Agricultural applications of nanotechnology are at a relatively early stage and little is known about consumer responses to the technology. Canadian consumer responses to food nanotechnology are examined through the lens of the Food Value Scale. Data from a survey of Canadian consumers are used to evaluate the relative importance of eleven food values to food purchase decisions. We find that taste, safety, nutrition, and price are among the most important food values to Canadians, however, consumers exhibit considerable heterogeneity with respect to the priority placed on these values. A discrete choice experiment (DCE) explores the effect of food values on choice behavior. The DCE is positioned as a sliced apple product with non‐browning and antioxidant‐enhanced features introduced through the use of nanocoating or a conventional coating method. Random parameters logit (RPL) and latent class models (LCM) confirm the existence of significant preference heterogeneity. The LCM identifies three classes of consumers: “supporters,” “doubters,” and “opponents” who differ in their reaction to nanotechnology and in the relative importance placed on food values such as naturalness, novelty, and convenience. The analysis shows that food values provide additional insights into consumers’ food choices and their attitudes toward novel food technologies.

中文翻译：

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食品价值和消费者对纳米技术的不同反应

纳米技术在农业上的应用还处于早期阶段，消费者对这项技术的反应知之甚少。加拿大消费者对食品纳米技术的反应是通过食品价值量表的角度来考察的。来自加拿大消费者的一项调查数据被用来评估11种食品价值对食品购买决策的相对重要性。我们发现，口味，安全性，营养和价格是加拿大人最重要的食品价值之一，但是，在这些价值上，消费者表现出很大的异质性。离散选择实验（DCE）探索食物价值对选择行为的影响。DCE被定位为切成薄片的苹果产品，具有通过使用纳米包衣或常规包衣方法引入的不褐变和抗氧化剂增强的功能。随机参数logit（RPL）和潜在类模型（LCM）确认存在明显的偏好异质性。LCM确定了三类消费者：“支持者”，“怀疑者”和“对手”，他们对纳米技术的反应以及对食品价值（如自然性，新颖性和便利性）的相对重视程度有所不同。分析表明，食品价值为消费者的食品选择及其对新型食品技术的态度提供了更多的见解。和方便。分析表明，食品价值为消费者的食品选择及其对新型食品技术的态度提供了更多的见解。和方便。分析表明，食品价值为消费者的食品选择及其对新型食品技术的态度提供了更多的见解。