CONSUMERS’ WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR ORGANICALLY GROWN TOMATOES IN DISTRICT LAHORE, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Food safety, health, environmental sustainability, and product quality have gained greater attention in the context of the rising consumer demand for organic foods. Organic tomatoes are more relevant since consumers are increasingly linked to the reduced application of chemical residues, the improvement in nutritional value, and environmentally responsible production. Their price, however, is relatively high, making them not easily available to the public, and consumers may not be the only ones which are uncertain about their authenticity and certification. Consumer preferences and WTP were analyzed in this study for organic tomatoes in Lahore, Pakistan. To collect primary data, the sample size was N=250, and the respondents were taken from five big stores in Lahore through a convenience sampling technique. Two methods were used: binary logistic regression to determine factors associated with consumers' willingness to pay for organic tomatoes and WTP estimation to determine consumers' willingness to pay a premium. Health and environmental considerations, product quality, freshness, shelf life, labelling, accessibility, and socio-economic characteristics are all factors to consider in the decision-making process of consumers. Accessibility was positively and significantly correlated with WTP, while availability was negatively and significantly related to WTP. The results also show that consumers' WTP decreases as price premiums increase. Based on this data, it is observed that the market of organic tomatoes has great potential in Lahore. Better accessibility of the product and consumer awareness, credible labelling, certification, and market availability could help to boost consumer confidence and the organic tomatoes market.