It is now fashionable in many circles to advocate vegetarianism, and many activist groups are vocal in their aim to convert the human race to vegetarians. What would be the economic costs and benefits of a shift away from meat consumption? In this article we provide some partial answers to this...

To identify the value consumers place on observable characteristics of fresh beef products, primary data were collected on over 1,350 packages of beef from 66 randomly selected grocery stores located in three metropolitan areas--Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Denver, Colorado. Estimated...

Scientists and beef industry participants are investigating ways to improve the healthiness of beef. We report results of a nationwide mail survey developed to determine consumers’ preferences for fat content in ground beef and identify how consumers would most like to improve the...

For a variety of reasons, Spanish growth in demand for organic and integrated products has not kept up with supply. This work focused on the effect of information and sensory issues on purchase behaviour in relation to sustainable agricultural production. Using experimental auctions and results...

The earthquake that hit Haiti in the beginning of 2010 led to tremendous international solidarity in the recovery effort. Despite the tons of aid sent to Haiti, relatively little is known about the effectiveness of the aid or about the continuing needs of the Haitians. Using data collected from...

A choice experiment (conjoint analysis) was used to investigate consumer demand for several beef ribeye steak attributes. Respondents indicated that they would prefer a "hormone free" ribeye steak priced up to $6.68/lb. more than a "non-hormone" free ribeye steak. Tenderness was also identified...

When individuals have limited information and are uncertain about the quality of a good, government policy, or the lack thereof, can serve as a signal to consumers about the likelihood of realizing alternatives states of nature. In this paper, we focus on a controversial beliefs about government...

Social critics have taken aim at modern production agriculture using a common theme: many food, health, and environmental problems are explained by corporate farms, agribusinesses, and fast-food restaurants failing to account for the full costs of their actions. How accurate is this diagnosis?...