Willingness to pay for lipid‐based nutrient supplements for young children in four urban sites of Ethiopia

Abstract

Malnutrition in children under 5 years of age is pervasive in Ethiopia across all wealth quintiles. The objective of this study was to determine the willingness to pay (WTP) for a week's supply of Nutributter® (a lipid-based nutrient supplement, or LNS) through typical urban Ethiopian retail channels. In February, 2012, 128 respondents from 108 households with 6-24-month-old children had the opportunity to sample Nutributter® for 2 days in their homes as a complementary food. Respondents were asked directly and indirectly what they were willing to pay for the product, and then participated in market simulation where they could demonstrate their WTP through an exchange of real money for real product. Nearly all (96%) of the respondents had a positive WTP, and 25% were willing to pay the equivalent of at least $1.05, which we calculated as the likely minimum, unsubsidised Ethiopian retail price of Nutributter® for 1 week for one child. Respondents willing to pay at least $1.05 included urban men and women with children 6-24 months old from low-, middle-and high-wealth groups from four study sites across three cities. Additionally, we estimated the initial annual market size for Nutributter® in the cities where the study took place to be around $500 000. The study has important implications for retail distribution of LNS in Ethiopia, showing who the most likely customers could be, and also suggesting why the initial market may be too small to be of interest to food manufacturers seeking profit maximisation.

Willingness to pay for small‐quantity lipid‐based nutrient supplements for women and children: Evidence from Ghana and Malawi

“…An experimental auction in Burkina Faso revealed an average WTP for SQ‐LNS‐Child of $0.85 for a week's supply (or $0.12/day's supply; Lybbert et al, ). In another study, Segrè et al () elicited WTP for Nutributter®, an LNS product for children, from respondents in urban Ethiopia. That study found that average WTP for a week's supply of Nutributter® based on an experimental auction was approximately $0.80 (or $0.11/day's supply), and average stated WTP was over twice that amount.…”

“…Several research activities have been undertaken to build an understanding of SQ‐LNS demand, including stated willingness to pay (WTP) in Niger (Tripp et al, ), stated WTP and a short‐term market simulation in Ethiopia (Segrè et al, ), an experimental auction in Ghana (Adams, Lybbert, Vosti, & Ayifah, ), and an experimental auction followed by a market trial in Burkina Faso (Lybbert et al, ). We assessed stated WTP for SQ‐LNS alongside randomized controlled trials in Ghana (DYAD‐G trial) and Malawi (DYAD‐M trial) undertaken by the International Lipid‐Based Nutrient Supplements (iLiNS) Project (http://ilins.org/).…”

“…How might policymakers and practitioners charged with reducing undernutrition design programs-targeted subsidies, social marketing campaigns, partnerships with existing health product outlets, incentives, and so forth-to help boost low private demand? Several research activities have been undertaken to build an understanding of SQ-LNS demand, including stated willingness to pay (WTP) in Niger (Tripp et al, 2011), stated WTP and a short-term market simulation in Ethiopia (Segrè et al, 2015), an experimental auction in Ghana (Adams, Lybbert, Vosti, & Ayifah, 2016), and an experimental auction followed by a market trial in Burkina Faso . We assessed stated WTP for SQ-LNS alongside randomized controlled trials in Ghana (DYAD-G trial) and Malawi (DYAD-M trial) undertaken by the International Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements (iLiNS) Project (http://ilins.org/).…”

Special nutritious solutions to enhance complementary feeding

“…They found that while most consumers were interested to buy the product and 25% would be willing to pay an unsubsidized price, consumers are not yet used to buying packaged foods for this target group, and total market size would be limited (Segrè et al . ).…”

Local versus offshore production of ready‐to‐use therapeutic foods and small quantity lipid‐based nutrient supplements

“…With need likely outstripping philanthropic potential, there is interest in exploring commercial sales. A study of Ethiopian households found some willingness to pay for a week's supply of SQ-LNS among nearly all surveyed urban households, with a quarter willing to pay a projected unsubsidized commercial price (Segrè et al, 2012).…”