IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/ajarec/v49y2005i2p197-209.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Japan: consumers' food safety perceptions and willingness to pay for tested beef

Author

Listed:
  • Jill J. McCluskey
  • Kristine M. Grimsrud
  • Hiromi Ouchi
  • Thomas I. Wahl

Abstract

The discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as ‘mad cow disease’, in Japan caused anxiety about consuming beef and beef products. As a result, there was a sudden fall in sales of beef that hurt the Japanese beef industry as well as major beef exporters to Japan. We analyse factors that affect Japanese consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) price premiums for BSE‐tested beef and estimate the mean WTP for BSE‐tested beef using data obtained from a consumer survey in Japan. A single‐bounded dichotomous choice contingent valuation model is used to recover the premium amount. We find that attitudes to food safety, reduction in beef consumption following the BSE outbreak, and being female all have a statistically significant positive effect on the WTP for BSE‐tested beef. Interestingly, demographic variables such as age and income do not affect the WTP, possibly indicating that the BSE scare similarly affected multiple segments of the population. In our sample, consumers are willing to pay a premium on average of greater than 50 per cent for BSE‐tested beef.

Suggested Citation

  • Jill J. McCluskey & Kristine M. Grimsrud & Hiromi Ouchi & Thomas I. Wahl, 2005. "Bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Japan: consumers' food safety perceptions and willingness to pay for tested beef," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 49(2), pages 197-209, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ajarec:v:49:y:2005:i:2:p:197-209
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8489.2005.00282.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8489.2005.00282.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1467-8489.2005.00282.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Laura O. Taylor & Ronald G. Cummings, 1999. "Unbiased Value Estimates for Environmental Goods: A Cheap Talk Design for the Contingent Valuation Method," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(3), pages 649-665, June.
    2. Adamowicz W. & Louviere J. & Williams M., 1994. "Combining Revealed and Stated Preference Methods for Valuing Environmental Amenities," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 271-292, May.
    3. R. K. Blamey & J. W. Bennett & M. D. Morrison, 1999. "Yea-Saying in Contingent Valuation Surveys," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 75(1), pages 126-141.
    4. Verbeke, Wim & Ward, Ronald W., 2001. "A fresh meat almost ideal demand system incorporating negative TV press and advertising impact," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 25(2-3), pages 359-374, September.
    5. Latouche, K. & Rainelli, P. & Vermersch, D., 1998. "Food safety issues and the BSE scare: some lessons from the French case," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(5), pages 347-356, October.
    6. Maria L. Loureiro & Jill J. McCluskey & Ron C. Mittelhammer, 2003. "Are Stated Preferences Good Predictors of Market Behavior?," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 79(1), pages 44-45.
    7. Price, David W. & Gislason, Conrad, 2001. "Identification of habit in Japanese food consumption," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 24(3), pages 289-295, March.
    8. M.‐J.J. Mangen & A.M. Burrell, 2001. "Decomposing Preference Shifts for Meat and Fish in the Netherlands," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(2), pages 16-28, May.
    9. Erikson, Glade R. & Wahl, Thomas I. & Jussaume, Raymond A., Jr. & Shi, Hongqi, 1998. "Product Characteristics Affecting Consumers' Fresh Beef Cut Purchasing Decisions In The United States, Japan, And Australia," Journal of Food Distribution Research, Food Distribution Research Society, vol. 29(3), pages 1-10, November.
    10. Michael Hanemann & John Loomis & Barbara Kanninen, 1991. "Statistical Efficiency of Double-Bounded Dichotomous Choice Contingent Valuation," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 73(4), pages 1255-1263.
    11. Barbara J. Kanninen, 1993. "Optimal Experimental Design for Double-Bounded Dichotomous Choice Contingent Valuation," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 69(2), pages 138-146.
    12. Lloyd, Tim & McCorriston, S. & Morgan, C. W. & Rayner, A. J., 2001. "The impact of food scares on price adjustment in the UK beef market," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 25(2-3), pages 347-357, September.
