Traceability in the Canadian Red Meat Sector

The agri-food chain today is significantly different from that of twenty years ago. Changing consumer demands, knowledge intensive technology, North American integration and globalization have all contributed to the evolution of the different segments of the chain, which include input suppliers, agricultural producers, food processors, and food distributors. The purpose of the performance report series is to create a picture of the economic health of the entire agri-food chain and its various segments, and to identify the challenges and opportunities that they will face in the future. To get a full picture of each component's and the whole chain's economic health, these reports will measure economic performance from several different perspectives; profitability, competitiveness, investment, productivity, innovativeness, etc. Traceability systems can vary from simple traceback systems to systems that provide identity preservation and quality assurance. This report reviews the different red meat traceability systems that are in place around the world, and explores the question: 'What kind of a traceability system do Canadian consumers want in the red meat sector?' The authors use experimental auctions of beef and ham sandwiches to estimate consumers' willingness to pay for simple traceback systems, traceback systems that provide assurances of superior food safety production standards and traceback systems that provide assurances of humane animal treatment.