Food Chain Economics
Key Scientists: 
The food chain economics team is involved in identifying the determinants of value and quality to consumers and sectors of the food industry and developing economic incentives to improve value and quality throughout the food supply chain. Umberger employs unique economic valuation methods to measure consumers’ perceptions and value (willingness-to-pay) of credence and production attributes and for nutritionally-enhanced, novel and quality-differentiated food products. The consumer information elicited through these methods can be used for cost-benefit analysis, policy decision-making and by food supply chain participants to improve aspects of their supply chains such as coordination, product quality and product value.
In collaboration with the International Food Policy Research Institute Professor Stringer, Dr. Umberger and Dr. Gyau are working on a comparative study of high value supply chains in China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. This project aims to improve policies that underpin food and agribusiness development; to demonstrate to food agricultural policy makers how altering policy and regulatory impediments can improve supply chain performance in food and high value agricultural products; to improve smallholders’ access to local and global high value agricultural supply chains; and to encourage more competitive trading relationships all along the food supply chain in ways that benefit small producers and rural labour in value adding activities; and identify cross-cutting policy interventions to improve competitiveness.
Please contact Foodplus if you are interested in an honours or postgraduate student project in this area of research.
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