bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Supply Response and Marketing Strategies for Deciduous Crops
Authors: Baritelle John L. , Price David W.
Published: July 2006

Recent surveys show large increases in Washington apple tree plantings. When these plantings come into production, prices received by growers are expected to be below production costs. A simulation model combining supply, demand, and random weather variables was used to compare future returns and production variables of present fresh‐processing allocation policies with alternative policies. The discriminating monopolist policies produced higher discounted revenues, more stable prices, and greater production and tree numbers during the 1972–1981 period than present policies. Thus, the monopolist short‐run increase in returns over the present policy was prevalent after accounting for supply response.
Food Demand Matrix in an Approximate Linear Expenditure System
Authors: Sasaki Kozo , Saegusa Yoshikiyo
Published: July 2006

The demand system or matrix for food commodities and commodity groups in Japan is constructed. A demand matrix is obtained by an alternative version of the linear expenditure system, implying a practical and convenient approximation to Powell's system. Indicators of goodness of fit are quite high for the system developed.
Changes in Industries Located in the Nonmetropolitan South, 1959–1969
Authors: Till Thomas E.
Published: July 2006

Southern counties more than 50 miles from an SMSA experienced nonfarm job growth in the 1960's. Manufacturing jobs, especially in electrical equipment, transportation equipment, chemicals, and furniture industries shifted more toward nonmetro locations. Consequently, the Southern nonmetro industry mix was not solely of the lowest‐wage and most labor‐intensive components.
First‐Best and Second‐Best Policies of Pricing an Imported Input: The Case of Fertilizer in Taiwan, 1950–1966
Authors: Hsu Robert C.
Published: July 2006

Under a government‐peasant fertilizer‐rice barter system in Taiwan, the use of chemical fertilizer is heavily taxed through a high fertilizer‐rice exchange ratio. Important economic gains can be realized if the government lowers the tax on fertilizer input and raises, if necessary, the tax on rice output instead.
The Measurement of Economic Uncertainty in Public Water Resource Development
Authors: Taylor Bernard W. , North Ronald M.
Published: July 2006

The existing benefit‐cost criteria for evaluating water resource projects are deterministic and therefore incomplete, since the uncertainty inherent in project outcomes is not considered. A Monte‐Carlo simulation approach is used to generate a mean and standard deviation for the benefits, costs, benefit‐cost ratio, and net present value for the controversial Spewrell Bluff Project. Subjective estimates defining probability distributions of project benefits and costs were obtained from the Corps of Engineers. A project selection process that includes probability considerations in the benefit‐cost criteria is recommended and several approaches for including uncertainty as a variable are suggested.
Prices, Farm Outputs, and Income Projections under Alternative Assumed Demand and Supply Conditions
Authors: Yeh Chung J.
Published: July 2006

A two‐equation aggregate demand and supply simulation model with Koyck‐type geometrically distributed lags is used to examine the impacts of alternative demand and supply shifts on aggregate farm output, prices, and income. Impacts of inflation on important farm sector indicators are also examined. Projected solutions to 1985 indicate that strong demand shifts are needed to maintain a favorable level of prices and farm incomes. Results further suggest that the U.S. farm sector is particularly sensitive to unexpected changes or shifts in demand, and supply and prolonged inflation in the general economy.
Improving Estimates of Economic Parameters by Use of Ridge Regression with Production Function Applications
Authors: Brown William G. , Beattie Bruce R.
Published: July 2006

Ridge regression is a promising alternative to deletion of relevant variables for alleviating multicollinearity and can provide smaller mean square error estimates than unbiased methods such as OLS. However, ridge estimates can also be unreliable and misleading under certain conditions. To avoid erroneous conclusions from ridge regression, some prior knowledge about the true regression coefficients is helpful. A theorem on expected bias implies that ridge regression will give much better results for some economic models, such as certain production functions, than for others because of smaller expected bias.
Effect of a Controlled Price Increase on School Lunch Participation: Pittsburgh 1973
Authors: Braley George A. , Nelson Paul E.
Published: July 2006

Direct price elasticities of demand were computed for fully paying students who participated in the National School Lunch Program. For the first time, cross elasticities were computed for recipients of free, hot, Type A lunches. Results are related to earlier findings. Some methodological and program related constraints and implications are presented.
A Health Care Systems Model for Nonmetropolitan Areas
Authors: Dunn James W. , Doeksen Gerald A.
Published: July 2006

A health systems model allowing analysis of multiple services including spatial and monetary considerations is presented. Several behaviorally reasonable objective functions reflecting possible goals of the health planner are minimized using mixed integer linear programming. Under the different objective functions, the values of these functions increased little from their optimal value. Sensitivity analysis showed the solution to be quite sensitive to assumptions about migration and treatment practices while birth rates and travel costs have less impact. Use of the model is aided by health planners' use of data at their disposal.
Measuring the Indirect Effects of an Agricultural Investment Project on Its Surrounding Region
Authors: Bell C. L. G. , Hazell P. B. R.
Published: July 2006

