Behavioral Ethics Lab
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of this Version
12-2014
Publication Source
Ecological Economics
Volume
108
Start Page
180
Last Page
190
DOI
10.1016/j.ecolecon.2014.10.019
Abstract
Using an incentive-compatible framed field experiment, we investigate whether consumers' food consumption is more eco-friendly when the information about a product's environmental impact is more easily accessible. Through an online survey, we identify a food label that is perceived to be the most easily accessible for assessing a product's eco-friendliness among six alternatives. These alternatives vary on multiple dimensions, including whether a standardized score of the overall environmental impact is added. This new food label is subsequently tested in an experimental food market embedded in a Belgian supermarket. We find that the presence of the new label that was preselected in the online survey leads to more eco-friendly food consumption relative to either the label currently used in the supermarket, or the label that contains the raw information of the environmental impact. In our experimental food market, the use of an easy-to-interpret but comprehensive environmental information label increases the overall eco-friendliness of our subjects' food consumption by about 5.3% relative to the default label used in current markets.
Keywords
food labeling, framed field experiment, environmental information provision, consumer behavior
Recommended Citation
Vlaeminck, P., Jiang, T., & Vranken, L. (2014). Food Labeling and Eco-Friendly Consumption: Experimental Evidence From a Belgian Supermarket. Ecological Economics, 108 180-190. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2014.10.019
Included in
Advertising and Promotion Management Commons, Applied Behavior Analysis Commons, Business Law, Public Responsibility, and Ethics Commons, Environmental Studies Commons, Experimental Analysis of Behavior Commons, Industrial and Product Design Commons, Marketing Commons, Sustainability Commons
Date Posted: 08 May 2015
This document has been peer reviewed.
Comments
Preprint version.