Experimental Evidence of Risk Aversion in Consumer Markets: The Case of Beef Tenderness

Consistency of quality is important for brand loyalty and market share in consumer markets. Among consumers of beef, tenderness is the primary quality attribute. We use an experimental auction market to investigate how inconsistency in tenderness affects consumers willingness to pay (WTP) for beef. We find that both the level and the spread of tenderness affect consumers WTP for beef. Categorization the beef into various classes of tenderness increased the total value of the beef by 8%, which suggests that improved tenderness labeling may be a profitable strategy.