Assessing the demand for locally produced natural beef

This project focuses on locally grown labels and attempts to determine if consumers are willing-to-pay for this value-added attribute and what the consumer perceives as locally grown and regionally grown. A survey was employed from a random sample located in the southeastern United States. Included in the survey were questions on credence attributes such as grass-fed, natural, and organic, and how they compare to local beef. Logistic regression was used to analyze willingness-to-pay for a locally grown label on a ribeye steak package. More consumers were willing to pay for naturally raised beef than grass-fed, and more for grass-fed than organic. Results of this study indicate that people consider locally grown to be an attribute that is desirable in their product. Respondents to this survey indicated that they considered their state to be local.