Can information drive demand for safer food? Impact of brand‐specific recommendations and test results on product choice
通过在肯尼亚的随机试验，研究发现仅告知消费者哪些玉米粉品牌更可能符合黄曲霉毒素标准，对消费行为无显著影响；但结合家庭库存检测后，两个月后选择更安全品牌的概率提高76%。
Abstract As an unobservable attribute, food safety is likely to be under‐provided by markets where regulatory enforcement is weak. In such settings, stimulating consumer demand for safer food can potentially encourage market actors to invest in food safety. Through a randomized trial in Kenya, we test the impact of informing consumers about which maize flour brands are most likely to comply with the regulatory standard for aflatoxin, a carcinogenic fungal byproduct. Providing information on safer brands alone does not significantly affect consumption behavior. However, when the same information is combined with a test performed on the maize flour stocked by the household, the likelihood that a safer brand is consumed 2 months later is 76% higher than in the comparison group. Our findings suggest that providing information on the relative riskiness of substitute foods could encourage consumers to make safer choices.