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Testing for the Best Instrument to Generate Sustainable Food Consumption

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  • Panzone, Luca
  • Perino, Grischa
  • Swanson, Timothy
  • Leung, Denise

Abstract

The increase in the level of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the atmosphere in the last centuries, and the subsequent increase in temperature, has been a widely studied area in the last few decades. Climate change has become a key item on the political agenda due to concerns regarding the sustainability of current human consumption for future generations. Consumption of food and agricultural goods constitutes an important part of household based GHG emissions, and the relatively low costs associated with environmental improvements make it an interesting area of study to understand behavioural changes. Despite general agreement on the need to curb the amount of GHG emissions worldwide, little evidence exists regarding the best instruments policymakers can employ to stimulate changes toward more sustainable consumption. The present work explores which instruments are most effective in fostering change to more environmentally friendly food consumption. The instruments tested are CO2 labelling, GHG abatement subsidy and product-specific bans. We used a simulated online shopping trip in supermarkets in the Greater London area in the United Kingdom, where respondents shopped in four product categories: cola, milk, meat (chicken and beef), and butter/margarine. Consumer preferences reveal that, in the presence of these instruments, quantity instruments performed better than price incentives and labelling.

Suggested Citation

  • Panzone, Luca & Perino, Grischa & Swanson, Timothy & Leung, Denise, 2011. "Testing for the Best Instrument to Generate Sustainable Food Consumption," International Journal on Food System Dynamics, International Center for Management, Communication, and Research, vol. 2(3), pages 1-16, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:ijofsd:121945
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.121945
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Revoredo-Giha, Cesar & Chalmers, Neil & Akaichi, Faical, 2018. "Measuring the trade-off between greenhouse gas emissions and nutrition due to carbon consumption taxes in the UK," 92nd Annual Conference, April 16-18, 2018, Warwick University, Coventry, UK 273481, Agricultural Economics Society.
    2. Ariyawardana, Anoma & Lim-Camacho, Lilly & Crimp, Steven & Wellington, Michael & Somogyi, Simon, 2018. "Consumer Response to Climate Adaptation Strategies in the Food Sector: An Australian Scenario," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 383-393.
    3. Lanz, Bruno & Wurlod, Jules-Daniel & Panzone, Luca & Swanson, Timothy, 2018. "The behavioral effect of Pigovian regulation: Evidence from a field experiment," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 190-205.
    4. Li, Xiaogu & Jensen, Kimberly L. & Clark, Christopher D. & Lambert, Dayton M., 2016. "Consumer willingness to pay for beef grown using climate friendly production practices," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 93-106.
    5. Cesar Revoredo-Giha & Neil Chalmers & Faical Akaichi, 2018. "Simulating the Impact of Carbon Taxes on Greenhouse Gas Emission and Nutrition in the UK," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-19, January.

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