Do consumers value biodegradable plastic packaging?

Abstract

Biodegradable plastics are slowly being introduced in the food industry to protect the environment, but consumer willingness to pay a premium remains uncertain. This study uses a choice experiment and latent class logit model to assess consumers' valuation for biodegradable plastic packaging and examines the impact of different information types on the willingness to pay estimates. Findings suggest that consumers are willing to pay a premium ($1.32) for biodegradable packaging over conventional options, with additional information increasing the willingness to pay by over $0.50. These results imply that higher prices may not deter consumers from choosing biodegradable plastic packaging.