Determining Consumer Preference and Willingness to Pay for GI Registered Bananas

Abstract

Tamil Nadu State ranks second in the number of products registered under geographical indications (GIs) (24 products out of 193 registered GI). Consumer willingness to pay for GI products will be a very useful indicator for producer groups to assess the values of their products. Dindigul and Ottanchatram blocks of Dindigul district in Tamil Nadu were chosen to conduct the sample study with a statistical sample size of 300. It was found that 55 per cent of the consumers ate bananas once in a week. It was also found that majority of the consumers preferred to buy GI banana for its medicinal value (38 per cent) followed by perishability (29 per cent) and taste (21 per cent). Results of conjoint analysis showed that the most important of the three attributes evaluated with respect to affecting consumer preferences, is quality. In addition, the type of quality parameters accounted for nearly 60 per cent of the total attributes preferred (average) by consumers. This research suggests that the most important factors for preference is quality, particularly high medicinal value and keeping quality of GI banana. Thus, adoption of production practices to ensure the quality of GI banana is critically important for better price realization.