Choice for goods under threat of destruction

•A framed field experiment mimics a common conservation dilemma.•214 adults from 76 institutions made choices for sets of wine.•The threat of destruction shifts preferences towards the more rare option.•Conservation professionals and economists exhibit similar behaviors.

The choices related to preservation often involve consideration of the fate of the non-selected land. Yet, theory traditionally assumes that the fate of non-selected goods does not influence consumers’ preferences. Results from a framed field experiment involving the private choice of wine show that consumer preferences can dramatically shift for items under the threat of imminent destruction. This shift (upwards of 58% increase) may explain why conservation professionals, despite decades of scientific evidence, have failed to adopt cost-effective techniques that would yield large conservation benefits at no additional cost. Interestingly, economists exhibit similar preference shifts.