Consumer Preferences and Economic Valuation of Fruit Attributes

Recent research on consumer preferences for fruit has emphasised the interplay between sensory perception, information framing and economic valuation. Consumers evaluate fruits on attributes such as appearance, flavour, texture and provenance, trading off these qualities against price. Studies reveal that visual aspects—colour uniformity, shape regularity and absence of external damage—often set the first barrier to purchase, while internal sensory traits such as sweetness, juiciness and crispness drive repeat buying and willingness to pay. Economic valuation techniques, including experimental auctions, contingent valuation and hedonic pricing models, quantify the premium consumers assign to each attribute. Information treatments, whether gain- or loss-framed, can shift acceptance thresholds, especially for produce with minor aesthetic deviations. This body of work underscores the global relevance for producers and marketers to fine-tune breeding, post-harvest handling and communication strategies that align sensory quality with consumer-driven economic value.

Research from Nature Portfolio

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Consumer Preferences and Economic Valuation of Fruit Attributes publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in consumer preferences and economic valuation of fruit attributes across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Willingness to pay (WTP): The maximum price a consumer is prepared to pay for a product or specific attribute, elicited via auctions or valuation surveys.

Discrete choice experiment (DCE): A survey-based method in which participants choose between alternatives with varying attributes to reveal trade-off values and implicit prices.

Hedonic price model: An econometric approach that decomposes the market price of a product into the implicit values of its constituent attributes.

Just-about-right (JAR) attribute: A sensory characteristic assessed by consumers against an optimal level, used to identify attributes needing improvement in product development.

Penalty analysis: A technique that quantifies the loss in liking or value when a sensory attribute deviates from its ideal level, guiding targeted product optimisation.

References

1. Consumer acceptance of aesthetically imperfect vegetables – The role of information framing and personal values: Evidence from the United States. Food Quality and Preference (2023).
2. Sensory Perception and Willingness to Pay for a Local Ancient Pear Variety: Evidence from In-Store Experiments in Italy. Foods (2023).
3. Drivers of liking and value perception for a new apple cultivar in Italy. British Food Journal (2023).
4. Sustainable Fruit Consumption: The Influence of Color, Shape and Damage on Consumer Sensory Perception and Liking of Different Apples. Sustainability (2019).
5. Product differentiation in the fruit industry: Lessons from trademarked apples. Agribusiness (2024).