Consumer Acceptance and Valuation for Alternative Protein Products

The Case of Lab-Produced Meat

Abstract

Scientific advances in “in-vitro meat” (IVM) or lab-meat production has now made it possible for companies to invest significant resources in the development and commercialization of lab-meat that could overcome some of the main critical concerns linked to conventional meat production, particularly environmental/sustainability impact and animal welfare. This study provides for the first time critical scientific information on United States consumers’ perception and willingness-to-pay for lab-meat using a discrete choice experiment. Our findings provide insights into the psychology of consumers’ acceptance and attitudes that can be used in communicating the nature of the IVM technology to the public, which also have important implications for future labelling policies for policy makers and the alternative protein industry.