The problem of environmental degradation is large and widespread, with consumption of food being a major contributor to a households' ecological impact. The Product Ecological Footprint (PEF) is a new information management process of "self-improving" accuracy that enables producers to quantify product environmental impact. This study addresses two key questions; consumer willingness to pay and application readiness for PEF. We use choice experiments to identify the value consumers place on PEF as a label. We then examine data availability, information processing systems and accreditation protocols that would be required to support a market-wide application of PEF. Findings highlight an opportunity to influence the behaviour of the larger market segment of conventional (non-organic) consumers. Further research is required into the interaction between PEF and organics, PEF and origin, marketing and branding of the label, for market wide applications to be considered. A key question emerges as to whether PEF requires a different application platform than a voluntary eco-label scheme to instigate behavioural change.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	willingness to pay, sustainable, green, consumer
Research Division:	Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services
Research Group:	Marketing
Research Field:	Consumer-oriented product or service development
Objective Division:	Economic Framework
Objective Group:	Management and productivity
Objective Field:	Marketing
UTAS Author:	Hynes, N (Dr Niki Hynes)
ID Code:	124077
Year Published:	2016
Web of Science® Times Cited:	12
Deposited By:	TSBE
Deposited On:	2018-02-08
Last Modified:	2018-04-05
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