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on Agricultural Economics |
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Issue of 2011‒05‒07
63 papers chosen by |
| By: | Ciaian, Pavel; Pokrivcak, Jan; Szegenyova, Katarina |
| Keywords: | Farm credit, CAP, Credit constraint, Agricultural and Food Policy, Agricultural Finance, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103085&r=agr |
| By: | Cooper, Joseph; Arnade, carlos |
| Abstract: | This study takes the standard acreage response model that stems from an expected utility framework, accounting for both price and yield variability, and nests it within a flexible semi-nonparametric (SNP) model consistent with farm-level decision models for computationally tractable results. We use county-level data to estimate the response of farmersâ planting preferences to changes in revenue and other variables. |
| Keywords: | acreage response, Elasticities, field crops, semi-nonparametric, risk, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries, Farm Management, Land Economics/Use, Production Economics, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Risk and Uncertainty, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103240&r=agr |
| By: | Roe, Brian E. |
| Abstract: | I compare the risk attitudes of a large, representative sample of farmers to representative samples of the general population and of non-farm small business owners using a robust survey measure of risk tolerance. I find no difference between farmers and the general population in average risk tolerance while small business owners are significantly more risk tolerant than farmers. If farmers shared the same demographic profile as the general population, farmers would be significantly more risk tolerant while if farmers shared the profile of nonfarm business owners they would have similar risk tolerance. |
| Keywords: | Farmers, risk attitudes, occupational choice, Agricultural and Food Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Political Economy, Risk and Uncertainty, D81, Q18, |
| Date: | 2011–04–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103226&r=agr |
| By: | Cooper, Joseph; OâDonoghue, Erik |
| Abstract: | The current debate surrounding the 2012 Farm Act stresses cutting costs while maintaining, or even strengthening, farmersâ âsafety net.â One way to cut costs is to reduce or eliminate potential overlap of farm program payments. Using simulations, we explore the interaction between the Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) program and a revenue assurance (RA) crop insurance program for corn, soybean, and wheat farmers in IL, MN, and SD. Additionally, we examine whether receiving benefits from multiple programs (an RA program, the Supplemental Revenue (SURE) program, and an ad hoc disaster assistance program) distorts farmersâ business decisions. We find overlap between ACRE and crop insurance, which could lead to budgetary savings if these two programs were to be integrated. Moreover, despite policymakers explicitly incorporating insurance indemnities into SURE payment calculations, access to both programs can alter behavior. Finally, in a counter-factual analysis, we show that removing ad hoc payments from the SURE would likely alter farm behavior. |
| Keywords: | commodity support, average crop revenue election, Supplemental Revenue Assistance, expected utility, corn, wheat, soybeans, Agricultural and Food Policy, Production Economics, Risk and Uncertainty, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103261&r=agr |
| By: | McBride, William D.; Mathews, Kenneth Jr. |
| Abstract: | Beef cow-calf production in the United States is widespread, occurring in every State. Nearly 765,000 farms, about 35 percent of the 2.2 million farms in the United States, had a beef cow inventory in 2007. Most of these were small, part-time operations. About a third of farms that raise beef animals had a beef cow inventory of less than 10 cows, more than half had fewer than 20 cows, and nearly 80 percent had fewer than 50 cows. In this study, ERS uses data from USDAâs 2008 Agricultural Resource Management Survey for U.S. beef cow-calf operations to examine the structure, costs, and characteristics of beef cow-calf producers. Many small operations are ârural residence farmsâ that specialize in beef cow-calf production, but their income from off-farm sources exceeds that from the farm. Most beef cow-calf production occurs on large farms, but cow-calf production is not the primary enterprise on many of these farms. Findings suggest that operators of beef cow-calf farms have a diverse set of goals for the cattle enterprise. |
| Keywords: | Beef cow-calf production, farm income, animal traceability, Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS), National Animal Identification System (NAIS), Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Farm Management, Livestock Production/Industries, |
| Date: | 2011–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:uersib:102764&r=agr |
| By: | Motamed, Mesbah; McPhail, Lihong |
| Abstract: | We explicitly measure corn acreage response to the biofuels boom from 2006 to 2010. Specifically, we use newly available micro-scale planting data over time to test whether corn cultivation intensifies in proportion to the proximity of ethanol processors. We control for the endogeneity of plant location to corn acreage by using transportation network data for instruments. Our results show that reducing the distance between a farm and an ethanol plant by one percent increases acreage in corn by 0.64% and reveal a price elasticity of supply of 0.47%. To our knowledge, this is the first study that measures changes in location and intensity of corn planting in response to incentives posed by the recent biofuels boom. The results can serve as a springboard for researchers and policy-makers concerned with crop diversity, environmental sustainability, and greenhouse gas emissions. |
| Keywords: | corn acreage, ethanol, panel data analysis, instrumental variables, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries, Land Economics/Use, Q1, Q28, C33, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103270&r=agr |
| By: | Chern, Wen S.; Lin, Huei-Ching |
| Abstract: | This study attempts to evaluate the economic benefits of the country of origin labeling (COOL) in Taiwan. A Vickrey second-price sealed-bid auction was conducted to estimate the consumerâs willingness to pay for Taiwan products vs. those from China and Vietnam. Our experiment was designed to investigate the impacts of product tasting on bidding behavior. The regression results show that tasting raised bids for Taiwan and China teas, but lowered bids for Vietnam tea. The econometric results show very high premiums for Taiwan products. Taiwanese consumers and food producers stand to benefit greatly with COOL. |
| Keywords: | Auction Experiment, Country of Origin Labeling, Tobit, Willingness to Pay, Bid Premium, Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Tea, Plum, Import, Food, Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Q13, D12., |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103219&r=agr |
| By: | pan, suwen |
| Abstract: | A comprehensive analysis of food demand and nutrient consumption using recent, representative household survey data from Malawi is presented. Expenditure and price elasticities have been estimated for 20 food groups using a quadratic almost ideal demand system based on 4 income groups identified by the Goldfeld-Quandt tests. Although the current boom of maize price provides an opportunity to rethink development strategies that diversify the commodity sectors, developing countries will not necessarily benefit from this change absent significant improvements in production capacities and trade infrastructures. Malawi is likely to suffer from higher commodity prices in the short-run. |
| Keywords: | Goldfeld-Quandt tests, a quadratic almost ideal demand system, Malawi, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Food Security and Poverty, D12, O13, R21, R31, Q11, Q12, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103266&r=agr |
| By: | Michalek, Jerzy; Ciaian, Pavel; Kancs, d'Artis; Gomez y Paloma, Sergio |
| Abstract: | In this paper we estimate the income distributional effects of the common agricultural policy (CAP) for farmers and landowners. First, we theoretically analyse the level of farmers' and landowners' gains from coupled and decoupled payments. Second, using a unique farm level panel data set from the FADN for the period 1995-2007 we employ the fixed effects, the Heckman selection bias and the GMM estimators to estimate income distributional effects of CAP subsidies. The results do not confirm the theoretical hypothesis that landowners benefit a large share of the CAP subsidies. According to our estimates, farmers gain between 60% to 95%, 80% to 178% and 86% to 90% of the total value of coupled crop/animal, coupled RDP and decupled payments, respectively. The CAP subsidies are only marginally capitalised in land rents. Our results suggest that rental rates are more responsive to structural variables and show a strong time dependency, suggesting the presence of rigidities in the EU rental markets, which constraint the adjustment of land rents to market signals and thus reduce landowners' gains from the CAP. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural and Food Policy, Agricultural Finance, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102978&r=agr |
