Malte Oehlmann , Irina Dolgopolova , Christina M. Neubig , Jutta Roosen
{"title":"Willingness to pay for animal welfare across labels, products, consumers, and time","authors":"Malte Oehlmann , Irina Dolgopolova , Christina M. Neubig , Jutta Roosen","doi":"10.1016/j.foodqual.2025.105708","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In recent years, the number of labels indicating improved animal welfare conditions on meat products has increased making it difficult for consumers to understand, evaluate, and compare husbandry conditions across products. Based on a discrete choice experiment implemented in three cross-section surveys over a period of 15 months with a total of 6000 German respondents, we estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) for various levels of animal welfare associated with different meat products. We use three existing labels with overlapping animal welfare requirements mimicking the situation in the German meat market: The well-established organic label as well as a binary animal welfare label by the Animal Welfare Initiative and a multi-level animal husbandry label which were introduced in Germany in 2015 and 2019, respectively. We show that the multi-level label scheme leads to more product differentiation and, subsequently, higher WTP estimates. WTP further depends on meat type, where animal welfare improvements for beef and chicken products are valued much higher compared to those for pork. WTP for the organic and the highest level of the husbandry label increases with higher household incomes. WTP for these labels on chicken is also higher among women.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":322,"journal":{"name":"Food Quality and Preference","volume":"135 ","pages":"Article 105708"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9000,"publicationDate":"2025-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Food Quality and Preference","FirstCategoryId":"97","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0950329325002836","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"FOOD SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In recent years, the number of labels indicating improved animal welfare conditions on meat products has increased making it difficult for consumers to understand, evaluate, and compare husbandry conditions across products. Based on a discrete choice experiment implemented in three cross-section surveys over a period of 15 months with a total of 6000 German respondents, we estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) for various levels of animal welfare associated with different meat products. We use three existing labels with overlapping animal welfare requirements mimicking the situation in the German meat market: The well-established organic label as well as a binary animal welfare label by the Animal Welfare Initiative and a multi-level animal husbandry label which were introduced in Germany in 2015 and 2019, respectively. We show that the multi-level label scheme leads to more product differentiation and, subsequently, higher WTP estimates. WTP further depends on meat type, where animal welfare improvements for beef and chicken products are valued much higher compared to those for pork. WTP for the organic and the highest level of the husbandry label increases with higher household incomes. WTP for these labels on chicken is also higher among women.
期刊介绍:
Food Quality and Preference is a journal devoted to sensory, consumer and behavioural research in food and non-food products. It publishes original research, critical reviews, and short communications in sensory and consumer science, and sensometrics. In addition, the journal publishes special invited issues on important timely topics and from relevant conferences. These are aimed at bridging the gap between research and application, bringing together authors and readers in consumer and market research, sensory science, sensometrics and sensory evaluation, nutrition and food choice, as well as food research, product development and sensory quality assurance. Submissions to Food Quality and Preference are limited to papers that include some form of human measurement; papers that are limited to physical/chemical measures or the routine application of sensory, consumer or econometric analysis will not be considered unless they specifically make a novel scientific contribution in line with the journal''s coverage as outlined below.