Research

Abstract: Food insecurity is an increasing issue in the United States. Transportation barriers are an indirect yet potentially formidable challenge to access affordable and nutritious food. This paper investigates the impact of public transit (PT) accessibility on household food security in the US. While extensive research exists on food security and PT separately, the intersection of these topics remains underexplored. Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, supplemented with several datasets providing transit accessibility measures, I examine how changes in transit accessibility influence household food security outcomes. This study leverages a quasi-experimental design, focusing on “movers” - households that relocate between census tracts with different levels of PT accessibility to obtain a within-household estimate of the effect of PT accessibility on food security. I find that during the period from 1999 to 2003, a one std. dev. increase in PT accessibility was associated with 2-3 percentage points decrease in the probability of food insecurity among Black and poor households, as well as households without a car, and households that used PT in the past. However, during a more recent period from 2015 to 2019, I find no significant relationship between PT access and food security, suggesting that the US food and transportation systems changed substantially between the early 2000s and the late 2010s.

Abstract: An estimated 36% of people in the United States have some degree of lactose intolerance, which may decrease their consumption of some dairy foods. Although many lactose-free products have been introduced to the market, there is limited information about consumer valuation, which can affect their market success. We implemented an experimental auction to assess consumer Willingness to Pay for three ice cream products (no lactose reduction, lactose-reduced, and lactose-free).  The auction comprised two rounds of participants (N=135) bidding on each of the three products with an information treatment, describing detailed product characteristics (i.e., fat content, added sugar content, and ingredients), provided before the second round.  Random-effects censored regression models estimated the impact of lactose content and its interaction with additional information on bid value. The regression models also controlled for interactions with the participants’ reported extent of lactose intolerance and other demographic variables such as age, gender, education, and ethnicity. Lactose-free ice cream had the highest mean bid value in both auction rounds, significantly higher than the bid value for lactose-reduced ice cream in auction round 1 and from both regular ice cream and lactose-reduced ice cream in auction round 2. The interaction between lactose content and reported lactose intolerance was a significant determinant of Willingness to Pay. Bid values for lactose-free ice cream were higher among individuals reporting moderate or high lactose intolerance, with price premiums of $0.77 and $2.20 per half gallon (increases of 14% and 37% over the mean bid value).  The higher consumer valuation of lactose-reduced and lactose-free ice cream products by lactose- intolerant consumers may indicate opportunities for new value-added product lines but requires additional information on altered production costs for lactose-free product manufacture.  

Abstract: This study examines the moderating role of religious beliefs on American residents’ perceptions and willingness to purchase fresh produce that is imported from different countries of origin (COOs). Religious beliefs are an important part of cultural and group identities and affect moral and ethical purchasing considerations. The use of purchase behavior to signal moral or ethical concerns is of growing importance. Despite this the impacts of religion or religiosity on such decisions is understudied. We surveyed 10,049 U.S. consumers, measuring consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for grapes, a commodity food product. Using a commodity allows control for quality differences between countries when a country-of-origin label (COOL) is present. Respondents were asked for their WTP for grapes from the following countries: Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Russia, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority. Prices were anchored with a base price for U.S.-grown grapes. In addition, we collected information about responders’ demographics, religion, and intensity of religious beliefs and attitudes. We find significant differences in willingness

to pay for grapes across origin countries. Furthermore, we find that religious identity correlates with willingness to pay for grapes from certain countries.

Abstract: Empirical evidence indicates that river proximity in Maine (USA) is a disamenity to residential property owners; a legacy of industrial activities created a significant impetus for damming and intensive commercial management of waterways. As a result, water quality deteriorated, aquatic populations plummeted, recreational fishing quality suffered, and river amenities were lost. With concern over sea-run fisheries and a significant decline of mills, interest in dam removal has piqued. Using home sales data on the Penobscot River in Maine, we estimate marginal

willingness to pay (WTP) for river proximity before and after dam removal. The timing of sales encompasses two dam removals. Building upon earlier works, using difference-in-differences and matching methods, we find a negative effect of river proximity, that diminishes in a wake of dam removal, evidently implying improvements in river amenity effects following the removal.