Agricultural investment projects may generate important downstream benefits for the regions in which they are located. Using a semi‐input‐output model of the regional economy, an attempt is made to quantify the downstream benefits generated by an irrigation project in Malaysia. In aggregate the project's downstream effects on regional income were of an order similar to its direct effects, but the main beneficiaries of the downstream benefits were the nonfarm households. Each dollar of downstream income probably was supported by just over a dollar of additional investment in the local economy.
Empirical Contributions to Basis Theory: The Case of Citrus Futures
Authors: Ward Ronald W. , Dasse Frank A.
Published: July 2006

A futures basis should reflect the marginal cost of physical product plus a risk premium less a convenience yield. However, unique market characteristics may lead to basis bias not explained by the storage theory. An estimate of the basis model for frozen orange concentrate is used to test the theory of storage and to illustrate anticipatory aspects of the basis not included in storage theory.
Effects of Energy Cost Increases and Regional Allocation Policies on Agricultural Production
Authors: Adams Richard M. , King Gordon A. , Johnston Warren E.
Published: July 2006

Some of the impacts of energy cost increases and reduced supplies on the product mix of annual field crops and vegetables in California are analyzed. A quadratic programming model including risk is used to evaluate the effects of increased energy costs and reductions in fertilizer and in fuel supplies. The model includes a demand matrix of some nine field crops and twenty‐eight seasonal vegetables. The study also considers the relative impact of energy changes on producer and consumer welfare. Results suggest continued viability of vegetable production but differential consumer and producer impacts associated with energy changes.
Response Time and the Location of Emergency Medical Facilities in Rural Areas: A Case Study
Authors: Daberkow S. G. , King G. A.
Published: July 2006

A framework to analyze the delivery of emergency medical care in northern California is proposed. Using a branch and bound algorithm, the most efficient (least‐cost) size, number, and location of emergency medical facilities is found subject to a given level of demand and a measure of effectiveness (response time). The current spatial pattern of emergency medical service (EMS) facilities is compared with the most efficient spatial pattern. Due to the sparse distribution of the study area population, some individual EMS facilities are not economically viable given the current revenue structure. Funding alternatives for EMS, including volunteer service, are discussed.
Inflation‐Indexed Price Supports and Land Values
Authors: Harris Duane G.
Published: July 2006

A theoretical model is developed to examine and illustrate some relationships between cost‐indexed support prices and land values. The model is developed in the context of a single‐commodity, price‐uncertain world in which policy makers are allowed to control the percentage of nonland operating costs and the percentage of land costs covered by the support price. The model demonstrates that the time path of land values can be quite sensitive to policy parameters. Attempts by policy makers to guarantee a “fair” rate of return on land may have substantial impact on future land values.
The Impact of Imports of Manufactured Milk Products on the U.S. Dairy Industry
Authors: Novakovic Andrew M. , Thompson Robert L.
Published: July 2006

Recent events have sparked a debate over the effects of increased dairy imports on the U.S. dairy industry. This study attempts to estimate these impacts via an econometric model of the U.S. dairy sector. The time paths of adjustment of consumption, production, and price of specific dairy products and raw milk are estimated under three alternative levels of manufactured milk product imports. The analysis suggests that much larger than historically “normal” import levels are required to bring about a substantial impact upon the dairy industry in the longer run.
Mitigating the Effects of Multicollinearity Using Exact and Stochastic Restrictions: The Case of an Aggregate Agricultural Production Function in Thailand
Authors: Mittelhammer Ron C. , Young Douglas L. , Tasanasanta Damrongsak , Donnelly John T.
Published: July 2006

Ordinary least squares, exactly restricted OLS, stochastically restricted OLS (mixed estimation), and principal components regression each were used to estimate an aggregate agricultural production function for Thailand for which data were highly multicollinear. Pretest considerations, incorporating alternative risk measures, were addressed in detail for purposes of model evaluation. The final mixed and principal components models generally outperformed OLS in terms of risk and overall reasonableness, mitigating a serious multicollinearity problem and permitting a direct examination of the rate and composition of Thai agricultural output growth.
Revenue and Cost Uncertainty, Generalized Mean‐Variance, and the Linear Complementarity Problem
Authors: Paris Quirino
Published: July 2006

Symmetric quadratic programming and the linear complementarity problem are presented in the context of a novel interpretation of risk programming. The novelty admits stochastic supplies of limiting inputs, and yet it preserves the linearity of the structural constraints. This formulation is, therefore, a generalization of the traditional mean‐variance approach originated with Markowitz's portfolio analysis and extended by Freund to farm planning under uncertain revenues. The specification admits also nonzero covariances between revenues and costs of limiting inputs and allows the computation of risk coefficients associated with a companion chance‐constrained problem.
Social Costs and Benefits from Component Pricing of Soybeans in the United States
Authors: Updaw Nelson J.
Published: July 2006

