How Much Credence Does It Take? Evidence on the Trade-Off between Country-Of-Origin Information and Credence Attributes for Beef from a Choice Experiment in Sweden

Based on a discrete choice experiment with 336 consumers, this study investigated whether the consumer propensity to choose a simplified European Union (EU) vs. non-EU denomination of origin for beef, instead of a specific country-of-origin (COO) denomination, depends upon the amount and type of credence information provided to the individual. The likelihood of choosing the EU/non-EU denomination of origin depended on the total number of other labelling credence attributes provided and also on the type of detailed credence attributes present in the choice. The presence of cues relating to animal welfare and far-reaching traceability had the highest likelihood of influencing the choice of the EU/non-EU denomination of origin. The compensatory qualities of each credence attribute in relation to the EU/non-EU origin denomination thus differed.