Agribusiness Commons^™

Research Needs And Outcomes In Agro-Enterprise Development, Peter J. Batt

2011 12th International Conference of the Society for Global Business and Economic Development

No abstract provided.

The Crs Eight Step Plan For Agroenterprise Development, Jesse Catre

2011 12th International Conference of the Society for Global Business and Economic Development

No abstract provided.

Sustainability And Corporate Social Responsibility, Yong Lee Keng

2011 12th International Conference of the Society for Global Business and Economic Development

No abstract provided.

University-Community Partnerships For Environmental Safety And Sustainability, John W. Vick, Carol Norton

Education for Sustainability Summer Institute

No abstract provided.

Consolidation And Label Acquisition In The California Wine Industry, Hilary Lipoff, Gina Scurich

Horticulture and Crop Science

This paper seeks to determine whether there has been a change in consolidation and label acquisitions in the California wine industry in recent years. Reasons for consolidation and acquisition are explored, with an emphasis on the recent economic downturn and how it has effected the wine industry. Implications of these changes are further explored.

Profitability Comparison Study Of An Organic Almond Orchard Versus A Conventionally Farmed Almond Orchard In Stanislaus County, Carl B. Evers Iii

Agribusiness

This study examined the differences in costs and profitability for established conventional and organic almond orchards in Stanislaus County, California. The study used a partial budgeting approach to compare cost and profitability for established orchards for 2010, and thus ignored transition costs. Data was obtained from UC Davis cost studies for organic almonds, and from the Green Valley Ranch in Keyes, CA for conventional almonds. Adjustments were made to the U.C. Davis costs to account for changes in input use, input costs and grape prices Stanislaus County during the 2010 growing season, and to ensure both orchards in the study …

Millennial Organic Wine Consumers Of San Luis Obispo, Ca, Tadeo Perez

Agribusiness

No abstract provided.

Conventional And Organic Lettuce Production In San Luis Obispo County, Mark Freitas Crusha

Agribusiness

This study was undertaken to evaluate the net returns for conventional head lettuce compared to organic leaf lettuce in San Luis Obispo County. Price, yield, and costs for both lettuce systems were collected to perform a budgeting analysis projected over a twenty-year period.

Organic leaf lettuce was found to be more capable of paying finance charges and fixed commitments to produce in San Luis Obispo County. This conclusion was based on projected price and yield data along with a comparison of the profit and loss statements for the two types of lettuce for the time period of 2011 through 2030. …

Using System Dynamics Modelling Approach To Develop Management Tools For Animal Production With Emphasis On Small Ruminants, L. O. Tedeschi, C. F. Nicholson, E. Rich

Agribusiness

Small ruminants are important assets in several regions of the world. They account for more than half of the domesticated ruminants. Despite the growth in goat production in the world (more than 2% per year), research related to goat production is less than desired. One underused but potentially valuable approach for research on small ruminants is simulation modelling. Models of the components of small ruminant systems can enhance the financial returns and reduce negative environmental impacts. These models can be used to assess many dimensions of small ruminant production, from rumen dynamics to economic policies designed to support small ruminant …

Financial Analysis Of A Value Added Dairy Operation In California, Jason De Groot

Agribusiness

The case study was undertaken to determine whether if it is more financially profitable to become a value-added dairy business in California. This is a frequently discussed issue in agriculture, but there is not a lot of information available of how value-added facilities are doing.

This report uses two highly recognized financial reporting methods including an income statement and balance sheet to determine if the case study was financially profitable. Financial data was gathered from the enterprises, both farm and processing facility, for fiscal year 2010. The information generated made it possible to view financial income and profit for each …

Resource Maps For Fresh Meat Across Retail And Wholesale Supply Chains, Peter Whitehead, Martin Palmer, Carlos Mena, Adrian Williams, Christine Walsh

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Consumers spend more money on meat than any other food item. WRAP has already shown that households are wasting around 570,000 tonnes of fresh meat each year, of which 260,000 (46%) is avoidable with a value of about £1,300M. These wasted products also include embedded water and embedded carbon. This research has focused on the supply of meat from the farm gate onwards, including livestock slaughtering, meat preparation, processing and packaging, distribution and retail. It focuses on fresh meat from the four animal species which comprise some 96% by weight of all animals slaughtered for human consumption, namely chickens, cattle, …

Fruit And Vegetable Resource Maps: Mapping Fruit And Vegetable Waste Through The Wholesale Supply Chain, Leon A. Terry, Carlos Mena, Adrian Williams, Nigel Jenney, Peter Whitehead

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Research by WRAP has shown that households waste around three million tonnes of fruit and vegetables per year, raising concerns about the economic and environmental impacts of food waste. This study has been conducted to quantify the level of loss and waste of fruit and vegetables before they reach consumers, through the retail and wholesale supply chain. Furthermore, the study determined how, where and why the product was wasted.

