Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Consumers’ Sense of Farmers’ Markets: Tasting Sustainability or Just Purchasing Food?

Version 1 : Received: 5 August 2016 / Approved: 6 August 2016 / Online: 6 August 2016 (08:12:57 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Giampietri, E.; Koemle, D.B.A.; Yu, X.; Finco, A. Consumers’ Sense of Farmers’ Markets: Tasting Sustainability or Just Purchasing Food? Sustainability 2016, 8, 1157. Giampietri, E.; Koemle, D.B.A.; Yu, X.; Finco, A. Consumers’ Sense of Farmers’ Markets: Tasting Sustainability or Just Purchasing Food? Sustainability 2016, 8, 1157.

Abstract

Sustainable food consumption has attracted a widespread attention during last decades by scholars, policy makers and consumers. In line with this, farmers’ markets (FMs) have the potential to encourage sustainable agricultural production and consumption. By reducing the number of actors and distances along the food chain, these alternative food systems foster the reconnection between farmers and consumers and contribute to different social, economic and environmental sustainable goals. This paper provides insights on the role of consumers' sustainability concerns related to their motivation for shopping at FMs. By means of a choice experiment, we analyze the determinants of consumers’ WTP for buying apples at FMs. We are particularly interested in understanding how attitudes towards the three sustainability dimensions are related to consumer preferences in this context. We find that consumer attitudes towards direct contact with producers, contributing to farmers’ income, and environmental benefits can be directly related to product characteristics that are specific to FMs.

Keywords

sustainability; farmers’ markets; choice experiment; consumers; willingness to pay

Subject

Business, Economics and Management, Economics

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