Determinants of Consumers’ Choice and Willingness to Pay for Biofortified Pearl Millet in Kenya
Abstract
Globally, micronutrient deficiency is a major health concern as more than two billion people suffer from iron deficiency, 1.75 billion are at risk of low zinc intake, while 127 million pre-school children suffer from vitamin A deficiency. Consumption of iron biofortified pearl millet is one optimal strategy for reducing micronutrient deficiencies, which is a major health concern. However, its consumption is unclear due to changes in product traits (appearance, aroma and flavour) from biofortification. Therefore, we centred on the hypothetical introduction of a biofortified pearl millet variety in Mbeere District, Kenya, where most staple crops record poor yields. We used a contingent valuation method in estimating consumer willingness to pay (WTP), on a sample of 100 biofortified pearl millet consumers. Our findings indicate that consumers were willing to pay an average premium of 42 percent above the prevailing market price of finger millet varieties. Factors directly influencing WTP were: frequency of consuming finger millet; whether consumer is a household decision maker or otherwise; household income and consumer’s previous experience; and level of awareness concerning the benefit of consuming biofortified pearl millet products. These results suggest the need for market segmentation with more attention given to high-income households with good knowledge of pearl millet in promoting biofortified pearl millet products.
Copyright Notices
1. Policy for Journals That Offer Open Access
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Proposed Policy for Journals That Offer Delayed Open Access
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication, with the work [SPECIFY PERIOD OF TIME] after publication simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
