher farm animal welfare (FAW) standards and consumers’ willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) for thus enhanced standards. The analysis is based on discrete choice experiments with nearly identical choice sets for both farmers (N=140) and consumers (N=554). Based on preference estimates from a random parameter logit (RPL) model, supply and demand curves for high‐welfare pork in Germany are estimated and market equilibria are derived for alternative levels of FAW. We find that estimates of consumer WTP are significantly positive for all FAW attributes: consumers value more surface space per pig, more bedding and manipulable material, less surgical interventions and shorter transportation times. In contrast, our model revealed significant producer WTA estimates only for surface area per pig and the amount of bedding material on offer, but not for the other FAW attributes. Farmers who expect to continue farming and engage in direct marketing are more likely to adopt higher FAW standards. Male consumers and those who find price more important than brand, origin or taste are less likely to buy high‐welfare pork, as are consumers who never purchase organic meat products. Market simulations for high‐welfare pork indicate increasing divergence between demand and supply with rising FAW standards. We estimate a market share of 44.6% for pork produced in compliance with an entry‐level FAW programme with standards only slightly above the legal minimum. Programmes with more demanding standards are estimated to gain much smaller market shares.     

Consumer Willingness to Pay for Cue Attribute: The Value Beyond Its Own

Using Certified U.S. Product as a product cue, we show that consumer willingness to pay for other identifiable search and experience attributes change. Certified U.S. Product serves as a substitute for Guaranteed Tender and a complement of Guaranteed Lean. Results have important implications for policymakers and food companies interested in food labeling programs in the presence of cue attributes such as Certified U.S. Product. The substitute effects of a cue attribute on other product attributes may contribute to deteriorating product quality and the complement effects of a cue attribute could improve product quality in the market.