The recent development of near‐infrared reflectance instruments allows grain traders to measure chemical composition when grain is sold. This study provides estimates of the social benefits and costs of such measurements to be used in the pricing of soybeans. The economic model integrates a production possibilities frontier with the demand for two chemical characteristics, oil and protein content. The results indicate that it is unlikely that the benefits of pricing soybeans on the basis of component measurement would have exceeded measurement costs.
Aggregated Personalistic Beliefs on Yields of Selected Crops Estimated Using ARIMA Processes
Authors: Bessler David A.
Published: July 2006

This study investigates the empirical relationships between the aggregated elicited probability distributions from individual farmers on yields of three 1977 California field crops and their data‐based representations. The comparison suggests that for expected values, the ARIMA representations agree with the aggregated elicited distributions. However, for higher moments, the ARIMA processes do much poorer in representing the elicited distributions.
American Indian Farm Planning: An Analytical Approach to Tribal Decision Making
Authors: Norton George W. , Easter K. William , Roe Terry L.
Published: July 2006

A multiyear linear programming model is used to assist an American Indian tribe develop agricultural plans for their tribal farm. Five‐year crop, livestock, and investment plans are generated consistent with the tribal resource base, goals, and decision‐making structure. The model has influenced the tribal farm decision‐making process and provided the primary farming guide for 1979 and 1980. Frequent communication with the tribe was crucial in developing the model. Adequate updating procedures will be important in future farm planning.
Reforming Cameroon's Government Credit Program: Effects on Liquidity Management by Small Farm Borrowers
Authors: Kamajou Francois , Baker C. B.
Published: July 2006

Higher interest rates and credit limits as well as modified lending practices have been proposed to improve the performance of credit programs for small farmers in developing countries. Models based on Cameroon field data are used to generate results from such reform proposals. The results suggest that small farmer benefits could be increased by increasing credit limits and flexibility in the use of loan proceeds, while reducing default rates and expanding program outreach.
Rural Financial Market Performance: Implications of Low Delinquency Rates
Authors: Vogel Robert C.
Published: July 2006

In contrast to most developing countries, nonrepayment of agricultural loans has not been a problem for the Costa Rican banking system. Delinquency rates have in fact been lower for agricultural than nonagricultural loans and lowest on loans to small farmers. This good performance is due largely to efficient techniques developed for gathering information about potential borrowers and incentives for borrowers to repay promptly to maintain access to bank loans which carry interest rates substantially below equilibrium. The pattern of low delinquency rates reflects the structure of low interest rates which causes farmers, especially small farmers, to be rationed most severely.
Labor Force Participation in Southern Rural Labor Markets
Authors: Scott Loren C. , Smith Lewis H. , Rungeling Brian
Published: July 2006

Despite the extensive study of labor force participation rates, factors influencing the labor force status of rural workers have received relatively little attention. Employing primary data from interviews conducted in four southern rural counties, this study investigates the major determinants of labor force participation among six subgroups in the sample. Evidence from probit analysis indicates the critical role of health in the participation decision of virtually all subgroups. The expected wage is found to significantly influence the participation decision of secondary, but not primary, workers. Manpower policies involving day‐care centers, discrimination, and job training are also investigated.
Public Service Employment and Rural America
Authors: Martin Philip L.
Published: July 2006

Public service employment programs are manpower instruments that provide income and transitional employment in times of high unemployment. Despite annual expenditures of nearly $@@‐@@1 billion since 1971, little attention has been directed toward the rural‐urban distribution of public employment funds. After establishing alternative allocation formulae, actual allocations are compared with hypothetical allocations for public employment programs since 1971. The results indicate that rural areas did not obtain public employment funds in proportion to their shares of total unemployment. Reasons for the observed pattern of allocations are explored, and alternative allocating criteria to increase funds available to rural areas are discussed.
Income Distributional Effects of the California Land Conservation Act
Authors: Hansen David E. , Schwartz S. I.
Published: July 2006

The distribution of program benefits of California's use‐value assessment program has been a major issue in the political debate concerning the program's desirability. This study examines the income distributional effects of program benefits for a sample of participants in Sacramento County. The fraction of benefits received by lower income landowners was quite large when compared with their share of total income. Benefits received by lower income farmers were sufficient to cause a significant positive shift in farm income distribution, as measured by the Gini coefficient. For nonfarmers, the shift in the income distribution was slight.
Measurement of Capacity Depreciation Based on Engineering Data
Authors: Penson John B. , Hughes Dean W. , Nelson Glenn L.
Published: July 2006

The widely used estimates of annual capacity depreciation for selected types of farm producer capital published by the US DA rest on the assumption that the amount of capital consumed annually equals a constant fraction of the existing capital stocks. This study demonstrates, through the use of agricultural engineering data, that the productive capacity of farm tractors deteriorates in a concave rather than the convex pattern suggested by present USDA estimates. The implications for studies estimating aggregate production functions based on factor shares or farm investment demand equations are discussed. Finally, recommendations for change to selected sector economic accounts are made.
The 1973 Food Price Inflation
Authors: Eckstein Albert , Heien Dale
Published: July 2006

