Consumers' willingness to pay for beef products derived from RNA interference technology

This study estimates, for the first time in the meat sector, consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for genetically modified foods produced using RNA interference (RNAi), a new gene editing technology. We examine WTP in four different choice experiment designs involving beef steaks with varying number of attributes, label setting and label wording to assess consumer demand. Results suggests consumers will require a discount for beef products produced using RNAi, with specific magnitudes varying substantially based upon the labeling wording faced by consumers. Therefore, ultimate RNAi adoption will reflect the magnitude of inner-supply chain, cost reductions given consumer demand.