| By: | Miao, Zhen; Beghin, John C.; Jensen, Helen H. |
| Abstract: | We extend the existing literature on food taxes targeting obesity. First, we incorporate the implicit substitution between sugar and fat nutrients implied by a complete food demand system and by conditioning on how food taxes affect total calorie intake. Second, we propose a methodology that accounts for the ability of consumers to substitute leaner low-fat and low-sugar items for rich food items within the same food group. This substitution is integrated into a demand system in addition to substitution among food groups. Simulations of a tax on added sugars show that the impact of the tax on consumption patterns is understated and the effect on welfare loss overstated when abstracting from this substitution within food groups. |
| Keywords: | discretionary calories, fat, food demand, health policy nutrition, low-fat, low-sugar substitutes, obesity, sugar, sweeteners, tax, Agricultural and Food Policy, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, I18, Q18, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103320&r=agr |
| By: | Nagler, Amy M.; Menkhaus, Dale J.; Bastian, Christopher; Ehmke, Mariah D. |
| Abstract: | We use laboratory market experiments to control for market power and social norms in order to evaluate market outcomes associated with subsidy incidence. We estimate the incidence of a stylized agricultural subsidy in laboratory land rental negotiations and compare the market behavior of university students to agricultural professionals. In separate sessions with both subject groups, 21.5 percent of a per-unit subsidy paid to the buyer (tenant) was passed on to sellers (landlords). The consistent treatment effect between students and professionals is encouraging, particularly in the use of experimental laboratory methods for ex ante analyses of agricultural policy impacts. |
| Keywords: | agricultural subsidies, ex ante policy analysis, laboratory market experiments, land market, professional versus student subject pools, subsidy incidence, Agricultural and Food Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Q1, Q18, C92, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103032&r=agr |
| By: | Bulut, Harun; Collins, Keith; Zacharias, Tom |
| Abstract: | We theoretically examine a farmerâs coverage demand with area and individual insurance plans as either separate or integrated options. The individual and area losses are assumed to be imperfectly and positively correlated. With actuarially fair rates, the farmer will fully insure with the individual plan and demand no area insurance regardless of the plans being separate or integrated. Under separate plans, free area insurance and the fair rate for individual insurance, area insurance replaces a portion of individual insurance demand. Under integrated plans, free area insurance, and the fair rate for individual insurance, the farmer will over-insure with individual plan and demand additional area insurance. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural risk, area plans of insurance, crop insurance, Agricultural and Food Policy, Agricultural Finance, Crop Production/Industries, Demand and Price Analysis, Farm Management, Financial Economics, Industrial Organization, Marketing, Production Economics, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Risk and Uncertainty, D81, G22, Q12, Q18, |
| Date: | 2011–04–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103185&r=agr |
| By: | Kauffman, Nathan; Hayes, Dermot |
| Abstract: | Agricultural biofuels require the use of scarce land, and this land has opportunity cost. We explore the objective function of a social planner who includes a land constraint in the optimization decision to minimize environmental cost. The results show that emissions should be measured on a per acre basis. Conventional agricultural life cycle assessments for biofuels report carbon emissions on a per gallon basis, thereby ignoring the implications of land scarcity and implicitly assuming an infinite supply of the inputs needed for production. Switchgrass and corn are then modeled as competing alternatives to show how the inclusion of a land constraint can influence life cycle rankings and alter policy conclusions. |
| Keywords: | biofuels, biomass, energy policy, land use, life cycle analysis, Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy, Q16, Q48, Q58, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103246&r=agr |
| By: | Lin, Chung-Tung Jordan; Gao, Zhifeng; Lee, Jonq-Ying |
| Keywords: | nutrition information, food demand, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, D12, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103167&r=agr |
| By: | Ferrier, Peyton; Zhen, Chen |
| Keywords: | trade, vegetable, free trade agreement, tariff, habits, NAFTA, Andean Trade Preference Act, Agricultural and Food Policy, Demand and Price Analysis, International Relations/Trade, |
| Date: | 2011–04–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103286&r=agr |
| By: | Gregory, Christian; Coleman-Jensen, Alisha |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we estimate the effect of food prices on food insecurity for SNAP recipients using data from the Current Population Survey and the recently published Quarterly Food At Home Price Database. We form a local food price index based on amounts of food for a household of four as established by the Thrifty Food Plan. We use an econometric model that accounts for the endogeneity of SNAP receipt to food insecurity and for household-level unobservables. We find that the average effect of food prices on the probability of food insecurity is positive and significant: an increase of one standard deviation in the price of our food basket is associated with an increase in food insecurity of between 1.3 and 2 percentage points for SNAP households. These results are fairly large in terms of the prevalence of food insecurity in our sample. An increase in food insecurity of this magnitude would be about 8 percent of total food insecurity prevalence for the populations in question. These results suggest that indexing SNAP benefits to local food prices could improve its ability to ameliorate the effects of food insecurity. |
| Keywords: | food price, food insecurity, SNAP, discrete factor model, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Security and Poverty, I38, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103265&r=agr |
| By: | Rajcaniova, Miroslava; Drabik, Dusan; Ciaian, Pavel |
| Abstract: | Kliauga, de Gorter, and Just (2008) and de Gorter, Drabik, and Just (2010) argue that the United States and the European Union establish the world ethanol and biodiesel prices, respectively. We test these theories using a cointegration analysis and the Vector Error Correction (VEC) model. Weekly price series are analyzed for the major global biofuel producers (European Union, United States, and Brazil) for the period 2002 â 2010. Biofuel policies in both the United States and Brazil appear to play a role in determining the ethanol prices in other countries, thus only partially confirming the previous findings for the U.S. price leadership in the literature. For biodiesel, our results demonstrate that the EU tax exemption and mandate impact the world biodiesel price, thus confirming the European Unionâs price leadership. |
| Keywords: | biofuels, biofuel polices, price leadership, VEC, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade, C32, Q16, Q17, Q47, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103222&r=agr |
| By: | Francisco Rosas |
| Abstract: | We introduce a world fertilizers model that is capable of producing fertilizer demand projections by crop, by country, by macronutrients, and by year. For each crop, the most relevant countries in terms of production, consumption, or trade are explicitly modeled. The remaining countries are modeled, for each crop, within a regional aggregate. The nutrient coverage includes nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), and potassium (K). In this report we present the data and procedures used to set up the model as well as the assumptions made. The fertilizer model interacts with the yield equations of the FAPRI-ISU model (Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at Iowa State University), and by means of a set of production elasticities, projects each nutrient’s application rate per hectare for each commodity and each country covered by the FAPRI-ISU model. Then, the application rates and the areas projected by FAPRI-ISU are used to obtain projections of fertilizer demand from agriculture on a global scale. With this fertilizer module, policies that directly affect fertilizer markets, such as input taxes or subsidies, quantity use restrictions, and trade restrictions, can now be explicitly formulated and evaluated. The effects of these policies on global agricultural markets and on greenhouse gas emissions can be evaluated with the FAPRI-ISU model and the Greenhouse Gas in Agriculture Simulation Model (GreenAgSiM). Also, any other policy affecting commodity markets such as input and output price shocks, biofuels mandates, and land-use change can now be evaluated with regard to its impacts on the world fertilizer markets. |