This study analyzes the major causes of the food price inflation of 1973. In the approximate order of their importance, those causes were found to be domestic monetary policy, government acreage restrictions, the Soviet grain deal, world economic conditions, devaluation of the dollar, and price freeze II. Econometric models of the livestock and feed grains and meal economies were used to decompose the price increase into the various causes given above. The study also details and analyzes events and policy actions taken during the 1971–74 period.
Macroeconomic Policy, Investment, and Urban Unemployment in Less Developed Countries
Authors: Haessel Walter
Published: July 2006

The two sector Harris‐Todaro model, extended to include a government sector and aggregate demand, is used to analyze the effects on output, prices, and employment of policies designed to mitigate urban unemployment. An increase in aggregate demand will be inflationary even though output will increase. Government job creation will be inflationary, will stimulate manufacturing output, but may result in a decrease in agricultural output. Investment in agriculture will increase agricultural output, decrease manufacturing output, and decrease price level. Investment in manufacturing results in an increase in manufacturing output, agricultural output and employment will decline, and prices will fall.
Agriculture's Three Economies in a Changing Resource Environment
Authors: Breimyer Harold F.
Published: July 2006

For many years abundant and relatively inexpensive industrial raw materials contributed to a resource environment favoring industrialization of U.S. agriculture. Their gradual depletion and rising prices now create a counter pressure. The pace of industrialization has slowed, with different manifestations in the three economies of agriculture—crops, livestock, and marketing. The economics of extractive industries, a subject long neglected, will henceforth be an integral part of the economics of agriculture. Cited here are conceptual formulations the author published in a precursor article of 1962, formulations that go back to the “empty economic boxes” and the writings of Joan Robinson.
Supply Shifts and the Size of Research Benefits
Authors: Lindner R. K. , Jarrett F. G.
Published: July 2006

This article claims to do three things. First, develop a formula for measuring size of research benefits which is generally applicable to all types of supply shift. Second, use this formula to assess the possible error involved in previous studies employing alternative equations. Third, initiate discussion on variables which might influence the type of supply shift. The article concludes that uncritical application of previously developed formulas without regard to the type of supply shift can result in substantial bias in estimates of research benefits. The implication is that calculation of rates of return on agricultural investment may also be severely biased.
Management Decentralization on China's State Farms
Authors: Pang Chung Min , De Boer A. John
Published: July 2006

Chinese economic reforms initiated in 1978 have changed certain management procedures in the state farm sector. Prior to these reforms, state farm management had little control over use of funds, production decisions, and wage setting. After the reforms, financial responsibility was instituted and new wage‐setting devices were implemented which feature closer linking of remuneration to state farm economic performance. The impact of these reforms is discussed for soybeans, sisal, livestock, and employment. While output appears to have responded to these reforms, bottlenecks have appeared, and existing irrationalities in price relationships have been accentuated.
Rice Technology, Farmer Rationality, and Agricultural Policy in Egypt
Authors: Antle John M. , Aitah Ali S.
Published: July 2006

Estimates of a homothetic translog cost function show that Egyptian rice farmers are economically rational and responsive to input price changes. Own‐price and cross‐price elasticities of input demand based on the cost function estimates provide insight into policies currently being pursued or considered by the Egyptian government. The analysis indicates a reduction in fertilizer trade restrictions could substantially reduce fertilizer prices and increase fertilizer use. Labor and mechanical power are not strong substitutes, indicating that subsidization of machinery is not an appropriate policy to reduce agricultural labor shortages.
Impacts of Productivity Loss on Crop Production and Management in a Dynamic Economic Model
Authors: Miranowski John A.
Published: July 2006

This article finds the optimal choice of tillage method and crop rotation for farmers who correctly anticipate the yield‐decreasing effects of soil erosion. Expected increases in crop prices lead to farming practices that are more conservation oriented. Higher relative prices for hay also lead to more soil conservation. A linear programming model of soil loss is presented for a watershed in Tama County, Iowa.
Interpreting and Enforcing Section 2 of the Capper‐Volstead Act
Authors: Jesse E. V. , Marion B. W. , Manchester A. C. , Johnson Aaron. C.
Published: July 2006

Based upon legislative intent, court holdings, and economic theory, undue price enhancement is associated with the exercise of market power. Consequently, a necessary condition for an agricultural marketing cooperative to be in violation of Section 2 is the ability to prevent members from overproducing if market power is exercised. Investigations of undue price enhancement should first determine the extent to which a cooperative possesses potential market power. If such potential exists, the theory of workable competition provides the framework for determining whether price enhancement has become “undue.”
Management of a Multiple Cohort Fishery: The Hard Clam in Great South Bay
Authors: Conrad Jon M.
Published: July 2006

