A Structural Econometric Model of Joint Consumption of Goods and Recreational Time: An Application to Pick-Your-Own Fruit

This article develops a structural econometric consumer demand model for goods, which have time and monetary costs, and where time spent obtaining the goods also enters into the utility function. The model is used to analyze customers' decision to buy pick-your-own versus preharvested strawberries at North Carolina pick-your-own fruit operations. The analysis distinguishes the effect of time as a resource constraint and time that provides utility. Demand for strawberries sold at the operations is price elastic, and demand for pick-your-own strawberries is less price elastic than demand for preharvested strawberries.