| Keywords: | agriculture, fertilizer, nitrogen, phosphorous, policy analysis, potassium, projections. JEL codes: Q10, Q11, Q18 |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ias:cpaper:11-wp520&r=agr |
| By: | Roeger, Edward; Leibtag, Ephraim |
| Abstract: | The extent to which cost changes pass through a vertically organized production process depends on the value added by each producer in the chain as well as a number of other organizational and marketing factors at each stage of production. Using 36 years of monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics price indices data (1972-2008), we model pass-through behavior for beef and bread, two retail food items with different levels of processing. Both the farmto-wholesale and wholesale-to-retail price responses are modeled to allow for the presence of structural breaks in the underlying long-term relationships between price series. Broad differences in price behavior are found not only between food categories (retail beef prices respond more to farm-price changes than do retail bread prices) but also across stages in the supply chain. While farm-to-wholesale relationships generally appear to be symmetric, retail prices have a more complicated response behavior. For both bread and beef, the passthrough from wholesale to retail is weaker than that from farm to wholesale. |
| Keywords: | pass through, wholesale, retail, farm prices, beef, bread, supply chain, price transmission, price response, Demand and Price Analysis, Livestock Production/Industries, |
| Date: | 2011–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:uersrr:102757&r=agr |
| By: | Francisco Rosas |
| Abstract: | We introduce a world fertilizers model that is capable of producing fertilizer demand projections by crop, by country, by macronutrients, and by year. For each crop, the most relevant countries in terms of production, consumption, or trade are explicitly modeled. The remaining countries are modeled, for each crop, within a regional aggregate. The nutrient coverage includes nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), and potassium (K). In this report we present the data and procedures used to set up the model as well as the assumptions made. The fertilizer model interacts with the yield equations of the FAPRI-ISU model (Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at Iowa State University), and by means of a set of production elasticities, projects each nutrient’s application rate per hectare for each commodity and each country covered by the FAPRI-ISU model. Then, the application rates and the areas projected by FAPRI-ISU are used to obtain projections of fertilizer demand from agriculture on a global scale. With this fertilizer module, policies that directly affect fertilizer markets, such as input taxes or subsidies, quantity use restrictions, and trade restrictions, can now be explicitly formulated and evaluated. The effects of these policies on global agricultural markets and on greenhouse gas emissions can be evaluated with the FAPRI-ISU model and the Greenhouse Gas in Agriculture Simulation Model (GreenAgSiM). Also, any other policy affecting commodity markets such as input and output price shocks, biofuels mandates, and land-use change can now be evaluated with regard to its impacts on the world fertilizer markets. |
| Keywords: | agriculture, fertilizer, nitrogen, phosphorous, policy analysis, potassium, projections. JEL codes: Q10, Q11, Q18 |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ias:fpaper:11-wp520&r=agr |
| By: | Baylis, Kathy; Nogueira, Lia; Pace, Kathryn |
| Keywords: | non-tariff barriers, tariffs, European Union, seafood, import notifications, import rejections, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103250&r=agr |
| By: | Charlebois, Pierre; Gagné, Stéphan; Gendron, Carole |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this document is to describe the features of the MTO covering the period 2010 to 2020. The MTO is a plausible future for the international and domestic agri-food sectors based on current policies in Canada and other countries as of Fall 2010. It serves as a benchmark for discussion and scenario analysis. The outlook makes specific assumptions and outlines their implications. Since it assumes that policies remain unchanged from existing legislation, the outlook is not a forecast of future events. In particular there are no assumptions made regarding the outcome of the Doha round of trade negotiations. It also assumes no impact from climate change and from policy to mitigate climate change nor significant animal disease outbreaks or unusual climatic conditions over the period of the outlook. The starting point of the MTO is world agricultural commodities price projection based on the OECD/FAO Agricultural Outlook for 2009/2019 adjusted with more recent information. The Canadian macro-economic forecasts are from the Conference Board of Canada outlook published in September 2010. In addition, short-term price forecasts have been updated using United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) projections released in October 2010. For example, droughts in some southern hemisphere countries and China as well as the foot and mouth outbreak in South Korea have not been taken into account. |
| Keywords: | Outlook, Agriculture, Cererals, Oilseeds, Bio-fuels, Livestock, Red meats, Milk, Diary products, Chicken, Turkey, Eggs, Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade, Livestock Production/Industries, |
| Date: | 2011–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaacem:103186&r=agr |
| By: | Du, Xiaodong; McPhail, Lihong |
| Abstract: | This study addresses the complex relationship between energy and agricultural marketsârepresented by corn, ethanol, and gasoline pricesâparticularly in light of the growth in biofuel production. Contemporaneous price response and transmission of market shocks are investigated in a simultaneous-equation system to disclose fundamental driving forces before and after the development of large-scale ethanol production. We use a dynamic conditional correlation multivariate GARCH model to demonstrate a strengthening relationship among corn, ethanol, and gasoline prices. We identify a structural change point at March 25, 2008 using the test by Bai and Perron (2003). The strengthened market relationship is further illustrated by variance decomposition based on a structural VAR model. |
| Keywords: | corn, ethanol, gasoline, structural break, Structural VAR, GARCH, Agricultural and Food Policy, Demand and Price Analysis, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, C32, Q11, Q4, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103268&r=agr |
| By: | Bastian, Christopher; Nagler, Amy M.; Menkhaus, Dale J.; Ehmke, Mariah D.; Whitaker, James B.; Young, C. Edwin |
| Abstract: | We use laboratory market experiments to assess the impact of asymmetric knowledge of a per-unit subsidy and the effect of a decoupled annual income subsidy on factor market outcomes. Results indicate that when the subsidy is tied to the factor as a per-unit subsidy, regardless of full or asymmetric knowledge for market participants, subsidized factor buyers distribute nearly 22 percent of the subsidy to factor sellers. When the subsidy is fully decoupled from the factor, as is the case with the annual payment, payment incidence is mitigated and prices are not statistically different from the no-policy treatment. |
| Keywords: | laboratory market experiments, agricultural subsidies, subsidy incidence, land market, ex ante policy analysis, Agricultural and Food Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Q18, D03, C92, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103038&r=agr |
| By: | Bakhtavoryan, Rafael; Capps, Oral Jr; Salin, Victoria |
| Abstract: | The US Food and Drug Administration confirmed in February 2007 that a major foodborne illness outbreak was caused by two peanut butter brands, Peter Pan and Great Value, manufactured by ConAgra Foods Inc. at its Sylvester, Georgia, processing plant. As a result, on February 14, 2007, ConAgra voluntarily issued a nationwide recall of its Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter products produced since May 2006 and sold through grocery and retail stores throughout the United States. Using the ACNielsen Homescan Panel for calendar years 2006, 2007 and 2008, this study investigates the impacts of the recall on the demand for peanut butter by estimating a second degree polynomial distributed lag with a lag length of three and endpoint restrictions imposed. The estimation results showed that the recall did have a statistically significant positive impact on the demand for peanut butter as a category. Also, the recall appeared to have had a statistically significant demand-enhancing effect on the Jif peanut butter brand and a demand-diminishing effect on the Skippy peanut butter brand. In all the cases, the maximum impact of the recall took place one to two weeks after the release of the recall. |
