Spanish consumers' behaviour and the determining factors of their willingness to pay for organic olive oil

Like the rest of organic foods, the demand for organic olive oil has been growing at a slow pace and it is very emerging in Spain. In this situation, it is important to analyse the preferences, perceptions and consumers' valuation towards organic extra virgin olive oil. A choice experiment is used to investigate Catalan consumers' behaviour and to elicit their willingness to pay a premium for organic olive oil. A latent class model (LC) has been estimated and the results indicate that consumers perceive negatively the organic attribute due mainly to the lack of knowledge followed by the high price and lack of availability of the product. Also, the attribute most valued by Catalan consumers is the Catalan origin of the olive oil, closely related to the attribute "protected designation of origin". Finally, when the choice possibilities offered to consumers reflect truthfully the decision problem that they confront, the organic attribute loses relative importance face to local origin and origin certification.