This paper develops a reasonably general multiple cohort model and derives conditions for optimal harvest and age structure based on a discrete time control problem which maximizes the present value of net revenues subject to recruitment and spawning constraints. The model is applied to the hard clam resource in Great South Bay, which is located on Long Island, New York. The steady state optimum calls for exclusive harvesting of the younger, and more valuable, “littleneck” cohorts; leaving the older, and less valuable, “cherrystone” and “chowder” cohorts to specialize in regeneration.
The Farm Lease: An Analysis of Owner‐Tenant and Landlord Preferences under Risk
Authors: Apland Jeffrey , Barnes Robert N. , Justus Fred
Published: July 2006

A variety of farm lease terms are examined with respect to the preferences of an owner‐tenant and landlord under risk. The owner‐tenant's optimal crop mix is examined for six common leasing arrangements. A variant of the MOTAD model is used to derive the optimal crop mix for a risk‐neutral and risk‐averse owner‐tenant. For two share leases, the trade‐offs between the owner‐tenant's and landlord's preferences are examined with each agent given neutral and averse risk postures. Results suggest the importance of mixed tenancy and risk in the selection of lease terms for farm land.
Identifying Least‐Cost Sources of Required Fertilizer Nutrients
Authors: Babcock Bruce , Rister M. Edward , Kay Ronald D. , Wallers Jo Ann
Published: July 2006

Agricultural producers should evaluate trade‐offs between application costs and blending fees when applying two or more fertilizer mixtures to satisfy their ex ante fertilizer requirements in an economical manner. This decision situation is modeled using a linear programming procedure designed for practical use as a computerized decision‐making aid. Results from a trial application of the methodology suggest this aid can be of significant value to producers confronted with such decisions.
A Programming Model with Stochastic Technology and Prices: The Case of Australian Agriculture
Authors: Paris Quirino , Easter Christopher D.
Published: July 2006

Risk associated with stochastic input‐output coefficients and prices is modeled in a programming specification based upon mean‐variance analysis and chance‐constrained programming. The algorithm which exploits the features of MINOS, a commercially available computer program, is developed and applied to Australian agriculture. Convergence of the algorithm is discussed. With the data used, the thirty runs of this problem achieved a fast convergence with no more than five cycles. The model was used to derive supply response functions of export commodities of Australian agriculture. The relevant information was generated via parametric variations of prices selected according to a suitable experimental design.
Competitive Pricing and Storage under Uncertainty with an Application to the U.S. Soybean Market
Authors: Helmberger Peter G. , Akinyosoye Vincent
Published: July 2006

Relative to a no‐storage regime, competitive storage of soybeans greatly reduces the variance of both annual prices and annual consumption. Variance of production is increased. Expected values of price, consumption, and production are not affected. The government could reduce price variance by about 70 percent of its competitive level through subsidizing storage activity. The research procedure is based on a model of competitive storage under conditions of uncertainty and assuming rational expectations. Farm‐level demand and supply functions are estimated. Simulation is used to generate large random samples of values for soybean prices, consumption, production, and year‐end stocks.
A Reformulation of the Portfolio Model of Hedging
Authors: Brown Stewart L.
Published: July 2006

The portfolio approach to hedging assumes that the primary motivation for hedging is risk reduction. The paper reexamines the portfolio approach to hedging and respecifies the model in such a way that hedge ratios are estimated using returns rather than price levels. Using the same data set, hedge ratios estimated using price levels differ from one while hedge ratios using returns are found to be insignificantly different from one. The results do not support the portfolio approach to hedging. Therefore, one must look elsewhere for empirical support for the risk‐reduction theory of hedging.
Market Impacts of Technological Change for Sorghum in Indian Near‐Subsistence Agriculture
Authors: Behrman Jere R. , K. N. Murty
Published: July 2006

Evaluating market impacts of technological change for near‐subsistence crops like sorghum in semiarid tropical India is complicated because of diversified agricuiture, geographically isolated markets, and therefore feedbacks through prices, and producer‐demander income links for such products. Dynamic simulations with a multicommodity market model suggest that increased sorghum productivity would have spillover effects on other markets, increase the welfare of sorghum consumers, and probably lower the sorghum price. Contrary to speculations of some experts, the output gain probably would be greater than the pure productivity effect despite the price decline because of induced input allocations favoring sorghum production.
Effects of Rising Relative Energy Prices on Soil Erosion and Its Control
Authors: Zinser Lee D. , Miranowski John A. , Shortle James S. , Monson Michael J.
Published: July 2006

Efforts to develop public programs to control soil erosion should not ignore other economic trends which may affect soil erosion. This programming analysis considers the impact of rising relative energy prices on cropland erosion in conjunction with alternative erosion control policies. Higher relative energy prices are found to reduce soil erosion significantly, complement soil loss restriction policies, and have an ambiguous impact on subsidies for soil erosion abatement.
Short‐Term Adjustments in Yellow Sheet Carcass Prices for Red Meats
Authors: Marsh John M. , Brester Gary W.
Published: July 2006