| Keywords: | food recalls, polynomial distributed lag model, consumer behavior, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, Marketing, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103217&r=agr |
| By: | Francisco Rosas; Bruce A. Babcock (Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD)); Dermot J. Hayes (Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD); Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI)) |
| Abstract: | On average, U.S. farmers choose to apply nitrogen fertilizer at a rate that exceeds the ex post agronomically optimal rate. The technology underlying the yield response to nitrogen rewards producers who over apply in years when rainfall is excessive. The overapplication of nutrients has negative environmental consequences because the nitrogen that is not taken up by the plant will typically volatilize causing N2O emissions, or leach causing water pollution. We present a nonlinear offset program that induces farmers to reduce their nitrogen applications to the level that will be consumed by the plant in a typical year and, as a result, reduce N2O emissions from agriculture. The offset program is nonlinear because of the nonlinear relationship between N2O and nitrogen application rates. We assume that the farmer solves an expected utility maximization problem, choosing the optimal nitrogen application rate. The key contribution is a set of simulations that shows that modest offset payments will induce participation in the program and will have a significant impact on both expected and actual N2O emissions without having a significant impact on actual or expected yields. We also find that more risk-averse farmers will reduce emissions by a greater amount than less risk-averse farmers. Finally, we show the distribution of emission reductions induced by this nonlinear offset scheme. |
| Keywords: | carbon offsets, nitrogen fertilizer, nitrous oxide, pollution, uncertainty. JEL Codes: Q12, Q18, Q51, Q53, Q54, D8 |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ias:cpaper:11-wp521&r=agr |
| By: | Chen, Xiaoguang; Huang, Haixiao; Khanna, Madhu |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the extensive and intensive margin changes in land use in the U.S. likely to be induced by biofuel policies and the implications of these policies for GHG emissions over the 2007-2022 period. The policies considered here include the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) by itself as well as combined with current biofuel tax credits or a carbon price policy. We use a dynamic, spatial, multi-market equilibrium model, Biofuel and Environmental Policy Analysis Model (BEPAM), to endogenously determine the effects of these policies on cropland allocation, food and fuel prices, and the mix of first and second-generation biofuels. We find that the increase in crop prices under the RFS is likely to be less than 20% in most cases and this increase is much smaller when the RFS is accompanied by volumetric subsidies or a carbon price policy since these policies induce a switch away from corn ethanol to cellulosic biofuels. The impact of the RFS on GHG emissions reduction in the U.S. is fairly modest in size but increases when the RFS is accompanied by volumetric subsidies or a carbon price policy. However, domestic savings in GHG emissions achieved by the RFS can be severely eroded by the indirect land use changes and the rebound effect on global gasoline consumption. The net reductions in global GHG emissions are largest when the RFS is accompanied by a carbon price policy. |
| Keywords: | Biofuel Mandates, Land Use, GHG Emissions, Technology, Environmental Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, |
| Date: | 2011–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103216&r=agr |
| By: | Mukherjee, Dr. Kedar nath |
| Abstract: | Besides the well-established fact towards the requirement of market based instrument, there is always been a doubt, as expressed by different bodies, on the usefulness and suitability of futures contract in developing the underlying agricultural commodity market, especially in agricultural based economy like India. Therefore, an attempt has been made to re-validate the impact of futures trading on agricultural commodity market in India. The daily price information in spot and futures markets, for a period of 7 years (2004 – 2010), for 9 major agricultural commodities, taken from different categories of Agri-products, are incorporated into various econometric models to test the concerned objective. Like most of the other studies undertaken on world and Indian commodity market, the present study have also exhibited that even though the inflationary pressure on commodity, especially agricultural commodity, prices have gone up sharply after the introduction of commodity futures contracts, the destabilizing effect of the futures contract is casual in nature and tends to vary over a long period of time. The empirical findings significantly shows that comparative advantage of futures market in disseminating information, leading to a significant price discovery and risk management, that can again help to successfully develop the underlying commodity market in India. Therefore instead of curbing the commodity futures market, it can always be suggested to strengthen the market structure to achieve the broader target. |
| Keywords: | Commodity Futures; Lead-Lag Relation; Efficiency; Volatility |
| JEL: | G14 G10 |
| Date: | 2011–02–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:29290&r=agr |
| By: | Bonanno, Alessandro; Li, Jing |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the effect of access to different types of food outlets on householdsâ food insecurity levels. Two years (2004 and 2005) of Current Population Survey â Food Security Supplement data are matched with MSA-level data on store counts of Wal-Mart Supercenters, small food stores (small grocery stores and convenience stores), medium and large grocery stores, and convenience stores associated with gas stations. Endogeneity of food storesâ location is accounted for to eliminate spurious correlation between householdsâ food security status and food access. Preliminary results indicate that, before accounting for endogeneity bias, the presence of Wal-Mart supercenters appears to be associated to higher levels of householdsâ food insecurity, while the presence of other food stores is associated with lower levels. After eliminating spurious correlation, only the presence of small food stores appears helping to reduce food insecurity (across measures of food insecurity and data samples) while the presence of gas convenience stores is associated with higher likelihoods of experiencing food insecurity. The presence of Wal-Mart supercenters and that of medium and large grocery stores have little to no impact on the likelihood of a household being food insecure (the first showing only weak evidence of a mitigating effect, the second, instead, showing weak evidence of a magnifying effect). |
| Keywords: | Food Security, Food Access, 2-Stage Residual Inclusion, Wal-Mart, Convenience Stores, Grocery Stores, Consumer/Household Economics, Food Security and Poverty, Industrial Organization, Q18, L81, P46, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103218&r=agr |
| By: | Vergara, Oscar |
| Abstract: | We utilize an agricultural model that uses crop/weather relationships at the county resolution and fits robust distributions that take into account the impact that weather has on crop production. Once the crop insurance policy conditions and prices are applied to the modeled county yield distributions, the portfolio gain and losses can be calculated by aggregating the gain and losses at the county level, state level, regional level and nationwide level. Portfolio losses are computed under the old and new SRA rules and regulations for comparison purposes. |
| Keywords: | SRA, MPCI, crop insurance, stochastic model, weather peril, probabilities, Crop Production/Industries, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Risk and Uncertainty, C, Q, |
| Date: | 2011–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103282&r=agr |
| By: | Dressler, Jonathan B.; Tauer, Loren W. |
| Abstract: | We formulate a method to determine an equitable division of dairy farm partnership income when partners provide unequal amounts of capital, labor, and management and empirically estimate this relationship. New York dairy farm financial data are used within fixed effects and random coefficient panel regression models to reveal a systematic division of dairy farm partnership income among operatorsâ labor, capital, and management while controlling for heterogeneity arising from differing herd size. Results indicate that controlling for time and heterogeneity across farms due to herd size are important factors when dividing net farm income among unpaid factors of production. Empirical estimates of allocating dairy farm partnership income to equity, operatorsâ labor, and management are presented. |
| Keywords: | Dairy, opportunity costs, unpaid factors production, net farm income, operatorsâ labor, capital, management., Agricultural Finance, Farm Management, Q10, Q12, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102116&r=agr |
| By: | Wallander, Steven; Hand, Michael S. |
