Differential price pass‐through in organic and conventional fresh fruit and vegetable markets
研究美国有机与常规果蔬市场的价格传导差异，发现有机市场传导率低10-15个百分点，且随市场份额增加差距缩小，表明有机市场竞争较弱，可能削弱农民转向有机种植的激励。
Abstract Organic food production growth has remained relatively slow compared to organic retail sales growth in the United States. This paper questions whether the conduct of downstream agents plays any role in explaining the difference. Mainly, we shed light on structural differences between organic and conventional fresh fruit and vegetable markets by examining differential price pass‐through rates. We estimate a rolling‐window retail pricing model using retail and wholesale price data from five metropolitan statistical areas with terminal markets in the United States. We find that pass‐through rates are 10 to 15 percentage points lower in the organic market, and the differences are statistically significant. We also find that the gap between pass‐through rates narrows as the organic market share increases. Our results suggest the organic market is significantly less competitive than the conventional market. The implication is that farmers may have less incentive to convert to organic farming as they may not capture the full retail price premium consumers pay.