Eleven fresh produce types were selected based on their consumption, post-harvest physiology and management. The 11 products chosen were strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes, lettuce, apples, onions, potatoes, brassicas, citrus, avocados and bananas; …

Feasibility Study For Building A Tasting Room In Napa Valley, Trevor Mitchell

Agribusiness

This study was undertaken to determine if it would be financially feasible for Altamura Winery to build and operate a wine tasting room in Napa Valley over the course of a 30 year period.

This report used a feasibility study to examine the investment of the tasting room.  The study used the cost approach of valuation to value the construction costs.  Then capital budgeting was used as a method to determine if the tasting room should be constructed.  The capital budgeting methods of this study include the use of a cash flow budget, break-even analysis, and a net present value …

Planting Seeds For An Improved Agrifood System? Linking The Aims Of The Alternative Agrifood Movement To Executive Action In The First Two Years Of The Obama Administration, K. Glowa, Sarah Carvill, Costanza Rampini

Faculty Publications, Environmental Studies

This paper uses several case studies to look at the dialogic relationship between the Obama administration and the alternative agrifood movement. We evaluate the case studies based on criteria developed from the agroecology literature and literature on food security, agrarianism, and the alternative agrifood movement as a whole. Additionally we compare the policy tools utilized and the funding levels of each of the cases. Our findings suggest that the Obama administration is committed to tackling issues of food security and promoting the well-being of small- and mid-scale farmers and their local agrifood economies. Deconsolidation of large agribusiness, equitable trade, and …

Empirical Methods-A Review: With An Introduction To Data Mining And Machine Learning, Matt Bogard

Economics Faculty Publications

This presentation was part of a staff workshop focused on empirical methods and applied research. This includes a basic overview of regression with matrix algebra, maximum likelihood, inference, and model assumptions. Distinctions are made between paradigms related to classical statistical methods and algorithmic approaches. The presentation concludes with a brief discussion of generalization error, data partitioning, decision trees, and neural networks.

Attributes Affecting Preferences For Traffic Safety Camera Programs, Lindsey M. Higgins, W. Douglass Shaw, Aklesso Egbendewe-Mondzozo

Agribusiness

With just a few notable exceptions, research supports the concept that red light cameras (RLCs) improve safety. However, many communities that have implemented RLC programs have faced a firestorm of public opinion associated with the use of RLCS, with many communities having to remove the cameras. What makes or breaks a red light camera program? Because of the experimental design process, stated choice is recognized as a tool that can resemble a laboratory experiment for the public policy arena. In this research, a stated choice model was developed and used to explore public preferences for a RLC program through an …

Food Safety And Cage Egg Production

Agribusiness Reports

States have begun legislating against cage egg production and dozens of major U.S. food retailers, restaurant chains, and foodservice providers—as well as hundreds of U.S. universities—are switching to cage-free eggs. Extensive scientific evidence strongly suggests this trend will improve food safety. All sixteen scientific studies published in the last five years comparing Salmonella contamination between caged and cage-free operations found that those confining hens in cages had higher rates of Salmonella, the leading cause of food poisoning related death in the United States. This has led prominent consumer advocacy organizations, such as the Center for Food Safety, to oppose the …

Economic Impacts Of Drought On Kentucky Corn, Hay, And Soybeans, Kortney E. Craft

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Understanding climatic impacts is important if we are to comprehend the relationship between climate and society. Weather phenomena can have environmental, economical, and social impacts. Drought is the natural hazard that affects people the most. It is also the most complex and least understood. There is no one universally accepted definition for drought which makes its examination difficult. Droughts’ duration is also difficult to determine because it has no clearly defined onset and end. Also, drought varies both geographically and temporally making uniform drought monitoring difficult. Since drought is difficult to monitor and access, drought impacts are often poorly documented. …

Replacement Alternatives For Beef Cow Herds: An Analysis Of Retaining Non-Pregnant Cows, Trenton T. Bohling

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A non-pregnant cow is a liability to a producer. Over the last four years, cow-calf producers have had an increased number of non-pregnant cows due to factors like environmental conditions and diseases like trichomoniasis. While most research has indicated that culling a non-pregnant female and replacing the cow with retained heifers, purchased heifers, or purchased cows are the only economic alternatives, recent trends in the cattle market have suggested that keeping a non-pregnant cow may also be an alternative.

Annual beef cow budgets were created based on typical Nebraska Sandhills conditions. Revenues and costs in these budgets vary according to …

Yak, A Green Icon And A Good Investment, Caroline Kang

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“Yak, A Green Icon and Good Investment” was conceived after I briefly interned for the Mongol Yak Society during the NGO Drop Off. I became interested and even, invested in their mission. For three weeks of the ISP period, I worked closely with the Mongolian Yak Society based in Ulaanbaatar and researched how increasing the productive value of yaks through improved communications, equipment, knowledge, and support will address several key environmental and economic issues. I further focused on the Mongolian Yak Society and its role as a detached entity that intervenes on various levels of the yak wool value chain: …