| Abstract: | Since the passage of the 1996 Farm Act, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) has provided over $10 billion in technology adoption subsidies. One of the national conservation priorities in EQIP is water conservation, but it is not known how participation in EQIP by irrigators affects water application rates and decisions to expand or reduce a farmâs irrigated acreage. Using a farm-level panel data set drawn from three national samples of irrigators taken in 1998, 2003, and 2008, this study provides the first national scale econometric estimates of the changes in water application rates and irrigated acreage that result when a farm receives EQIP payments. Due to a five-fold increase in EQIP funding following the 2002 farm bill, the change in EQIP participation between 2008 and earlier years is largely the result of an exogenous policy shock. A difference-in-differences estimator that exploits this change in EQIP funding and also controls for unobserved farm-specific variables, suggests that for the average farm participating in EQIP between 2004 and 2008, the EQIP payments may have reduced water application rates but also may have increased total water use and led to an expansion in irrigated acreage. However, since EQIP participation is voluntary, there may still be a need to correct for bias due to sample selection. A nearest neighbor matching estimator finds no evidence of any statistically significant effect of EQIP participation on technology adoption rates, water use, water application rates or acreages, which suggests that there is a high degree of self-selection into the program. |
| Keywords: | EQIP, irrigation efficiency, water conservation, difference-in-differences, matching estimator, Environmental Economics and Policy, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103269&r=agr |
| By: | Wang, Chenguang |
| Abstract: | Abstract: Policies such as Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) which aim to assist farmers with biomass production may act as a double-edged sword. On one hand, they lure farmers to adopt biomass production in the short term. On the other hand, they canât be irresponsible for farmersâ abandonment of biomass production in the long run. The paper sharpens this idea in a principal-agent setting and argues that by offering a timely loyalty premium the agentsâ take-and-run behavior can be mitigated. Moreover, the model shows that effort and investment in human capital are increasing in loyalty premium when agents decide to continue providing biomass after testing-water contract expires. |
| Keywords: | BCAP, contract duration, incentives, Environmental Economics and Policy, Industrial Organization, Production Economics, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103164&r=agr |
| By: | Toole, Andrew A; King, John L |
| Abstract: | Prior research identifies a direct positive link between the stock of public scientific knowledge and agricultural productivity; however, an indirect contribution to agricultural productivity is also possible when this stock facilitates private sector invention. This study examines how âconnectednessâ between the stock of public scientific knowledge and private firms influences firm-level research productivity. Bibliographic information identifies the nature and degree to which firms use public agricultural science through citations and collaborations on scientific papers. Fixed effects models show that greater citations and collaborations with university researchers are associated with greater agricultural research productivity. |
| Keywords: | public science, research productivity, patents, citations, collaboration, R&D, Productivity Analysis, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Q16, O31, |
| Date: | 2011–04–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103211&r=agr |
| By: | Cao, YIng; Yuehua, Zhang |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the factors that impact insurance choices. Specially designed survey questions allow one to fully observe the demand tendency by the farmers and partially observe the supply tendency by the insurance company. A joint estimation of insurance decision by both supply and demand sides suggested that factors performing different roles in affecting insurance participation game. Farmerâs age and education have positive impact on insurance demand, but are indifference to the insurance providers. Insurance suppliers care more about farmersâ experience in the field, but this experience occasionally results in overconfidence for the farmers and hence, impedes insurance purchasing. Production scales, proxy by sow inventory, is put more weight by the farmers than the suppliers when making decisions. Production efficiency measures, which performs as incentives for farmers to purchase insurance, acts as some disadvantages in the suppliersâ point of view. While the suppliers prefer customers who use vaccine, the hog producers tend to treat vaccine as a substitute for insurance so as to prevent disease risk. The study also generates discussion on the topics such as short-run vs. long-run factor impact by comparing past insurance choices and current choices. Information on choices regarding different types of insurance (hog and breeding sow) is also discussed. Results from bivairate probit model offers deeper understanding about livestock insurance choices and further insights to improve policy design and promote participation. |
| Keywords: | Livestock Insurance Choices, Bivariate Probit, Partial Observability, Agribusiness, International Development, Livestock Production/Industries, Risk and Uncertainty, C35, D13, Q12, |
| Date: | 2011–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103158&r=agr |
| By: | Czap, Natalia V.; Czap, Hans J.; Khachaturyan, Marianna; Lynne, Gary D.; Burbach, Mark E. |
| Abstract: | This paper further tests dual interest theory and the metaeconomics approach to environmental choice, recognizing a possible role for empathy-sympathy (the basis for an internalized, shared other-interest) in tempering and conditioning the more fundamental tendency to pursue self-interest. To test, we focus on rivers flowing through agricultural areas carrying sediments, chemicals, and fertilizers which are making their way into downstream rivers and lakes. We use data from a framed experiment. Farmers decide on the usage of conservation technology to lessen impacts on the water quality in downstream areas, which is more costly. The results confirm our hypotheses, demonstrating that upstream farmers who practice conservation are tempering profit maximization with empathy-based, environmentally conscious behavior that better serves the farmersâ own-interest, and thus also serves downstream users. Environmental economics models need to explicitly include empathy-sympathy and the moral-ethical context it produces, providing a more scientific basis for conservation policy and programs. |
| Keywords: | dual-interest model, metaeconomics, empathy, sympathy, selfism, environmental experiment, behavioral economics, water quality, conservation tillage, conservation policy, Environmental Economics and Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, C9, D03, Q25, Q53, Q57., |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102866&r=agr |
| By: | Key, Nigel; Sneeringer, Stacy E. |
| Abstract: | Methane digestersâbiogas recovery systems that use methane from manure to generate electricityâhave not been widely adopted in the United States because costs have exceeded benefi ts to operators. Burning methane in a digester reduces greenhouse gas emissions from manure management. A policy or program that pays producers for these emission reductionsâthrough a carbon offset market or directly with paymentsâcould increase the number of livestock producers who would profi t from adopting a methane digester. We developed an economic model that illustrates how dairy and hog operation size, location, and manure management methods, along with electricity and carbon prices, could influence methane digester profi ts. The model shows that a relatively moderate increase in the price of carbon could induce signifi cantly more dairy and hog operations, particularly large ones, to adopt a methane digester, thereby substantially lowering emissions of greenhouse gases. |
| Keywords: | methane, methane digesters, manure, livestock, climate change, greenhouse gases, carbon offset, Environmental Economics and Policy, Financial Economics, Livestock Production/Industries, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, |
| Date: | 2011–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:uersrr:102758&r=agr |
| By: | Vollrath, Thomas L.; Hallahan, Charles B. |
| Abstract: | The rapid increase in the number of bilateral and regional free-trade agreements since 1995 is a striking development. The proliferation of these agreements has raised questions about whether they have, in fact, opened markets, created trade, promoted economic growth, and/or distorted trade. This study uses panel data from 1975 to 2005 and a gravity framework model to identify the infl uence of reciprocal trade agreements (RTAs) on bilateral trade in the world agricultural marketplace. A benchmark, Heckman sample-selection and two generalized models, one of which accounts for RTA phase-in effects, are used to gauge the impact on partner trade of mutual as well as asymmetric RTA membership. Empirical results show that RTAs increase agricultural trade between member countries but decrease trade between member and nonmember countries. Interestingly, RTAs were found to be particularly effective at expanding agricultural trade and opening markets in developing countries when developing- country trading partners are part of the same agreement. |