The Pascal density function was used to estimate monthly Yellow Sheet carcass prices for beef, pork, and lamb. Yellow Sheet prices have been criticized for lack of economic responsiveness due to small sampling and thin negotiated markets. However, the statistical results show that systematic economic factors explain about 85% of the variation in Yellow Sheet prices, i.e., direct and competitive production, cold storage, disposable income, and seasonality. Though the role of the stochastic error process was relatively small, a continual decline in negotiated transactions could increase its role, raising questions about wholesale market pricing efficiency.
Expected Utility, Debt‐Equity Structure, and Risk Balancing
Authors: Collins Robert A.
Published: July 2006

The potential effects of agricultural policy on the financial structure of farms is often not fully considered. Although it has been recognized that policies that reduce business risk may induce farmers to increase financial risk, the effects of income policies on farm leverage have not been investigated. This paper explores the relationship between farm policy and debt‐equity structure for a risk‐averse expected utility maximizer.
Measuring Producers' Advantage from Classified Pricing of Milk
Authors: Song Dae Hee , Hallberg M. C.
Published: July 2006

A method of assessing the degree to which classified pricing of milk has favored milk producers over time is outlined, and results of an application of this method to the 1960–79 period are presented. It is found that prices for the different use classes of milk have, over this period, moved closer to consumer “optimal” prices rather than to producer “optimal” prices. Apparently the regulatory authorities in recent years have recognized less the need for farm income enhancement than the voice of consumer representatives.
Technical Change, Uncertainty, and Investment
Authors: Stefanou Spiro E.
Published: July 2006

The expected investment dynamics of the risk‐neutral firm is examined in the presence of uncertainty in the future evolution of the real wage and the stock of technical knowledge. A model of the adjustment cost firm is developed that is characterized by quasi‐fixed, factor‐augmenting technical change that is taken exogenously by the firm. The effect of wage and technical change uncertainty on investment behavior is assessed using comparative stochastic dynamic analysis.
Agricultural Economists in the Information Age: Awareness, Usage, and Attitudes toward Electronic Bibliographic Databases
Authors: Dahlgran Roger A.
Published: July 2006

The construction, content, and potential use of electronic bibliographic databases is discussed. A survey of AAEA members indicates that both usage and unawareness of these databases are significant; that research and government agricultural economists are disproportionately users of electronic bibliographic databases, while extension and agribusiness agricultural economists are disproportionately nonusers; that such databases average 28.9% useful citations for agricultural economics searches, though this percentage can be raised with help from a professional librarian; and that AAEA members favor having their literature citations in electronic form.
The Distribution of Economic Rents Arising from Subsidized Water When Land Is Leased
Authors: Huffaker Ray G. , Gardner B. Delworth
Published: July 2006

A broad distribution of the benefits of federally “underpriced” water may be best promoted by limiting the size of owned acreage and not the sum of owned and leased acreage as required by the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982. Calculated differences between contractual lease payments and associated tenant‐expected economic rents were statistically tested to determine if landowners fully capture the latter. Cash lease markets transferred nearly all economic rents anticipated by tenants to landowners in the study area. Share lease markets do the same if share tenants are assumed to be moderately risk averse.
Valuing Forecast Characteristics in a Dynamic Agricultural Production System
Authors: Mjelde James W. , Sonka Steven T. , Dixon Bruce L. , Lamb Peter J.
Published: July 2006

A dynamic programming model of east‐central Illinois corn production is utilized to determine the value of seasonal climate forecasts. Results indicate that the value of climate forecasts is sensitive to economic conditions as well as forecast characteristics. A trade‐off between forecast accuracy and lead time exists. A less accurate forecast received earlier in the production process may be more valuable than a more accurate forecast received later. Additional characteristics evaluated include forecast periods of greatest importance, prior knowledge assumptions, and interactions between forecasting adjacent periods.
Testing Long‐Run Productivity Models for the Canadian and U.S. Agricultural Sectors
Authors: Capalbo Susan M. , Denny Michael G. S.
Published: July 2006

The primary objective of this paper is to develop the linkages between the gross and net productivity indexes and the implied production structures. These linkages are developed as separability restrictions on various subgroups of inputs and time in a general production model. The restricted models are arranged in sequences for nested hypotheses testing. Empirical evidence from the U.S. and Canadian agricultural sectors based on a translog production function support the gross output total factor productivity structure. The net output Hicks neutrality hypothesis is rejected for both the United States and Canada.
Distribution of Research Gains in Multistage Production Systems: Further Results
Authors: Holloway Garth J.
Published: July 2006

The “marketing” sector in Muth's single‐stage model is disaggregated into two sequential stages: “processing” and “distribution.” Comparative statics are used to derive necessary and sufficient conditions for farmers to gain from downstream research. The farm benefits are shown to depend crucially on the stage in “marketing” to which research is directed.
On the Relationship between the Estimates of Level Models and Difference Models
Authors: Maeshiro Asatoshi , Wichers Robert
Published: July 2006

