Agribusiness Commons^™

The Crop-Livestock Subsystem And Livelihood Dynamics In The Harar Highlands Of Ethiopia, Habtemariam Kassa, Robert W. Blake, Charles F. Nicholson

Agribusiness

Policy makers and extension planners often assume smallholder mixed farming systems are incapable of evolving fast enough to meet growing food demands and that livestock are relatively unimportant to household food production or welfare (FDRE, 1994), except for intensive units. The resulting policy promotes substitution of either intensive cropping or livestock production in place of the traditional mixed portfolio. Although widely promoted in the Harar Highlands, farmers resist these recommendations in favour of more diverse and integrated systems with crops, livestock, and non-agricultural activities. The contrast between what policy makers and development practitioners think and what farmers do signifies misunderstanding …

Soil, Plant And Cattle Nutrient Dynamics On Pastures Of The Western Amazon Of Brazil, B. Rueda, R. W. Blake, E. Fernandes, Charles F. Nicholson, J. F. Valentim

Agribusiness

Cattle production on Brachiaria pastures is a primary use of cleared forestland in the western Brazilian Amazon. About 6.8 million hectares in the States of Acre and Rondônia have been deforested, where 75% of land is now grazed (IBGE, 1998). The principal pasture species are B. brizantha and B. decumbens with the latter in decline from spittlebug susceptibility (Deois incompleta; Gonçalves et al., 1996). The general pattern of pasture establishment in the Amazon basin includes felling and burning forest biomass, planting annual crops for one to three years (especially on small farms), and then seeding to grasses. The …

Livestock Land Use Change, And Environmental Outcomes, Robert W. Blake, Charles F. Nicholson

Agribusiness

Rapid predicted worldwide growth in demand for animal products to 2020—the so-called “next food revolution” in animal agriculture—portends complex interactions among people, biological and geophysical resources, and economic objectives. A restructuring of global food demands is expected: in contrast to current patterns, most (>60%) global production of meat and milk will be consumed by households in the developing countries (Delgado et al., 1999). The key drivers of this change are income growth, population growth, urbanization, and increased opportunities for trade. We identified some of the environmental risks, and recuperative effects, of animal agriculture in a recent article (Nicholson et …

Affects Of Organic Fertilizers On The Growth And Biomass Production Of Agricultural Crops, Deanna Marshik

Honors Capstones

Capstone submitted as a graduation requirement for the BSU Honors Program.

The Economic Feasibility Of Forming A California Wheat Cooperative, Jay E. Noel, James J. Ahern, David J. Schaffner, Jill Johnson, Kristina Muelrath, Kyle Schroeder

Agribusiness

Recent concerns relative to California farm gate prices for wheat and a lack of profitability in wheat production has been expressed by a group of California wheat growers. Their dissatisfaction has resulted in their consideration to form a California wheat grower cooperative. The cooperative would become the marketing agent for the growers and potentially allow growers to pool their production for greater market power as well as capture profits beyond the farm gate. Two feasibility issues are addressed by the study: 1) The organizational feasibility of forming the cooperative, and 2) The economic feasibility of a California wheat growers cooperative …

Taxes And Quality: A Market-Level Analysis, Jennifer S. James, Julian M. Alston

Agribusiness

A conventional assumption of product homogeneity when the commodity of interest is actually heterogeneous will lead to errors in an analysis of the incidence of policies, such as taxes. In this article, an equilibrium displacement model is used to derive analytical solutions for price, quantity, and quality effects of ad valorem and per unit taxes. The results show how parameters determine the effects of tax policies on quality. The potential for tax-induced distortions in quality, and the distributive consequences of those distortions, are illustrated in a case study of the market for Australian wine.

A Multiattribute Utility Analysis Of Technological Choice In The California Wild Rice Industry, Jay E. Noel, James J. Ahern, Jess Errecarte, Kyle Schroeder

Agribusiness

The California wild rice industry in 2001 is undergoing change. This change is being driven by increased wild rice production, changes in wild rice demand, and buyer concerns relative to product quality and food safety. These changes necessitate the need for the industry to evaluate its operational and marketing strategies. A major concern of the industry is how to meet the on-going changes while remaining profitable. The major emphasis of this study to evaluate two of the technological choices that are available to meet those changes. The technologies are a traditional technology and newer experimental technology that has been conceptualized, …

Oak Woodland Economics: A Contingent Valuation Of Conversion Alternatives, Richard P. Thompson, Jay E. Noel, Sarah P. Cross

Agribusiness

Decisions on how much land should be devoted to oak woodland preservation is ultimately determined by society's valuation of its benefits and relative scarcity. Scarcity value can be measured by people's willingness-to-pay (WTP) to prevent oak woodland conversion to higher value land uses. In this study, we used the contingent valuation (CV) method to estimate WTP for oak woodland preservation in San Luis Obispo County (over 700,000 acres). Estimates ranged between $75 and $83 per voter, providing only about $12 million for land or easement purchases.