| Keywords: | trade policy, reciprocal trade agreements, bilateral, regional, missing trade, gravity models, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Development, International Relations/Trade, |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:uersrr:102755&r=agr |
| By: | Pavel, Ciaian; Sergio, Gomez y Paloma |
| Abstract: | The present paper provides a meta-analysis of agricultural landscape valuation studies and through the estimated benefit transfer function it projects the value of EU landscape. The analyses are based on information from more than thirty European and Non-European studies which use stated preference approach to uncover the society's willingness to pay (WTP) for landscape. Our calculations show that, the per hectare WTP in EU varies between 89 and 169 â¬/ha with an average value of 142 â¬/ha in 2009. Further the calculations indicate that the total value of EU landscape in 2009 is estimated to be in the range of â¬16.1 â 30.8 billion per year, with an average of â¬25.8 billion, representing around 7.5 percent of the total value of EU agricultural production and roughly half of the CAP expenditures. |
| Keywords: | landscape, benefit transfer, WTP, Consumer/Household Economics, Environmental Economics and Policy, Public Economics, Q51, Q41, |
| Date: | 2011–04–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102727&r=agr |
| By: | Levedahl, J. William |
| Abstract: | Using a procedure by Deaton (1990) and data from a cross-sectional survey by CREST price elasticities of demand for three types of FAFH facilities are computed. |
| Keywords: | Price Elasticity of Demand, Food Away from Home, Cross-sectional data, Demand and Price Analysis, D12, C21, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103243&r=agr |
| By: | Wainio, John; Gehlhar, Mark; Dyck, John |
| Abstract: | Since 2001, the United States has concluded negotiations with 13 countries, resulting in 8 trade agreements (TAs). Three additional agreements have been negotiated but not yet ratifi ed by Congress, as of March 2011. Other countries have become increasingly active in negotiating their own trade pacts. This proliferation of TAs between key U.S.trading partners and competitors may have raised concerns among U.S. exporters, whose share in established markets could be eroded by such deals. In this study, ERS examines how recently concluded TAs between ASEAN (Southeast Asia) countries and China and Australia/New Zealand, as well as pending TAs between the United States and Korea, Colombia, and Panama, will likely affect U.S. agricultural trade. Model results suggest that TAs between ASEAN countries and China and ASEAN countries and Australia/New Zealand would result in moderate losses to U.S. agricultural exports of about $350 million to those countries, but losses would be partially offset by gains in other markets. U.S. agricultural exports to Korea would expand by an estimated $1.9 billion per year if the U.S. TA with Korea were implemented. The U.S.-Colombia TA would result in an estimated $370 million in additional U.S. exports per year. U.S. exports would realize smaller gains of about $50 million per year under the pact with Panama. Empirical results confirm theoretical fi ndings that trade created under TAs exceeds trade diverted, but that results depend on the specific circumstances of each agreement. |
| Keywords: | market access, free trade agreements, tariffs, trade agreements, trade creation, trade diversion, trade promotion agreements, GTAP model., International Relations/Trade, |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:uersrr:102754&r=agr |
| By: | Mugera, Amin |
| Abstract: | This article integrates fuzzy set theory in Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) framework to compute technical efficiency scores when input and output data are imprecise. The underlying assumption in convectional DEA is that inputs and outputs data are measured with precision. However, production agriculture takes place in an uncertain environment and, in some situations, input and output data may be imprecise. We present an approach of measuring efficiency when data is known to lie within specified intervals and empirically illustrate this approach using a group of 34 dairy producers in Pennsylvania. Compared to the convectional DEA scores that are point estimates, the computed fuzzy efficiency scores allow the decision maker to trace the performance of a decision-making unit at different possibility levels. |
| Keywords: | fuzzy set theory, Data Envelopment Analysis, membership function, α-cut level, technical efficiency, Farm Management, Production Economics, Productivity Analysis, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Risk and Uncertainty, D24, Q12, C02, C44, C61, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103251&r=agr |
| By: | Ramirez, Octavio; Carpio, Carlos |
| Abstract: | This article explores the impact of the likely levels of inaccuracy associated with two main types of premium estimation methods, under different sample sizes, on the actuarial performance of the US crop insurance program. The analyses are conducted under several plausible assumptions about the insurer versus the producersâ estimates for their actuarially fair premiums. Significant differences are found due to estimation method and sample size, with the currently used procedures resulting in the worse actuarial performance. Several conclusions and recommendations are provided that could markedly reduce the amount of public subsidies needed to keep this program solvent. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural Subsidies, Crop Insurance Premium Estimation, Loss-Cost Procedures, Risk Management Agency, Financial Economics, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102463&r=agr |
| By: | Thrasher, Jim; Rousu, Matthew; Hammond, David; Navarro, Ashley; Corrigan, Jay |
| Abstract: | Objective: To estimate differences in demand for cigarette packages with different packaging and health warning label formats. Methods: Adult smokers (n=404) in four states participated in experimental auctions. Participants bid on two of four experimental conditions, each involving a different health warning label format but with the same warning message: 1. text on 50% of pack side; 2. text on 50% of the pack front and back; 3. text with a graphic picture on 50% of the pack front and back; and 4. same as previous format, but without brand imagery. Results: Mean bids decreased across conditions (1. $3.52; 2. $3.43; 3. $3.11; 4. $2.93). Bivariate and multivariate random effects models indicated that there was no statistically significant difference in demand for packs with either of the two text only warnings; however, demand was significantly lower for both packs with prominent pictorial warnings, with the lowest demand associated with the plain, unbranded pack. Conclusions: Results suggest that prominent health warnings with graphic pictures will reduce demand for cigarettes. Regulators should not only consider this type of warning label, but also plain packaging policies for tobacco products. |
| Keywords: | experimental auctions, cigarette labels, grotesque images, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, C93, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103169&r=agr |
| By: | Abebe Damte (Department of Economics, University of Pretoria); Steven F. Koch (Department of Economics, University of Pretoria) |
| Abstract: | This study examines the relationship between property rights, defined by land tenure security, the strength of local-level institutions, and household demand for fuel wood, as measured by the source from which fuel wood is collected. A multinomial regression model is applied to survey data collected in rural Ethiopia. Results from the discrete choice model indicate that active local-level institutions reduce the dependency on community forests, but, otherwise, increase household dependency on open access forests. However, property rights do not increase demand for fuel wood collected from private forests. The results suggest that there is a need to bring more open access forests under the management of the community and increase the quality of community forestry management in order to realize improvements in forest conservation. |
| Keywords: | Property rights, institutions, fuel wood rural, Ethiopia |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pre:wpaper:201110&r=agr |
| By: | Nefstead, Ward E. |
| Keywords: | Land Economics/Use, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103208&r=agr |
| By: | Lange, Kelly; Johnson, Jeffrey; Johnson, Phillip; Hudson, Darren; Belasco, Eric |
| Abstract: | An intergenerational transfer model incorporating both altruism and exchange is presented for family farm transfers. A simulation study is conducted to test parental motivation in intergenerational transfers of family farm businesses. Results indicated that family farm intergenerational transfers are altruistically motivated. |
