Consumers’ preferences, attitudes and willingness to pay for bio-textile in wood fibers

The bio-textile products made from certified wood fibers are an important product innovation able to diversify the wood product portfolio of enterprises and to increase environmental sustainability. In this paper, we estimate Italian consumers' willingness to pay for three bio-textile products made from certified wood (socks, T-shirt and shirt). Data were collected face-to-face to a sample of 696 consumers through Contingent Valuation. The results from the Cameron and Huppert model show a significant premium price, ranging from 64% to 128% depending on the products, and that respondents with a higher environmental concern are more willing to pay for bio-textile products. Nevertheless, the price turned out to be a key determinant, evidencing how it can constitute a barrier to a more sustainable consumer behaviour. These results are important for the European wood-based industries’ businesses, currently based on stagnant market of traditional wood products, since they indicate there is room for a profitable diversification in bio-textile products. An increased market of bio-textile products can contribute to reduce the fossil fuel dependency of the European Union economy.