The Incidence Of Agricultural Policy, Julian M. Alston, Jennifer S. James

Agribusiness

This chapter first discusses what economists mean by "the incidence of agricultural policy" and why we care about it. Then it reviews models of the determinants of the differential incidence of different policies among interest groups such as suppliers of factors of production, consumers, middlemen, taxpayers, and others. Results are represented in terms of Marshallian economic surplus, and surplus transformation curves. After reviewing the results from standard models under restrictive assumptions, certain assumptions are relaxed in order to analyze the effects of imperfect supply controls, variability, cheating and imperfect enforcement of policies, and the dynamics of supply.

Evaluation Of Cauliflower Varieties, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia, Horticulture Australia

Horticulture research reports

This document has been prepared from a cauliflower variety evaluation trial conducted at the Manjimup Horticultural Research Institute, South West Highway, Manjimup WA 6258. The results reflect the growth characteristics, yield, quality and density of the cauliflower varieties as recorded at this site during the conditions of the growing period (May 2002 to September 2002).

This report is the thirty-fourth in a series produced from the evaluation of cauliflower and broccoli varieties, conducted at Manjimup Horticultural Research Institute. Cauliflower only has been evaluated in this and in subsequent trials.

The results are provided to allow seed suppliers, seedling nurseries, growers, …

Letter From The Dean, Gregory J. Weidemann

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Discovery: The Student Journal Of Dale Bumpers College Of Agricultural, Food And Life Sciences - Volume 3 2002, Several Authors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Contents, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Instructions For Authors, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Beggar-Thy-Neighbor Advertising: Theory And Application To Generic Commodity Promotion Programs, Jennifer S. James, Julian M. Alston, John W. Freebairn

Agribusiness

Profits from generic advertising by a producer group often come partly at the expense of producers of closely related commodities. The resulting tendency toward excessive advertising is exacerbated by check-off funding. To analyze this beggar-thy-neighbor behavior we compare a scenario where different producer groups cooperate and choose their advertising expenditures jointly to maximize the sum of profits across the groups, and a scenario where they optimize independently. In an illustrative example using 1998 data for U.S. beef and pork, the noncooperatively chosen expenditure on beef and pork advertising is more than three times the cooperative optimum.

Technological Choice: California Wild Rice Processing Under Uncertain Demand, Jay E. Noel, James J. Ahern, Jess Errecarte, Kyle Schroeder

Agribusiness

This study is concerned with technological choice under uncertain demand conditions. It begins with an overview of the California wild rice market. The wild rice product is described, the wild rice industry is review and wild rice market conditions are explored. The overview is followed by a discussion of wild rice processing. Technological choice and competitive strategy issues are reviewed and then a framework for choosing between two competing technologies is proposed. The two competing technologies differ in their ability to store and process wild rice over a marketing year. The traditional technologies requires almost immediate processing of the harvested …

World Dairy Product Trade: Analysis With A Mixed Complementarity Problem Formulation, Charles F. Nicholson, Phillip M. Bishop

Agribusiness

World trade in dairy products is being transformed by trade policy liberalization and technological change in dairy processing. The mixed complementarity problem formulation to modeling product-specific dairy trade can overcome a number of the limitations of existing optimization models, and can facilitate desirable extensions to previous analyses.

Consumer Perceptions Of Three Food Safety Interventions Related To Meat Processing, Christiane Schroeter, Karen P. Penner, John A. Fox

Agribusiness

A focus group study with 37 residents of Manhattan, Kansas, was conducted to examine consumers' risk perceptions of foodborne illnesses from eating beef. The four focus-group sessions were designed to determine (1) relative preferences for alternative combinations of public food safety measures (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points [HACCP], carcass pasteurization, irradiation) and private protection (home preparation of rare, medium, and well-done hamburgers); (2) how who is at risk (children vs. adults) influences preferences; (3) whether consumers would pay a premium for increased product safety arising from the adoption of three different innovations in processing plants; and (4) how to improve …

Market Prospects Organic Carrots & Other Vegetables, Steven Mccoy

Horticulture published reports

This report provides a brief overview of the market opportunity for West Australian organically grown carrots and other vegetables grown in rotation with carrots. The report outlines market opportunities and important aspects of the local WA, interstate and export markets for consideration by conventional carrot growers with an interest in investing in the production of carrots grown organically, certified in compliance with the Australian "National Standards for Organic and Biodynamic Production".

