Consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for beef based on color and price discounts

Discoloration of beef products leads retailers to offer discounts or discard beef products, as consumers tend to reject a brownish beef color. This practice contributes to retail food waste and inefficient resource allocation linked to beef production. The objective of this study was to investigate U.S. consumer preferences for beef color and price discounts. After an initial test for screen acuity regarding color perception using a condensed form the ishihara test, data on meat purchasing behavior as well as demographic information was collected for all participants. An additional part of the study undertook a hypothetical discrete choice experiment using digital photos of beef steaks with different meat color, price, and discount labels in retail packaging to examine consumer preferences, willingness to pay, and the effects of discount pricing. Results of a Mixed Logit Model based on choice data show that beef shoppers perceive, see, and prefer color nearly linearly across days of retail display. Consumers' willingness to pay was negative for 4, 7 and 9 days of retail display relative to day zero and decreased with an increase in discoloration. Results indicate that beef shoppers would have to be financially compensated for choosing a steak that was discolored after 9 days of retail display. However, male beef buyers exhibit weaker preferences for color and could be a target segment for promoting discolored beef products to reduce meat waste.