| Keywords: | Family Farms, Intergenerational Transfer, Family Farm Succession, Consumer/Household Economics, Farm Management, Q10, Q12, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103231&r=agr |
| By: | Reeling, Carson J.; Gramig, Benjamin |
| Keywords: | greenhouse gas, conservation practices, nonpoint source pollution, genetic algorithm, optimization, Environmental Economics and Policy, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102552&r=agr |
| By: | Spolador, Humberto F. S.; Barros, Geraldo S. C.; Bacchi, Mirian R. P. |
| Abstract: | The findings presented in this paper come from our study of the effects of Brazilian macroeconomic policy on the Brazilian Farm [product] Price Index using an adapted version of Frankelâs (1986 & 2006) theoretical model. The study examined the connection between Brazilian farm prices and external variables (worldwide importation of agribusiness products, international commodity prices, and foreign real interest rates) and between Brazilian farm prices and domestic variables (GDP, the real exchange rate, and local interest rates). |
| Keywords: | Brazilian farm prices, interest rate differentials, international commodity prices and exchange rate., Agribusiness, Political Economy, Q, E4, E5, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103221&r=agr |
| By: | Drabik, Dusan; de Gorter, Harry; Just, David R. |
| Abstract: | We show how leakage differs, depending on the biofuel policy and market conditions. Carbon leakage is shown to have two components: a market leakage effect and an emissions savings effect. We also distinguish domestic and international leakage and show how omitting the former like the IPCC does can bias leakage estimates. International leakage is always positive, but domestic leakage can be negative. The magnitude of market leakage depends on the domestic and foreign gasoline supply and fuel demand elasticities, and on consumption and production shares of world oil markets for the country introducing the biofuel policy. Being a small country in world oil markets does not automatically imply that leakage is 100 percent or above that of a large country. We show leakage due to a tax credit is always greater than that of a mandate, while the combination of a mandate and subsidy generates greater leakage than a mandate alone. In general, one gallon of ethanol is found to replace only 0.35 gallons of gasoline â not one gallon as assumed by life-cycle accounting. For the United States, this translates into one (gasoline-equivalent) gallon of ethanol emitting 1.13 times more carbon than a gallon of gasoline if indirect land use change (iLUC) is not included in the estimated emissions savings effect and 1.43 times more when iLUC is included. |
| Keywords: | biofuels, market leakage, carbon leakage, emissions savings, domestic leakage, tax credit, mandate, Environmental Economics and Policy, Q27, Q41, Q42, Q54, |
| Date: | 2010 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102689&r=agr |
| By: | Stéphanie Aulong; Robert Kast |
| Abstract: | The objectives of the paper are (1) to apply Füssels (2007) conceptual framework of vulnerability to a concrete ongoing research and (2) to discuss on the resulting choice of an adequate vulnerability approach. The research aims at assessing the vulnerability of South Indian farmers to global change at two periods of time: medium term (2030-2040) to account for rapid global economic changes, and long term (2045-2065) to account for climate change and variability. The term vulnerability is dened in so many ways that its use has become controversial. Fussel proposed an original conceptual framework of vulnerability based on a common and transversal terminology understandable whatever the scientic domain of concern. This conceptual framework relies on the description of six dimensions of the vulnerability concept. The rst four dimensions describes the vulnerable situation and the last two dimensions explain the factors of vulnerability. Füssel argues that with this set of dimensions, it is possible to class any conceptual approach of vulnerability found in the literature. After the six dimensions were adapted to South Indian farmers vulnerability, the use of a cross-scale integrated approach of vulnerability appears clearly as the most appropriate.[...] |
| Date: | 2011–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lam:wpaper:11-03&r=agr |
| By: | McBride, William; Key, Nigel; Mathews, Kenneth |
| Abstract: | Antimicrobial drugs are fed to hogs at sub-therapeutic levels to prevent disease and promote growth. However, there is concern that the presence of antimicrobial drugs in hog feed is a factor promoting the development of antimicrobial drug-resistant bacteria. This study describes the extent to which antibiotics are used in hog production and how this changed between 2004 and 2009. This study also uses a sample-selection model to examine the impact that use has on the productivity of U.S. hog operations. Using hog producer data from 2004, the analysis did not find a relationship between productivity and sub-therapeutic antibiotics fed during finishing, but productivity was significantly improved when fed to nursery pigs. These results are being evaluated using similar data from 2009. |
| Keywords: | antibiotics, hogs, sample selection, Farm Management, Production Economics, |
| Date: | 2011–07–24 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103232&r=agr |
| By: | Huang, Kuo S. |
| Keywords: | Demand and Price Analysis, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, |
| Date: | 2011–07–24 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103258&r=agr |
| By: | Tian Yu; Bruce A. Babcock (Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD)) |
| Abstract: | We estimate impacts of rainfall and temperature on corn yields by fitting a linear spline model with endogenous thresholds. Using Gibbs sampling and the Metropolis - Hastings algorithm, we simultaneously estimate the thresholds and other model parameters. A hierarchical structure is applied to capture county-specific factors determining corn yields. Results indicate that impacts of both rainfall and temperature are nonlinear and asymmetric in most states. Yield is concave in both weather variables. Corn yield decreases significantly when temperature increases beyond a certain threshold, and when the amount of rainfall decreases below a certain threshold. Flooding is another source of yield loss in some states. A moderate amount of heat is beneficial to corn yield in northern states, but not in other states. Both the levels of the thresholds and the magnitudes of the weather effects are estimated to be different across states in the Corn Belt. |
| Keywords: | Bayesian estimation, Gibbs sampler, hierarchical structure, Metropolis-Hastings algorithm, non-linear JEL codes: C11, C13, Q10, Q54. |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ias:cpaper:11-wp522&r=agr |
| By: | Sari, S.; Hammoudeh, S.M.; Chang, C-L.; McAleer, M.J. |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the roles of futures prices of crude oil, gasoline, ethanol, corn, soybeans and sugar in the energy-grain nexus. It also investigates the own- and cross-market impacts for lagged grain trading volume and open interest in the energy and grain markets. According to the results, the conventional view, for which the impacts are from oil to gasoline to ethanol to grains in the energy-grain nexus, does not hold well in the long run because the oil price is influenced by gasoline, soybeans and oil. Moreover, gasoline is preceded by only the oil price and ethanol is not foreshadowed by any of the prices. However, in the short run, two-way feedback in both directions exists in all markets. The grain trading volume effect across oil and gasoline is more pronounced in the short run than the long run, satisfying both the overconfidence/disposition and new information hypotheses across markets. The results for the ethanol open interest shows that money flows out of this market in both the short and long run, but no results suggest across market inflows or outflows to the other grain markets. |
| Keywords: | Causality;market liquidity;depth;energy;grains |
| Date: | 2011–04–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:eureir:1765023115&r=agr |
| By: | Kauffman, Nathan; Hayes, Dermot |
| Abstract: | The utility maximization problem of a grain producer is formulated and solved numerically under prospect theory as an alternative to expected utility theory. Conventional theory posits that the optimal hedging position of a producer is not affected solely due to changes in the level of futures prices. However, a strong degree of positive correlation is apparent in the data. Our results show that with prospect theory serving as the underlying behavioral framework, the optimal hedge of a producer is affected by changes in futures price levels. The implications of this price-induced hedging behavior on spot prices and volatility are subsequently considered. |
| Keywords: | futures markets, hedging, prospect theory, risk preferences, Agribusiness, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Risk and Uncertainty, D03, D81, G11, Q13, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103242&r=agr |
