Factors Influencing the Willingness-to-Pay for Ethnic Specialty Produce in the Eastern Coastal United States

Ariyawardana, Anoma; Govindasamy, Ramu; Puduri, Venkata S.

Factors Influencing the Willingness-to-Pay for Ethnic Specialty Produce in the Eastern Coastal United States

Autores

Ariyawardana, Anoma

Govindasamy, Ramu

Puduri, Venkata S.

Descripción

Given the significance of the Asian and Hispanic population in the U.S., this study was carried out to assess the factors that influence the willingness-to-pay for ethnic specialty produce by these ethnic groups. Based on over 13,000 potential interviewee leads, 1,084 Chinese, Asian Indian, Mexican, and Puerto Rican respondents were randomly selected from the East Coast. Multinomial logit analysis was performed to determine the factors that influence the willingness-topay. Chinese and Indians were more likely to pay a premium for ethnic specialty produce than were the Puerto Ricans. Income, age, and period of stay in the U.S. had significant influences on the willingness-to-pay. This study highlights the need to target this high-premium group in terms of ethnic specialty produce.