Pay more for me, I’m from the mountains! The role of the EU Mountain Product term and other credence attributes in consumers’ valuation of lamb meat

Abstract

On-farm product differentiation represents a valuable opportunity for mountain agriculture. Consumers appreciate mountain products’ characteristics, but when signalling instruments are lacking, consumers might not be able to recognize (and pay for) them. Through a choice experiment, this paper considers consumers’ willingness to pay for three attributes (mountain origin through the EU Mountain Product term; local endangered landrace; agroecosystems stewardship through rotational grazing). It considers lamb meat production and North-Eastern Italian consumers, also exploring attitudes towards food and differences across groups of consumers. The highest willingness to pay is associated with the EU Mountain Product term, but communication strategies and public information provision are needed to enhance consumers’ overall knowledge.