Elena Castellari

Consumer willingness to pay for food safety: the case of mycotoxins in milk

European statistics show that one of the most widespread source of health risks related to food is mycotoxins. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the Italian consumers’ perception of the mycotoxins’ risk and, more specifically, their willingness-to-pay (WTP) for a hypothetical bottle of milk obtained by cows in which the feed ration contains maize certified for the ‘good practices’ that reduce such risk. For this purpose, a web-based stated choice (SC) experiment involving a representative sample of 973 Italian consumers has been carried out and WTP has been measured using the panel data version of a Random Parameters Logit (RPL) model. The results show that Italian consumers are willing to pay a rather high average price premium for “reduced-micotoxin” milk. This premium becomes even higher for female, middle-age and low-education consumers.

Food Retail Liberalization, Food Retail Structure and Food Prices: The Italian Case

Abstract In the last two decades the Italian food retail industry has changed considerably also thanks to the liberalization process started with the 1998 retail regulation reform. In this study, we investigate the impact of such reform on the food and beverage consumer price index, controlling for the endogenous nature of the policy adoption across regions, and addressing what changes in food retail structure may have driven those effects. We find that the policy had a mitigating effect on food prices, which can be explained by the change in the number and composition of food stores operating in the Italian market, rather than by the changes in store size and in-store services. We find the policy effects not to be statistically different across regions characterized by different levels of liberalization.

Empirical issues in the computation of Stone-Lewbel price indexes in censored micro-level demand systems

ABSTRACT In this article, we propose an empirical method for the computation of the Stone–Lewbel (SL) price index for product aggregates, when censored samples with zero expenditures are available from household budget surveys. The proposed technique is based on a regression imputation method that takes into account the price dynamics, therefore, allowing to disentangle the role of demographics from the role of prices in computing the SL index. Our simulations seem to indicate that our method is a valuable alternative.

Five-a-Day, Fruit and Vegetables Portions, and the Food Environment: The Italian Case

Italy has one of the largest per-capita consumption rates of fruits and vegetables (FV) among European Union countries. However, the number of adult Italians consuming the recommended daily amounts of FV is declining, especially in regions where the food retail industry’s expansion is lagging. In this article we investigate the effect of the food environment on the likelihood of adult Italians consuming five or more daily portions of FV, and on the probability of consuming more portions of FV. We combine individual-level data on adult Italians’ lifestyle with regional food retail structure measures. To correct for the endogeneity of the food environment, we use an identification strategy based on aggregate drivers of food stores’ location, and on the regional political climate affecting retail liberalization reforms. The results show that increased access affects positively the probability of consuming the daily-recommended amounts of FV, as well as the probability of consuming more portions of FV. However, the role of the food environment is less marked for individuals declaring it to experience a hardship to access supermarkets.

Can providing a morning healthy snack help to reduce hunger during school time? Experimental evidence from an elementary school in Connecticut

While children may be naturally inclined to regulate their hunger, they are also guided by adults and influenced by environmental constraints regarding when and how much to eat. As such, the timing and availability of meals could alter a childs natural eating habits. This could impact the nutritional quality of what they eat as well. We conducted a field experiment with three fourth grade classes at a public elementary school in Eastern Connecticut to analyze if providing a nutritious snack one hour prior to lunch effects a childs level of hunger and consequently their lunch-time consumption. We found students shift their caloric and nutrient intake from lunch to snack time. In addition, we found a significant reduction in student hunger. Our results highlight the importance in considering the timing and quality of meals provided during school time. In our sample, current snack and lunch schedule may not be optimal and changing it can have an impact on the wellbeing of students. Providing healthful options for snack could be an effective way to improve student diets while preserving their ability to make their own choices.

One More Saturday Night: Food Stamp Timing and Monthly Consumption Patterns

In this paper we examine the relationship between the timing of food stamp receipt and consumption patterns. We combine data on state distribution dates with scanner data on a panel of households. Consistent with previous work we find that purchases of a variety of goods are higher on receipt days. Additionally, we find that when receipt days are more likely to be on weekends, total monthly consumption within the same households is affected. In particular, purchases of beer are higher in months where food stamps are distributed on a Saturday or Sunday than in months where benefits are distributed during the week in food stamp eligible households. For food stamp eligible households, total beer purchases are between 4 and 7 percent higher in those months.