The value of the certifications of origin: a comparison between the Italian olive oil and wine markets

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on high segments of the Italian olive oil and wine markets. The main goal is to compare the role and the effectiveness of the certification of origin in the creation of value in the two selected markets. Moreover, the authors investigate how different quality clues in the olive oil and wine sectors are related to prices. Design/methodology/approach – To meet the goal the authors estimate two separate hedonic price models where the price of the product is regressed over different quality clues some of which are sector specific and some are common to the two sectors. The models are estimated on data which come from two of the major Italian guides chosen for their well established reputation and for the richness of information. Findings – The results indicate that: product origin and the relative certification schemes play a relevant role in the formation of prices in both markets; while the olive oil price seems to be more sensitive to farm location than to the certification of origin, the opposite happens for the wines; the higher segments of the Italian olive oil market is increasingly sophisticated and follows the main tendencies established in the quality wine markets where many quality attributes are intensely active. Research limitations/implications – First, it should be kept in mind that results for higher market segment may not hold for different segments where relevant quality clues may be different. Second, reader should be aware that comparability of the two samples is constrained by limited data availability for the olive oil sector compared to the wine sector. Originality/value – This study represents one of the first attempts to compare the role of the certification of origin in the creation of value in the Italian agro-food markets.