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Does Price or Income Affect Organic Choice? Analysis of U.S. Fresh Produce Users

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 January 2015

Travis A. Smith ,
Chung L. Huang  and
Biing-Hwan Lin
Travis A. Smith
Affiliation:
Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C
Chung L. Huang
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Biing-Hwan Lin
Affiliation:
Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C
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Abstract

This study analyzes consumer purchasing behavior of organic fresh fruits and vegetables using the 2006 Nielsen Homescan panel. An ordered logit model was estimated to quantify the impacts of economic and socio-demographic factors on the probability of a household belonging to a specific organic user group—devoted, casual, or nonuser. Results suggest that price and income, to some extent, affect consumer purchases of organic produce. Additionally, the profile of an organic produce user is most likely to consist of an Hispanic household residing in the Western United States with children under 6 years old and a household head older than 54 years with at least a college degree.

Keywords

Nielsen Homescan dataordered logitorganic fruits and vegetablesuser groupsC25D12M31Q11
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics , Volume 41 , Issue 3 , December 2009 , pp. 731 - 744
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2009

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