Analysis of market equilibrium from applying different scenarios for the production of agroecological agricultural products in Bulgaria

This article examines the market equilibrium and the effects of applying different market strategies for the production of agro-ecological agricultural products. These strategies extend the mixed public good model developed by Kötchen (2007). Within the framework of the project “Providing agro-ecological public goods in agriculture by improving contractual relations” at the Institute of Agricultural Economics, four scenarios of market equilibrium of demand and supply of apples produced with the use of agro-ecological practices are theoretically developed and compared. The survey method is used to analyze the behavior of end users in the application of four different scenarios. These scenarios depend on the labeling and agro-ecological practices used in apple production. These four scenarios analyze the market equilibrium in which consumers have the option to buy apples produced by conventional technology or labeled with health, agro-ecological or a combination of the previous two labels. After determining the supply and demand curves, the market equilibrium is derived. The degree of increase in the market price and the quantities consumed depends mainly on the personal preferences of the consumers, i.e. the health/environment ratio and the number of users. The necessary condition for these results is the availability of information about the benefits to health, the environment, including guarantee and control of the implemented agro-ecological activities.