Consumers’ valuations of tea traceability and certification: Evidence from a blockchain knowledge experiment in six megacities of China

Abstract

Blockchain-based traceability provides unforgeable and tamper-resistant traceability information, thus contributing to a high-quality and safe food supply and alleviating consumers' increasing concerns about food quality and safety. There is scant literature analyzing consumers' valuation of blockchain-based traceability, although it matters for the application and development of this technology. We investigated the consumers' valuation of blockchain-based traceability in the tea industry in China. We conducted a randomized experiment to estimate the effect of the information intervention on consumers’ valuation. Using data from 4017 respondents in six Chinese megacities collected from an online survey, we found that consumers valued blockchain-based traceability more than commonly-used quality assurance attributes, including conventional traceability and certification labels, and consumers viewed blockchain-based traceability and certification labels as substitutes. Furthermore, exposure to relevant knowledge increased their valuation of blockchain-based traceability. This was especially true for consumers valuing product quality and safety most and young, highly educated, and high-income consumers. We suggest stakeholders strengthen publicity to help consumers realize the value of blockchain-based traceability technology.