Comparing consumer preferences for sustainable dairy activities among countries

Hideo Aizaki; Hironobu Takeshita

doi:10.1007/s41237-022-00192-w

Comparing consumer preferences for sustainable dairy activities among countries

Behaviormetrika. 2023;50(2):653-677. doi: 10.1007/s41237-022-00192-w. Epub 2023 Jan 20.

Authors

Hideo Aizaki^#¹, Hironobu Takeshita^#²

Affiliations

¹ Agricultural Economics, Research Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Kita-9, Nishi-9, Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-8589 Japan.
² Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences, Nagoya University, Furo-Cho, Chikusa-Ku, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8601 Japan.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

This study measures consumer preferences for 11 sustainable dairy activities and examines the differences in preferences among five countries: the UK, the Netherlands, France, Italy, and Japan. A case 1 best-worst scaling is used to evaluate greenhouse gas emissions, fertilizer application, soil management, water management, biodiversity, working environment, animal care, wastes, market development, rural communities, and product safety and quality. Consumers across countries have diverse preferences for sustainable dairy farming activities, which may be related to the COVID-19 pandemic and social attention toward the environment and agriculture. Preferential differences for some activities were also revealed by gender and age. When discussing the priorities of some activities, conflicts between gender and generations could arise. Information on consumer preference can help various stakeholders discuss how to improve the sustainability of the dairy sector.

Keywords: Case 1 best–worst scaling; Consumer preference; Dairy farming; International comparison; Sustainability.