Asche, Frank

July, 2001

By: Johnston, Robert J.; Roheim, Cathy A.; Donath, Holger; Asche, Frank
An analysis of consumer preferences for seafood labeled with information about environmental production attributes is introduced into the food labeling literature. International seafood ecolabeling programs have proposed to create market-based incentives for fisheries managers to promote sustainable fisheries. We investigate differences in consumer preferences for ecolabeled seafood across the United States and Norway. Using a contingent-choice telephone survey of random households in each nation, a wide range of factors is found to influence consumers' likelihood of purchasing ecolabeled seafood. Consumer preferences differ by price premium, species, consumer group, and certifying agency. The effect of these factors often differs between the United States and Norway, suggesting heterogeneity in international reactions to seafood ecolabels.

December, 1999

By: Asche, Frank; Tveteras, Ragnar
This study deals with modeling of production risk by means of a two-step procedure. In contrast to earlier studies of production risk, we do not immediately adopt restrictive functional forms for the risky production technology. We first test for the presence of production risk. If production risk is found to be present, the mean and risk functions are estimated separately. This allows the use of more flexible functional forms for both the mean and the risk functions than commonly found in the literature. An empirical application to Norwegian salmon farming, where restrictive specifications of the technology are rejected, demonstrates the validity of our approach. Presence of production risk many primary production sectors implies that this approach should be considered in productivity studies.