Business Commons^™

Drought And Excess Moisture Crop Insurance Indemnities To Tennessee Corn Producers, Jordan Peterson

Masters Theses

The Federal Crop Insurance Program has grown to become the primary agricultural safety net for corn [Zea mays L.] producers. In 2020, insured liabilities totaled $43.98 billion in the United States (U.S.). Crop insurance provides corn producers in the U.S. with in-season protection against declines in revenue or production, below the revenue or production guarantee, due to an insured cause of loss. Crop insurance has evolved over time with significant changes occurring through Farm Bills and Ad Hoc legislation. This thesis is divided into two chapters. Chapter 1 discusses the legislative history of the crop insurance program, basics …

Optimal Stocker Production Strategies For Spring And Fall Calving Cow Herds, Cora Beth Key

Masters Theses

This thesis consists of two chapters discussing the economics of raising stocker beef cattle in the southeast United States. The objective of the first chapter is to estimate supplemental feed cost for spring-calving cows, spring-born stockers, cows calving in the fall, and fall-born stockers, while considering the seasonality of forage production and nutritional needs. The chapter explores ways producers can lower their feed costs and demonstrates the importance of managing hay expenses for cattle producers to control cost. The objective of chapter two is to determine the profit-maximizing stocker period in an integrated cow-calf and stocker operation with both fall- …

Financial Feasibility And Factors That Lead To Profitability For Small-Scale Farmers In Rwanda., Saheed Adeniyi Orimadegun

Masters Theses

This study will analyze small-scale poultry farming in the Musanze district of Rwanda. Poultry farming offers a source of protein and economic subsistence for households in this region but studies suggest that the smallholder farmers need training for effective production of broiler for these purposes. To this end, a project - Feed the Future Tworore Inkoko, Twunguke (TI) - funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the African Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP) Foundation, and led by the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) and Zamura Feeds Ltd., was initiated to help the smallholder broiler farmers …

The Effect Of Inputs On Poultry Production Output, Ty M. Wolaver

Masters Theses

To combat poverty and malnutrition, Feed the Future Tworore Inkoko, Twunguke (TI) has set out to teach Rwandan farmers how to grow broilers as additional income for the farmers and an additional protein source within the community to combat malnutrition. Throughout this program, the inputs and outputs of the farmers were recorded, and the goal is to determine an efficiency score for each flock raised and use that information to determine what factors contributed to a higher flock efficiency. A data envelopment analysis (DEA) is used to determine the efficiency score of each flock. Using these efficiency scores, a regression …

Determining The Location Of A Milk Condensing Plant In Tennessee, David Frederick Mendez

Masters Theses

Given the increasing popularity of local foods and the desire to reduce shipping costs and carbon footprint, Tennessee-based dairy product producers are showing interest in sourcing fluid milk locally. Based on dairy farmer surveys, discussions with industry leaders, shipping distances, and transportation costs estimates, a mixed integer linear programming model is used to determine the optimal location of an in-state milk condensing plant. The objective is to minimize the total transportation costs of shipments of fluid milk from farms to the condensing plant plus the transportation cost of shipments of condensing plant products to further in-state processing. Twelve scenarios of …

Analysis Of Japanese International Agricultural Trade Practices, Kelsey Vourazeris

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Knowing The Supply Chain: Creating A Tool To Better Track Slave, Bonded, And Forced Labor And Other Exploitative Practices In East Tennessee Agribusiness, Lauren A. Jenkins

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

A Cost-Differential Analysis Of Local Soybean Processing In East Tennessee: Roast Or Crush?, Rachel Lauren Eatherly

Masters Theses

East Tennessee soybean producers currently have limited local markets and processing options. Most soybeans produced in the region are transported for processing or export to Guntersville or Decatur, Alabama. High transportation costs cut into profit margins and limit local economic impact. With the demand for processed soybeans from the local beef and dairy industries, local processing technology options ought to be investigated. This study will assist soybean farmers in decision-making between hauling to current processing plants or seeking out alternative local processing. Local processing points could allow local beef and dairy farmers additional options of including processed soybeans in least-cost …

Tennessee Beef Producers' Willingness To Participate In A Tennessee Branded Beef Program, Elizabeth Mae Mcleod

Masters Theses

Tennessee beef industry participants have expressed a growing interest in producing cattle to be harvested locally to capture additional value. This study measures Tennessee cattle producer willingness to supply cattle to a federally inspected slaughter (FIS) facility and a Tennessee branded beef (TBB) program. Data from a 2016 survey of Tennessee beef cattle producers were used to estimate interest in participating in the FIS program and TBB program as well as the live cattle weight that interested producers would supply. Of those who responded, 76.6 percent were interested in participating in the FIS program and 70.5 percent were interested in …

