Performing Department
Experiment Station
Non Technical Summary
Guam, an affiliated Pacific island of the United States, has its agriculture mainly based on small-scale, subsistence farming with limited access to processing and packing facilities. The geographical differences in smallness and insularity have made local food system vulnerable to external shocks (e.g. natural disasters, global pandemic, political unrest, economic recession) in the agricultural production chains. In particular, it typically has a narrow resource base and a fragile and often vulnerable natural environment. With more than 1.5 million tourists visiting the island in 2018 (Guam Visitors Bureau, 2019), Guam is heavily dependent on imports from the continental U.S. to meet its demand for food products. This food supply, however, involves high transportation and storage costs that make staples more expensive for island consumers. The widespread COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted the food supply chain and essential marking infrastructure, has raised the concern on food security and safety. The fragility of the local food supply system, coupled with the sensitivity of food demand on incoming tourists (which has come to a halt since March 2020 due to travel restrictions), drive the need for Guam to develop its own agriculture to cope with future uncertainty in supply chain interruptions.To date, consumers are increasingly aware of sustainable and locally grown agricultural products and the general public is starting to pay attention to how certain farming activities and agricultural practices affect the quality of the air, soil, and water. Annual consumption of U.S. local foods has significantly increased from $404 million in 1992 to more than $1.3 billion in 2012 (Tropp and Moraghan, 2017). The U.S. Department of Agriculture promotes local food systems for providing consumers with access to fresh, healthy foods in their communities and supporting local agricultural producers since 1994. However, locally grown products have historically been perceived to be more expensive than imported bulk purchases of food products. Despite ongoing efforts from local agricultural producers, Guam's consumer base has relied heavily on imported food items. According to the 2018 Guam Import Data, Guam received a total of $12 million for food and beverage imports per year (Guam Economic Development Authority, 2019). Therefore, this project will identify the opportunities for branding and promoting sustainable production of locally-grown agricultural produce in Guam and neighboring islands' agricultural communities and consumers.
Animal Health Component
30%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
40%
Applied
30%
Developmental
30%
Goals / Objectives
The overall objective of this project is to provide and evaluate the potential economic and environmental benefits of local food system by determining consumer willingness to pay for sustainable and locally-grown products. Farmers and producers will be benefited when they produce more products for local communities, and affordable quality food is always in short supply in Guam. Specific objectives are to (1) survey the local food system suppliers for their current marketing challenges and opportunities, (2) conduct a feasibility study to understand consumer behavior towards the sustainable and locally grown food market on Guam, (3) improve the livelihood of Guam's agricultural farmers/producers by increasing demand for their products through increased consumers' awareness of locally-grown products through effective branding and marketing outreach to local consumers and visitors, and (4) develop the economic profitability of agricultural industry and small-scale farmers/producers by adding value to their production activities.
Project Methods
Object 1: Survey the local food system suppliers for their current marketing challenges and opportunitiesThe approach to achieving this objective is to conduct a focus group study by engaging key industry members to identify the unique marketing challenges and impediments to the growth of the agricultural sector.Object 2: Conduct a feasibility study to understand consumer behavior towards the sustainable and locally grown food market on Guam Consumers are increasingly aware of ecological footprints and health effects of agricultural products, and there is a revival of consumers' demand for locally grown and organic food across the country. Li et al. (2020) evaluated consumer preferences for local food, and their results show that consumers are more willing to pay for local oysters harvested within 25 or 100 miles than within 400 miles. Similar findings are found in Chen et al. (2019), who reported that consumers are willing to pay a price premium on strawberries grown on biodegradable plastic mulches. In this objective, we will analyze consumers' behavior in the sustainable and locally grown food market by addressing (a) what product attributes are most important to consumers' WTP for Guam products? (b) will consumers pay more for food produced and marketed as local? and (c) will consumers pay more for food marketed as using a sustainable production method? To analyze consumer preferences for food made in Guam accompanied by different labels, we will use a framed field experiment to estimate consumers' WTP in response to treatments that modify the labeling language. We will recruit 300 adult consumers with $10 in gift certificates as incentives for the experiment to identify the most effective branding, marketing, and selling techniques to reach out to the consumers.Object 3: Improve the livelihood of Guam's agricultural farmers/producers by increasing demand for their products through increased consumers' awareness of locally-grown products through effective branding and marketing outreach to local consumers and visitorsThe student research assistants will work with faculty advisors to develop printed and electronic materials for implementation of outreach curriculum on effective branding and marketing strategy for Guam's commercial and residential growers. The faculty advisors will deliver training workshops for participating farmers and their farm staff on marketing the adoption of sustainable farming practices and branding of "Locally Grown, Locally Made" labels. The student assistants will develop outreach materials used in farm tours and workshops, and to assist in out-of-farm surveys. In addition, the student assistants will assist the extension advisors to deliver outreach modules at extension workshops, farm days, and related community events (e.g., Conference for Island Sustainability, May Harvest Festival, etc.) and post-event evaluation of module objectives. These activities will equip our student assistants for careers in extension education and community outreach, and to gain practical knowledge on farm business management and agricultural marketing practices.Object 4: Develop the economic profitability of agricultural industry and small-scale farmers/producers by adding value to their production activitiesWe will coordinate farm tours to raise awareness and perception for the locally grown market. Participants (include local residents, visitors, military, and students) will be able to learn about and have first-hand, on-site experience of the products, emphasizing the benefits of locally and sustainably grown products and the demonstration of product labelling. These farm tours and workshops involve (i) organization and planning of all activities (ii) coordination with local stakeholders or agencies on promotional events, and (iii) invitations of distributors, wholesalers, buyers, media and the general public for visits, and (iv) evaluation on the effectiveness and efficacy of farm tours.