This paper proves that if a linear regression model has a constant term and its disturbances have a positive‐definite variance‐covariance matrix, its slope coefficients have the same generalized least squares estimates as the slope coefficients of the corresponding difference model. It is also illustrated that if the original model is homogenous (i.e., with no constant term) and/or a constant term is inadvertently included in the difference model and/or the ordinary least squares estimator is adopted for the difference model, one can incur a great loss in estimation efficiency.
Further Toward a Theory of Agricultural Insurance
Authors: Nelson Carl H. , Loehman Edna T.
Published: July 2006

The economic theory of contracts is applied to agricultural insurance to show that, given full information, Pareto‐optimal insurance contracts are actuarially fair, provide full coverage, and differ for each individual. The information problems of moral hazard and adverse selection prevent Pareto optimality from being attained. Several “second‐best” solutions to these problems are applied to agricultural insurance. It is shown that information collection and the application of contract design principles are “second‐best” solutions which may achieve the benefits of insurance at less cost than the current practice of public subsidies.
Flexible Exchange Rates and Commodity Price Changes: The Case of Japan
Authors: Jabara Cathy L. , Schwartz Nancy E.
Published: July 2006

Although agricultural commodities are often assumed to have flexible prices, little has been done to estimate exchange rate pass‐through. Perfect commodity arbitrage opportunities imply complete pass‐through; imperfect opportunities could lead to incomplete pass‐through. Analysis of commodity price and exchange rate adjustments for five commodities exported to Japan by the United States reveals that during the 1970s, commodity prices were generally flexible. During the 1980s, when the dollar was rising, price stickiness on the part of exporters/importers contributed to inflexible prices and asymmetric exchange rate response. Specifically, an exchange rate increase was passed through for some commodities but not a decline.
A Simple Repackaging Model of Recreational Choices
Authors: Wilman Elizabeth A.
Published: July 2006

The traditional travel cost model uses trips (or visits) as its measure of quantity and travel cost per trip (or visit) as its price. However, because many estimated demand curves do not hold visit length constant, they cannot be used to value increments of use. The simple repackaging model of Muellbauer, and Fisher and Shell is used to derive demand curves exhibiting constant visit length from demand curves exhibiting variable visit length. The former allow the marginal quantity valuations that are necessary for management decisions involving capacity or use.
Estimation of von Liebig Response Functions
Authors: Paris Quirino , Knapp Keith
Published: July 2006

Two distinct but related approaches for the estimation of von Liebig response functions are presented. The first approach is based upon a two‐phase, ordinary least squares procedure combined with bootstrapping for computing the standard errors of the estimates. The second approach generates maximum likelihood estimates of the parameters and can be implemented according to two different parameterizations of the model. Application of the procedures to a sample of experimental data suggests a satisfactory degree of conformity of the results. A test of normality of the disturbance term based upon the estimated residuals failed to reject the null hypothesis, further supporting the maximum likelihood approach.
Biological Technology and Agricultural Policy: An Assessment of Azolla in Philippine Rice Production
Authors: Rosegrant Mark W. , Roumasset James A. , Balisacan Arsenio M.
Published: July 2006

Concerns about external debt and energy security have motivated several developing countries to develop biological technologies to substitute for petrochemical inputs. This paper examines the economic feasibility of azolla as a source of nitrogen in Philippine rice production. Green manuring with azolla is found not to be cost effective. Substantial savings from intercropping with azolla can be realized only if the cost of nitrogen from azolla is compared with the price of nitrogen from ammonium sulfate, but not if urea is used as the basis of comparison. Farmers would benefit more from liberalization of import controls on urea. Additional research is needed to develop appropriate chemical‐saving systems before investing heavily in extension.
Rationing and Adjustment in the Market for Tenancies: The Behavior of Landowning Households in Thanjavur District
Authors: Bell Clive , Sussangkarn Chalongphob
Published: July 2006

A large proportion of peasants cultivate only their own land, even when there are active markets for tenancies as well as labor. However, rationing of tenancies can occur under moral hazard or adverse selection. A model that includes as possible outcomes both rationing and full adjustment through trading is analyzed and estimated using data from South India. On this basis, households can be characterized as rationed or adjusted, and confidence intervals for these assignments can be calculated. While some households achieved full adjustment, a majority were rationed in the tenancy market, many of them completely.
Government Decision Making and Program Performance: The Case of the Conservation Reserve Program
Authors: Reichelderfer Katherine , Boggess William G.
Published: July 2006

Performance of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in meeting the political preferences of its administrators is highly sensitive to the choice of eligibility, bid solicitation, and bid selection criteria used in making program implementation decisions. Decisions made in the first year of CRP implementation led to suboptimal results; net government cost could have been reduced while simultaneously increasing the extent to which erosion and supply control objectives were met. Simulation of the outcomes for a fully enrolled reserve under alternative implementation schemes indicates that future performance can be improved by manipulating key control variables to directly target preferences.
The Effects of Affiliation with Large Bank Holding Companies on Commercial Bank Lending to Agriculture
Authors: Gilbert R. Alton , Belongia Michael T.
Published: July 2006

