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0 sats \ 3 replies \ @Undisciplined 17 May \ parent \ on: Food Is Not A Commodity food_and_drinks
Purchases are always made based on ex ante beliefs. You never know which will be better, but people do expect "organic" or "pasture raised" or "grass fed" to be better on some quality dimension. They also expect the food from the farmers market to be fresher.
By and large, consumers aren't willing to pay much for those quality differences. It's consumers who force producers to compete on price more than quality. Producers will compete on whatever dimension gives them an edge. Some produce higher quality, or just different, products, but those are for the small minority of consumers who are willing to pay that premium.
It doesn't even take that many consumers to care about these things. That's why so much food is kosher, even in countries where less than one percent of consumers care about that. It's a quality dimension that some people care about and it manifests in the market.
By and large, consumers aren't willing to pay much for those quality differences.
No. Your entire argument rests on the premise that consumers are able to judge quality in a grocery store. Consumers don't have the tools to assess quality that they might at a farm or a farmer's market, and grocery stores, regulators, financial markets, etc... have an incentive to downplay differences between products.
Further, because food is largely treated (and regulated) as a commodity, it's not even feasible for producers to make products with maximum taste, nutrition, etc... so it's likely people have never even tasted great wheat or heirloom corn.
How can you expect people to make make quality judgments when they've only ever tasted the foods that barely pass the USDA's minimum acceptable standards?
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I know from experience that the produce we buy is perceived by guests we've had over as being higher quality. It came from a normal grocery store. They continue not buying what they acknowledged as being higher quality produce.
You have also missed my point. People have quality expectations, whether from products in a store or products on a farm, and regardless of your opinion about their ability to judge quality. Decisions are made based on expectations.
Is there a version of your argument that is actually debatable or falsifiable, because it's starting to seem like you're just saying "If people knew what they were missing, they'd radically change their relationship with food." And, aside from the kinds of evidence I've brought up, we have no way to assess that claim. There definitely doesn't seem to be much evidence supporting it, though.
Anyway, it seems like you're committed to just denying that my perspective has any validity, so I'm going to disengage.
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People have quality expectations, whether from products in a store or products on a farm, and regardless of your opinion about their ability to judge quality. Decisions are made based on expectations.
Have you ever been to a farm? Or a farmers market? They let you taste their food samples right in front of them. You don't have to guess the quality of your food based solely on the "Made in USA" label.
Anyway, it seems like you're committed to just denying that my perspective has any validity, so I'm going to disengage.
Why would you ask me a question about my argument and then in the following paragraph tell me you're going to stop engaging?
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