Assessing Haitian Consumers' Willingness to Pay a Premium for Aflatoxin‐Compliant Peanut Butter in the Informal Market

ABSTRACT Market‐based solutions are increasingly tested to address aflatoxin issues in peanuts in developing countries. Although previous studies have found that Haitian grocery store shoppers are willing to pay a 21% premium for peanut butter with levels of aflatoxin that meet international standards, no information is available for the much larger informal market. A stated preference survey, using an iterative bidding process, was conducted among 585 informal market consumers of Port‐au‐Prince and Cap‐Haitien, the two largest cities in Haiti. Results show that informal market participants are willing to pay a 12% premium for peanut butter that meets international aflatoxin standards. Based on the result of a previous revealed preference study on Haitian peanut farmers, the observed premium would be largely sufficient to incentivize farmers to adopt aflatoxin mitigation practices, which supports market‐based solutions to improve the safety of a Haitian staple food. Results also indicate that informal market consumers have greater confidence in a certification from an international institution rather than a domestic one.