EFFECTS AND VALUE OF VERIFIABLE INFORMATION IN A CONTROVERSIAL MARKET: EVIDENCE FROM LAB AUCTIONS OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD

02/11/07

EFFECTS AND VALUE OF VERIFIABLE INFORMATION IN A CONTROVERSIAL MARKET: EVIDENCE FROM LAB AUCTIONS OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD

Abstract: Food products containing genetically modified (GM) ingredients have entered the market over the past decade. The biotech industry and environmental groups have disseminated conflicting private information about GM foods. This paper develops a unique methodology for valuing independent third-party information in such a setting and applies this method to consumers' willingness to pay for food products that might be GM. Data are collected from real consumers in an auction market setting with randomized information and labeling treatments. The average value of third-party information per lab participant is small, but the public good value across U.S. consumers is shown to be quite large.

by MATTHEW ROUSU 1, WALLACE E. HUFFMAN 2, JASON F. SHOGREN 3, ABEBAYEHU TEGENE 4
1. Assistant Professor, Susquehanna University, 514 University Avenue, Selinsgrove, PA 17870. Phone 570-372-4186, Fax 570-372-2870, E-mail rousu@susqu.edu*
2. Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor, Department of Economics, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011. Phone 515-294-6359, Fax 515-294-0221, E-mail whuffman@iastate.edu
3. Stroock Distinguished Professor of Natural Resource Conservation and Management, Department of Economics and Finance, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82070. Phone 307-766-5430, Fax 307-766-5090, E-mail Jramses@uwyo.edu
4. Branch Chief, Food Economics Division, ERS, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington DC 20036. Phone 202-694-5527, Fax 202-694-5611, E-mail ategene@ers.usda.gov

Economic Inquiry via Blackwell Publishing www.blackwell-synergy.com
Online Early
doi:10.1111/j.1465-7295.2007.00017.x
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1465-7295.2007.00017.x

Trackback address for this post:

http://envirovaluation.org/htsrv/trackback.php/4422

Comments, Trackbacks, Pingbacks:

No Comments/Trackbacks/Pingbacks for this post yet...

Leave a comment:

Your email address will not be displayed on this site.
Your URL will be displayed.

Allowed XHTML tags: <p, ul, ol, li, dl, dt, dd, address, blockquote, ins, del, span, bdo, br, em, strong, dfn, code, samp, kdb, var, cite, abbr, acronym, q, sub, sup, tt, i, b, big, small>
(Line breaks become <br />)
(Set cookies for name, email and url)
(Allow users to contact you through a message form (your email will NOT be displayed.))

Search

Google
Web www.envirovaluation.org
www.costbenefitanalysis.org

Enter your Email to get updates


Powered by FeedBlitz

Environmental Valuation & Cost-Benefit News

Environmental Valuation & Cost Benefit News covers legal, academic, and regulatory developments pertaining to the valuation of environmental amenities and disamenities, such as clean air, trees, parks, congestion, and noise. We apprise the reader about ways in which costs and benefits are measured, and the results of empirical studies. We hope that this information will allow public and private organizations to comprehend the risks and benefits of various actions, help disputants to resolve conflicts equitably and efficiently, and improve the quality of public policies. We will only discuss issues related to the empirical quantification of private and social costs and benefits and damages, and summarize information from daily newspapers, academic journals, legal publications, court decisions, professional newsletters commissioned studies, and on-line services. This newsletter is dedicated to the principal that all policies place values upon life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We believe that more information, explicit specification of assumptions, and rigorous analysis can help our society to better meet these ends. This site will increasingly serve, in conjunction with others, as a valuation database. We will include a wide range of studies, including non-environmental reports, because omission of a factor effectively values it at zero, and biases decisions. Heavy traffic has caused several site crashes. We are attempting to correct these problems. Apologies for any inconvenience.

Categories

August 2008
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
 << <   > >>
          1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31            
SUMMARY OF RECENT POSTS

Environmental Valuation & Cost-Benefit News

Misc

Create XML/RSS NewsFeed view this weblog as RSS !

XML Feeds

What is RSS?
Editor and Publisher: Kenneth Acks

Who's Online?

powered by
b2evolution