An Economic Evaluation Of A Biofuel Supply Chain Utilizing Multiple Feedstocks, Huaqi Zhang

Masters Theses

Biomass is considered as one potential feedstock for biofuel production. However, the high cost of biomass-to-biofuel supply chain, attributed to biomass’s low bulk density and resulting harvest, storage, and transportation challenges, has been a major hindrance to the success of biomass-based biofuel industry. In addition, the issue of dry matter losses during storage for a feedstock has affected biomass quantity and quality if the feedstock is stored for several months after a single harvest in a year. One potential way to improve the economics of biomass supply chain is to reduce storage need and enhance the utilization of harvest equipment …

Analyzing The Risk And Returns For A Spring- And Fall-Calving Beef Herd In Tennessee, Gavin William Henry

Masters Theses

There is limited research on the profitability and risk of spring- and fall-calving beef seasons grazing tall fescue in the southeast. The objective of this research is to evaluate the profitability and risk of spring- and fall-calving seasons in Tennessee while considering the seasonality of cattle and feed prices for various feeding rations. Two commonly used rations and two least-cost feed rations meeting the nutritional requirements of a spring- and fall-calving cow with two weaning dates in Tennessee were developed. Enterprise budgets were established for each calving-season, two weaning dates per calving season, and feed ration. Net returns were simulated …

Effects Of Optical Sensing And Variable Rate Technology On Nitrogen Fertilizer Use, Lint Yields, And Profitability In Cotton Production, Melissa Reynolds Stefanini

Masters Theses

Nitrogen (N) fertilizer is expensive and can be harmful to the environment. Precision agriculture (PA) has the capability to reduce the amount of excess N from crop production released into the environment, increase net returns to the grower, and reduce the risk of profit loss due to spatial and temporal variability. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the profitability, risk management potential, and N use efficiency of using real-time optical sensing with variable-rate technologies (VRT) to manage spatial variability in cotton production. Data collected from 29 field trials in Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Missouri from 2011 to 2014 …

Local Foods Purchasing In The Farmers' Market Channel: Value-Attitude-Behavior Theory, Christopher Thomas Sneed

Doctoral Dissertations

From farmers’ market booths to kitchen tables, demand for locally-produced foods has increased significantly over the last decade. Yet, despite increasing popularity of local foods, theoretically-based research of this topic has just begun.

This study fills this gap in literature and broadens the current research base by utilizing Value-Attitude-Behavior Theory to explore local foods purchasing in the farmers’ market channel. The impact of four values (food novelty, food safety, civic engagement, and environmental concern) on consumers’ attitudes regarding farmers’ market design perceptions, farmers’ market social perceptions, and local foods quality perceptions are examined. In turn, the impact of these attitudes …

Marketing Opportunities For Small-Scale Organic Wine Producers In Slovenia: Proposing A Wine Cluster Model, Maja Djorcev

Masters Theses

The organic wine sector provides high quality artisan products as well as public goods and services and is gaining an importance in a global context. As such, this approach to wine production is seen as a potentially significant source of economic development and an initiator of change in local, rural areas. However, despite recent growing public and scientific interest in alternative approaches farming, organic wine production is still poorly researched.

This thesis focuses on examining the characteristics, challenges, and goals of the organic wine sector in Slovenia through the eyes of ten participant winemakers. Each participant winemaker is a small-scale …

Intensity Of Adoption Of Direct Marketing Strategies Among Fruit And Vegetable Farmers In Tennessee, Carey Ann Wolanin

Masters Theses

Consumer interest in fresher foods has increased over the past few years and has stimulated the growth of direct-to-consumer outlets. Tennessee currently hosts many types of direct food outlets, including farmer markets, CSAs, roadside stands, and pick-your-own operations. Using data from a 2011 survey of Tennessee fruit and vegetable producers, factors associated with the percentage of sales fruit and vegetable producers make through direct-to-consumer outlets or intensity of adoption of direct-to-consumer marketing strategies are evaluated using fractional logit and logit regressions. Findings suggest that the percentage of sales a producer makes through direct-to-consumer outlets is associated with farmer age, the …

Rethinking A Carbon Tax In An Era Of Budget Deficits, Chad Covert

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Capital Investment And Cash Flows For Alternative Switchgrass Feedstock Supply Chain Configurations, Jie Chen

Masters Theses

Biofuels have been widely recognized as a potential renewable energy source, and the United States’ government has been interested in producing ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass such as switchgrass. To evaluate whether lignocellulosic biomass based biofuels production is economically feasible, this paper estimated the capital investment outlays, operation costs, and net present value for investment in alternative switchgrass feedstock supply chain configurations in East Tennessee a 25 million gallon per year ethanol biorefinery. Two scenarios are analyzed in the study. The conventional hay harvest scenario includes the production, harvest, storage and transportation of biomass feedstocks from the fields to the biorefinery. …