Is Fair Trade Fair for Consumers? A Hedonic Analysis of U.S. Retail Fair Trade Coffee Prices

This study aims to investigate the impact of the fair trade label on the market for coffee in the United States, a country with high public awareness regarding environmental and social matters. A revealed preference approach is adopted, using monthly Nielsen scanner sales panel data. The pricing of labelled ground and whole bean coffee is studied over the 2011-2013 period. Hedonic estimates are obtained for what consumers pay for different product characteristics. Results would provide information on the existing price differences between labelled and conventional coffee, and add to the ongoing analysis and debate over fair trade coffee