Applied Economics/2025-02pr
Utah Strawberries: Consumer Preferences for Specialty Labels Kynda Curtis, Professor and USU Extension Specialist, Department of Applied Economics Makaylie Langford, Research Assistant, Department of Applied Economics
Introduction
Highlights
Consumers are often willing to pay premiums for • Consumer preferences for locally labeled products featuring specialty labels, such as “locally foods are associated with quality grown,” “organic,” “GMO-free,” etc. Consumer considerations, local community support, preferences for foods featuring these specialty labels and perceived freshness. are often motivated by perceived environmental • Understanding consumer preferences benefits, safety, health attributes, and appealing enables growers to take advantage of qualities like taste and freshness (Cappelli et al., 2022; premiums. Gundala & Singh, 2021; McCurdy, 2022). For example, • Emphasizing “locally grown” may be consumer preferences for locally labeled foods are more effective than focusing solely on associated with quality considerations, local community organic. support, and perceived freshness (Grebitus et al., 2013; Darby et al., 2008). Local products, in particular, promote community support by reinvesting money into local communities (Capelli et al., 2022). Similarly, consumers associate organic foods with perceptions of environmental quality and food safety, health, and better overall quality compared to conventionally produced food (Yazdanpanah et al., 2015; Loebnitz & Aschemann-Witzel, 2016). Understanding consumer preferences enables growers to take advantage of the premiums associated with differentiated products. Additionally, policymakers can use these findings to develop programs aligned with emerging consumer preferences, promoting the implementation of food certification initiatives. This fact sheet is the second of two discussing the results of a study on consumer preferences and willingness to pay (pricing) for fresh strawberries. This fact sheet highlights how specialty labeling influences consumers’ perceptions and willingness to pay. The study was conducted at Utah State University (USU) in August 2024. A total of 116 study participants were recruited through emails, flyers, and off-campus efforts. All participants completed a sensory taste test for six strawberry samples and an auction to elicit their willingness to pay for each sample, followed by a survey. The survey included questions about their demographics, shopping habits, and familiarity with and beliefs about several specialty production and labeling programs. 1