| By: | Roe, Brian E.; Wyszynski, Timothy E. |
| Abstract: | We find sale prices and net revenues received by sellers in the Midwestern club pig market are higher at traditional face-to-face auctions than at comparable Internet auctions. The comparison overcomes adverse selection issues that commonly plague such analyses by using data from sellers that allocated pigs to both markets based solely on exogenous differences in dates between online and offline auctions. Furthermore, both auctions feature ascending price formats with âsoft-endingsâ and remaining quality variation is controlled by using detailed information on animal, seller and event characteristics. The results suggest that the higher prices and net revenues from traditional auctions are attributable to remaining differences in auction format and buyer pools. Furthermore, sellers may be willing to forgo higher revenues to capture the convenience and flexibility provided by Internet auctions, to reach buyers in other regions that face different seasonality in demand and to stimulate demand for privately negotiated sales. |
| Keywords: | auctions, electronic commerce, two-sided markets, livestock marketing, hedonic models, Agribusiness, Industrial Organization, Livestock Production/Industries, Marketing, D44, Q13, |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:102940&r=agr |
| By: | Ramazan Sari (Department of Business Administration, Middle East Technical University); Shawkat Hammoudeh (Lebow College of Business, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA); Chia-Lin Chang (Department of Applied Economics, Department of Finance, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan); Michael McAleer (Econometrisch Instituut (Econometric Institute), Faculteit der Economische Wetenschappen (Erasmus School of Economics) Erasmus Universiteit, Tinbergen Instituut (Tinbergen Institute).) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the roles of futures prices of crude oil, gasoline, ethanol, corn, soybeans and sugar in the energy-grain nexus. It also investigates the own- and cross-market impacts for lagged grain trading volume and open interest in the energy and grain markets. According to the results, the conventional view, for which the impacts are from oil to gasoline to ethanol to grains in the energy-grain nexus, does not hold well in the long run because the oil price is influenced by gasoline, soybeans and oil. Moreover, gasoline is preceded by only the oil price and ethanol is not foreshadowed by any of the prices. However, in the short run, two-way feedback in both directions exists in all markets. The grain trading volume effect across oil and gasoline is more pronounced in the short run than the long run, satisfying both the overconfidence/disposition and new information hypotheses across markets. The results for the ethanol open interest shows that money flows out of this market in both the short and long run, but no results suggest across market inflows or outflows to the other grain markets. |
| Keywords: | Causality, market liquidity, depth, energy, grains. |
| JEL: | Q11 Q18 Q42 |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucm:doicae:1110&r=agr |
| By: | Muhammad, Andrew; McPhail, Lihong; Kiawu, James |
| Abstract: | We estimate the demand for imported cotton in China and assess the competitiveness of cotton-exporting countries. Given the assertion that African cotton producers are ill affected by U.S. cotton subsidies, our focus is the price competition between the C4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali) and United States in China. Demand estimates are used to project how U.S. prices affect Chinaâs imports by country. In comparing demand projections, results show that the relationship between the United States and the C4 has more to do with how U.S. prices can affect global prices rather than any substitute or competitive relationship in the Chinese market. |
| Keywords: | Africa, China, cotton, demand, imports, United States, Demand and Price Analysis, International Relations/Trade, F17, Q11, Q17, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103210&r=agr |
| By: | Banerjee, Simanti; Shortle, James S; Kwasnica, Anthony M |
| Abstract: | Tackling the problem of ecosystem services degradation is an important policy challenge. Different types of economic instruments have been employed by conservation agencies to meet this challenge. Notable among them are Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) schemes that pay private landowners to change land uses to pro-environmental ones on their properties. This paper focuses on a PES scheme â an auction for the cost-efficient disbursal of government funds for selection of spatially contiguous land management projects. The auction is structured as an iterative descending price auction where every bid is evaluated on the basis of a scoring metric â a benefit cost ratio. The ecological effectiveness and economic efficiency of the auction is tested with data generated from lab experiments. These experiments use the information available to the subjects about the spatial goal as the treatment variable. Analysis indicates that the information reduces the cost-efficiency of the auction. Experience with bidding also has a negative impact on auction efficiency. The study also provides an analysis of the behavior of winners and losers at the final auction outcome. Winners and losers are found to have significantly different behavior with winners bidding much higher than their costs than losers. |
| Keywords: | Ecosystem Services, economic experiments, auctions, spatial contiguity, Environmental Economics and Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Land Economics/Use, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Q, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103220&r=agr |
| By: | Kim, Man-Keun; Yu, Tun-Hsiang |
| Keywords: | Environmental Kuznets Curve, Energy Use, Vector Autoregression, Historical Decomposition, Environmental Economics and Policy, International Relations/Trade, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Q43, Q52, Q56, |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea11:103239&r=agr |
| By: | Solenn Leplay; Sophie Thoyer |
| Abstract: | Safeguarding tropical rainforests is one of the most important challenges for the future, particularly to mitigate climate change. The international community has actively sought international policy solutions to curb deforestation in tropical countries. Debt-for-nature swaps and certification of sustainable forest management have been implemented by NGOs. Some states are currently negotiating the implementation of the REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) mechanism, a North-South financial transfer to compensate countries for avoided deforestation. However, little is known about the efficiency of these instruments. We argue that they may have a double effect: an expected direct impact on deforestation linked to the conditionalities of instruments, and an indirect impact due to their feedback effects on macroeconomic variables, affecting in turn the drivers of deforestation. The second effect is often overlooked by policy makers [...]. |
| Date: | 2011–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lam:wpaper:11-01&r=agr |
| By: | Enric Tello (Department of Economic History and Institutions,Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Barcelona (Spain)); Marc Badia-Miró (Department of Economic History and Institutions,Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Barcelona (Spain)) |
| Abstract: | According to the existing literature, when land remained the most abundant factor an increase in market integration is expected to lead to a greater inequality in wealth or income distribution. However, several case studies on the vineyard specialization experienced in Catalonia during the 18th and 19th centuries suggested another outcome: land ownership and agrarian income became less uneven, not the opposite. The outstanding interpretation posed by Catalan rural historians deserves to be confirmed or rejected by applying different inequality and polarization indices (Gini, Theil and top incomes), and innovative methods (inequality possible frontier and extraction ratios), to the big dataset we have been able to assemble with the information provided for every cadastral taxpayer of each municipality in the Distribution of Personal Wealth in Real Estate Ownership in the Province of Barcelona published in 1852 by the Official Gazette, combined with other population and land-use data listed in a Land-Use Statistics of the Province of Barcelona compiled in 1858. The results confirm that landownership and income inequality were lower in winegrowing municipalities than in cereal-cropping or forest ones, in spite of the fact that commercial specialization and higher population densities could have meant an extended frontier of possible inequality. |
| Keywords: | agrarian income distribution, land ownership, personal inequality, regional inequality, land-use patterns, tax burden |
| JEL: | N53 D31 H24 Q15 |
| Date: | 2011–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:seh:wpaper:1101&r=agr |