Relational goods and direct purchase from farmers: estimating the value of the relationship between consumers and producers

Personal relationships can affect economic life, more importantly in alternative food networks. Estimating the value of enjoyment of the relational good produced by consumers’ personal relationship in direct sales from farmers is important to assess how much personal interactions can affect food purchases. We employ different stated preferences models to estimate from a consumer survey in open-air markets in four towns in Italy the value consumers buying directly from farmers attach to their particular choice of a specific vendor. Contingent on the chosen model, the average value of the personal relationship is 13.5-24.4% of their expenditure for fruits and vegetables.