Food safety issues and the BSE scare: some lessons from the French case

The Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) scare began after the UK Minister of Health admitted a possible link between the BSE prion and the Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease contaminating humans. The paper outlines a survey conducted in the area of Rennes to analyse consumer behaviour after the BSE crisis. A contingent scenario was proposed to determine the willingness to pay (WTP) for beef which should not transmit CJD using a mix of the referendum method and the bidding process. The variables considered as main determinants of the WTP have been selected. The study concludes with the interests and limits of the method used, and the implications of the BSE scare on food policy. In fact, the 'mad cow' disease raises the problem of loss of public confidence and the means to restore it. Consumers are waiting for a greater transparency or 'traceability" and, according to the survey, would accept to pay for it. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.