Estimation of market equilibrium values for apple attributes

Jong Woo Choi, Chengyan Yue, James Luby, Shuoli Zhao, Karina Gallardo, Vicki Mccracken, Jim McFerson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose - Development of new cultivars requires extensive genetic knowledge, trained personnel, and significant financial resources, so it is crucial for breeders to focus on the attributes most preferred by the key supply chain stakeholders such as consumers and producers. The purpose of this paper is to identify which attributes generate the highest total revenue or social surplus, information that breeders can take into account as they allocate resources to focus on attributes in their breeding programs. Design/methodology/approach - This study used mail-in and online surveys to collect consumer and producer choice experiment data, and then employed mixed logit models to analyze and simulate individual producer and consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for the apple attributes. Findings - Based on the simulation results, this study derived the supply and demand curves and the market equilibrium prices and quantities for each apple attribute. Based on the WTP analysis for both consumer and producer, this paper found the highest equilibrium price and welfare for apples come from crispness, followed by flavor. Originality/value - The authors propose a framework to estimate the equilibrium prices and quantities of a product based on the results of choice experiments. The framework can be easily adapted to understand any countries' producer and consumer preferences for certain products.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)135-151
Number of pages17
JournalChina Agricultural Economic Review
Volume10
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2018

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This project was funded by Specialty Crop Research Initiatives, US Department of Agriculture.

Keywords

  • Apple
  • Choice experiment
  • Consumer
  • Fruit attribute
  • Producer

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)
  • Economics and Econometrics

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