How environmental sustainability labels affect food choices: Assessing consumer preferences in southern Italy

This paper assesses consumer preferences and willingness to pay for three different environmental sustainability labels (EU Organic Farming, Rainforest Alliance, ‘Per il Clima-Legambiente’) and information cues about the origin displayed on a processed food product, namely tomato puree. Using a choice experiment and conditional logit models, the results show that: i) preferences for the environmental sustainability labelled product increase when consumers have proper knowledge about the meaning of the labels; ii) the information cue about the product’s domestic origin is important for all consumers, regardless of their education, unlike environmental sustainability labels that are more appreciated by well-educated consumers; iii) consumers’ willingness to pay is higher for labels with greater market penetration, regardless of certification by private or public organisations. Findings suggest that the adoption of environmental sustainability labels by food producers should be combined with effective information policies aimed at increasing consumer awareness.