Abstract

The paper investigates whether the changing pattern of meat and fish purchases, which has occurred in Britain since the 1960s, is due to changes in the structure of consumer preferences or is attributable to conventional economic factors (changes in relative prices and total expenditure). The analysis is based on two non‐parametric tests, derived from revealed preference theory. These do not require the explicit specification and estimation of a demand system. The hypothesis that the data are consistent with stable preferences is accepted; in principle, all variations in consumption can be fully explained by price and expenditure changes. However, some caution is counselled. As with all hypothesis testing, acceptance is less conclusive than rejection; some structural changes in preferences may have gone undetected.

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