This article examines whether the agricultural loan ratios of rural subsidiaries of large bank holding companies differ from the ratios of other banks in the same rural counties. In each of the years 1975, 1980, and 1985, the ratio of agricultural loans to total assets is significantly lower for the subsidiaries of large bank holding companies. These results are interpreted as evidence that the subsidiaries of large bank holding companies have greater opportunities to diversify risk by lending to businesses in a variety of industries.
Dynamic Corn Supply Functions: A Model with Explicit Optimization
Authors: Tegene Abebayehu , Huffman Wallace E. , Miranowski John A.
Published: July 2006

A model of optimal dynamic agricultural supply is derived and fitted assuming farmers have two annual stochastic crop production activities, a joint limitation on production capacity, interdependencies between past acreage utilization and current productivity, and rational expectations. A five‐equation specification is fitted to annual data, 1948–80. Estimated parameters are consistent with the theory, and the model simulates well. The long‐run price elasticity of corn acreage is 0.2, which is similar to those obtained from ad hoc dynamic models, but our short‐run elasticities are different.
Asymmetric Price Risk: An Econometric Analysis of Aggregate Sow Farrowings, 1973–86
Authors: Tronstad Russell , McNeill Thomas J.
Published: July 2006

Aggregate sow farrowing response to price risk is estimated where price risk is defined as the difference between expected price at decision time and realized price at acquisition or selling time. Asymmetric (unfavorable deviations) and symmetric (favorable and unfavorable deviations) forms of price risk are estimated utilizing cash and futures prices. Statistical results suggest that an asymmetric form of risk analysis is preferred to a symmetric form, for both cash and futures markets.
Impact of Railroad Contracts on Grain Bids to Farmers
Authors: Hanson Steven D. , Baumel C. Phillip , Schnell Daniel
Published: July 2006

The deregulation of railroads by the Staggers Rail Act of 1980 reversed nearly a century of prohibition of contracts between railroads shippers/receivers. This paper presents an analysis of the impact that railroad contracts have on grain bids to corn, wheat, and soybean farmers. The empirical results indicate that destination contracts had significant impacts on prices bid to corn and soybean farmers, while origin contracts had significant and large impacts on prices bid to wheat farmers.
Effectiveness of Fluid Milk Advertising Since the Dairy and Tobacco Adjustment Act of 1983
Authors: Ward Ronald W. , Dixon Bruce L.
Published: July 2006

An econometric model pooling monthly cross‐sectional and time‐series data is estimated to measure the impact of national and regional generic fluid milk advertising. The estimated model shows that the effectiveness of advertising has increased since the implementation of the Dairy Adjustment Act. Gains in fluid milk sales attributed to milk advertising are estimated. Sales gains for both the pre‐ and post‐act periods are shown along with the gains associated with parameter changes in the post‐act periods. Marginal advertising responses are derived.
Economic Optimization of a Growth Trajectory for Broilers
Authors: Talpaz Hovav , Hurwitz Shmuel , de la Torre Jose R. , Sharpe Peter J. H.
Published: July 2006

A dynamic model was constructed to select the economically optimal growth trajectory of broilers and compute the feeding schedule designed to satisfy the nutritional requirements along this trajectory. Alterations in the normal growth rates are possible by utilization of the phenomenon of compensatory growth which follows a period of feed restriction. The optimal trajectory is solved for by a reduced‐gradient nonlinear programming algorithm. The model calculates the daily optimal growth rates along with the corresponding requirements of total protein, amino acids, and energy in obtaining the optimal diets. A substantial increase in profits can be achieved by following this methodology.
Objective Function Approximation: An Application to Spatial Price Equilibrium Models
Authors: Güder Faruk , Morris James G.
Published: July 2006

This paper describes a method for selecting a grid size for the piece wise‐linear approximation of a separable quadratic program. It describes and demonstrates application of the procedure to a spatial price equilibrium model. The method is based on an a priori bound relating the amount of objective function approximation error to the suboptimality induced in the solution of the actual optimization problem.
Beef Cow Numbers, Crop Acreage, and Crop Policy
Authors: Bobst Barry W. , Davis Joe T.
Published: July 2006

Land use shifts between cropland and pasture affect the demand for beef cow inventories because economically viable cow‐calf enterprises are pasture‐based. Econometric analysis indicates an inverse relationship of −36.6 thousand head of beef cows per million acre change in harvested cropland. Curtailment of the expansion phase of the current cattle cycle and subsequent declines in cow numbers is in part attributable to large acreages converted from pasture to cropland in the early 1980s. Conversely, crop policies which encouraged reconversion to pasture would stimulate rebuilding beef cow numbers and increase beef supply.