Instructions For Authors, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Dean, Gregory J. Weidemann

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Contents, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Murgo Farms Inc.: Haccp, Iso 9000, And Iso 14000, David Sparling, Jonathon Lee, Wayne Howard

Agribusiness

Murgo Farms Inc., addresses the challenge of choosing between the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP), International Organization of Standardization (ISO) 9000, and ISO 14000 systems for a business with grain farming, elevator and spraying enterprises. Murgo has recently entered markets that are more quality oriented and wishes to expand its activities in those markets. The President wonders whether HACCP or ISO 9000 might help that expansion. However, the company is also faced with significant environmental risks due to its spraying and manure spreading activities and its proximity to a local municipal water source. There are good reasons for Murgo …

Discovery: The Student Journal Of Dale Bumpers College Of Agricultural, Food And Life Sciences - Volume 2 2001, Several Authors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Progress In Livestock Handling And Slaughter Techniques In The United States, 1970–2000, Temple Grandin

State of the Animals 2001

Promoting better stockmanship is essential to improving animal welfare. Large meat-buying customers such as fast-food restaurants in the United States and supermarket chains in the United Kingdom can motivate great change by insisting that suppliers uphold better animal welfare standards. The greatest advances of the last thirty years have been the result of company audits. To maintain such progress, handling and stunning must be continually audited, measured, and managed. Handlers tend to revert to rough handling unless they are monitored and managed. An objective scoring system provides a standard that can be upheld. An overworked employee cannot do a good …

Farm Animals And Their Welfare In 2000, David Fraser, Joy Mench, Suzanne Millman

State of the Animals 2001

Farm animals have been a traditional concern of the modern animal protection movement. In the early 1800s, when the movement emerged as a significant sociopolitical force in the United Kingdom, its first priority was protection of farm animals, with particular emphasis on cattle and horses. Subsequently priorities changed, and throughout most of the 1900s, animal protectionism in Europe and the English-speaking world focused more strongly on the use of animals for scientific research and on the rescue of abandoned or ill-treated companion animals. Today, however, with vigorous public debate over animal agriculture and its effects, farm animals are re-emerging as …

Qualitative Assessment Of Animal Behaviour As An On-Farm Welfare-Monitoring Tool, Françoise Wemelsfelder, Alistair B. Lawrence

Sentience Collection

There is a growing need to monitor the health and welfare of farm animals, and to develop methods which do so efficiently and reliably. A crucial problem with current methods is the integration of separate measurements taken during farm visits into accurate judgements of an animal’s overall welfare state. This paper proposes that the qualitative assessment of animal behaviour may serve as an integrative methodology which could guide the interpretation of other, more detailed welfare measurements. Recent research has demonstrated qualitative behaviour assessment to be reliable and repeatable under controlled experimental conditions. The paper concludes with a discussion of ways …

Tail Docking Dairy Cattle: Effects On Cow Cleanliness And Udder Health, Cassandra B. Tucker, David Fraser, Daniel M. Weary

Farm Animal Husbandry Collection

To determine whether tail docking would influence cow cleanliness and udder health in a free-stall system, we monitored milking cows after half the animals in a herd were docked. A sample of 223 docked and 190 undocked cows (reducing to 169 and 105 over the study as cows were dried off) were monitored for 8 wk. Cow cleanliness was scored in two areas: along the spine, and the rump adjacent to the tail at 1, 2, 3, 5, and 8 wk after docking. Cleanliness was evaluated by counting squares that were soiled (0 to 14 on a 5- × 17.5-cm …

Grading Error Reduces Grower Incentive To Increase Prune Quality, Jennifer S. James, James A. Chalfant, Nathalie Lavoie, Richard J. Sexton

Agribusiness

Grading is important to ensure the production of high-quality foods, but It Is usually done with error, distorting market signals and diminishing Incentives to produce high-quality products. Size is the main quality criterion for dried prunes and the crucial characteristic In determining prune value. We studied the economic effects of errors In commodity grading, focusing In particular on the Implications of one-way (asymmetric) grading errors, namely when small, low quality product Is erroneously classified as high quality, but not vice versa. In an application to the California prune Industry, we estimated the extent to which large prunes are undervalued and …

Economics Of Precision Agriculture, Wayne H. Howard

Agribusiness

No abstract provided.