    13. Wim Verbeke & Ronald W. Ward & Jacques Viaene, 2000. "Probit analysis of fresh meat consumption in Belgium: Exploring BSE and television communication impact," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(2), pages 215-234.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Corsi, Alessandro, 2012. "Willingness-to-pay in terms of price: an application to organic beef during and after the “mad cow” crisis," Revue d'Etudes en Agriculture et Environnement, Editions NecPlus, vol. 92(01), pages 25-46, October.
    2. Verbeke, W. & Ward, R. W. & Avermaete, T., 2002. "Evaluation of publicity measures relating to the EU beef labelling system in Belgium," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 339-353, August.
    3. Robert J. Johnston & Kevin J. Boyle & Wiktor (Vic) Adamowicz & Jeff Bennett & Roy Brouwer & Trudy Ann Cameron & W. Michael Hanemann & Nick Hanley & Mandy Ryan & Riccardo Scarpa & Roger Tourangeau & Ch, 2017. "Contemporary Guidance for Stated Preference Studies," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(2), pages 319-405.
    4. W. Michael Hanemann, 1994. "Valuing the Environment through Contingent Valuation," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 8(4), pages 19-43, Fall.
    5. Jin, Jianjun & Wang, Zhishi & Ran, Shenghong, 2006. "Comparison of contingent valuation and choice experiment in solid waste management programs in Macao," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(3), pages 430-441, May.
    6. Jin, Hyun Joung & Sun, Changyou & Koo, Won W., 2003. "The Effect Of Food-Safety Related Information On Consumer Preference: The Case Of The Bse Outbreak In Japan," Agribusiness & Applied Economics Report 23636, North Dakota State University, Department of Agribusiness and Applied Economics.
    7. Adalja, Aaron & Hanson, James & Towe, Charles & Tselepidakis, Elina, 2015. "An Examination of Consumer Willingness to Pay for Local Products," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 44(3), pages 253-274, December.
    8. Hyun Joung Jin & Jang-Chul Kim, 2008. "The effects of the BSE outbreak on the security values of US agribusiness and food processing firms," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(3), pages 357-372.
    9. Richard T. Carson, 2011. "Contingent Valuation," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 2489.
    10. Nguyen, Hanh Tien & Ariyawardana, Anoma & Ratnasiri, Shyama, 2020. "Forest plantation owners' willingness to pay for hybrid nursery stock: The case of Acacia hybrids in Central Vietnam," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    11. Apurba Shee & Carlo Azzarri & Beliyou Haile, 2019. "Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for Improved Agricultural Technologies: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Tanzania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-13, December.
    12. Chen‐Ti Chen & John M. Crespi & William Hahn & Lee L. Schulz & Fawzi Taha, 2020. "Long‐run impacts of trade shocks and export competitiveness: Evidence from the U.S. BSE event," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 51(6), pages 941-958, November.
    13. Abou-Ali, Hala, 2003. "Using stated preference methods to evaluate the impact of water on health: the case of metropolitan Cairo," Working Papers in Economics 113, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    14. Haghani, Milad & Bliemer, Michiel C.J. & Rose, John M. & Oppewal, Harmen & Lancsar, Emily, 2021. "Hypothetical bias in stated choice experiments: Part II. Conceptualisation of external validity, sources and explanations of bias and effectiveness of mitigation methods," Journal of choice modelling, Elsevier, vol. 41(C).
    15. Maria Aguiar Fontes & Eric Giraud-Héraud & Alexandra Seabra Pinto, 2013. "Consumers' behaviour towards food safety: A litterature review," Working Papers hal-00912476, HAL.
    16. Swallow, Stephen K. & Opaluch, James J. & Weaver, Thomas F., 2001. "Strength-of-Preference Indicators and an Ordered-Response Model for Ordinarily Dichotomous, Discrete Choice Data," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 70-93, January.
    17. Hanemann, W. Michael & Kanninen, Barbara, 1996. "The Statistical Analysis Of Discrete-Response Cv Data," CUDARE Working Papers 25022, University of California, Berkeley, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
    18. Aye Chan Myae & Ellen Goddard, 2020. "Household behavior with respect to meat consumption in the presence of BSE and CWD," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 68(3), pages 315-341, September.
    19. Nick Hanley & Mandy Ryan & Robert Wright, 2003. "Estimating the monetary value of health care: lessons from environmental economics," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 12(1), pages 3-16, January.
    20. Aravena, Claudia & Hutchinson, W. George & Longo, Alberto, 2012. "Environmental pricing of externalities from different sources of electricity generation in Chile," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 1214-1225.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:ajarec:v:49:y:2005:i:2:p:197-209. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaresea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.