7 Items That Are Just Status Symbols

Bio foods and drinks

According to a study done by Dr. Marco Palma, Dr. David Anderson and Meghan Ness, all with the department of agricultural economics at Texas A&M University in College Station, on why consumers pay a lot of money on healthy foods, organic foods are actually a status symbol and many people can’t afford buying it.

“We found that sellers may be able to boost premium prices paid by prestige-seeking individuals through customer education and marketing. The increasing gap in food prices associated with diet quality may be reflecting the reality of a lower purchase capacity by low-income consumers,” Palma explained.

In general, prestige seeking individuals are more likely to buy organic foods because they want to show off their high income and are willing to pay more for something that has a “bio” label, instead of choosing the same product, but without the bio etiquette.