Agricultural and Resource Economics Commons^™

Executive Summary, Cumberland County Foodshed Assessment, Report 1, Barbara Ives

Local Food Systems

Like everyone else in these troubled economic times, Mainers are looking for ways to create jobs that will remain relevant and vital in a global economy, that cannot be outsourced, and that will regenerate rather than exploit our natural resources.

A growing number of people believe that a food system rooted in local farms, fisheries, and food production and distribution enterprises can strengthen Maine’s economy and its communities’ health, thereby increasing revenue and decreasing an expense that is crippling government agencies and individuals alike – healthcare. Business people who want to make a living related to food, and public and …

“I Think I’M Going To Have A Tax Problem This Year”, Tina N. Barrett

Cornhusker Economics

Many things in agriculture move fast. Technology is growing and changing rapidly. Input dealers are knocking on your doors earlier and earlier each year. This summer it seemed like many producers were dealing with marketing their 2010 crop, growing their 2011 crop and making input decisions on their 2012 crop. Each of these things complicates the tax planning each year. Add that to the record high profitability many agricultural producers have seen over the past five years, and one of the most common comments I’m hearing is “I think I’m going to have a tax problem this year.” You’re not …

Farmland Values: The Effects Of Commodity Prices, Yields, Profit Margins And Capitalization Rates, Matthew C. Stockton

Cornhusker Economics

Recent price increases for many of the crops grown in Nebraska have been followed directly by higher input costs. Land cost is one of these escalating factors. Typically, those that invest in real estate or land use a ratio of income relative to opportunity cost to evaluate the value of that purchase. This ratio involves factors related to the lands use and productive capacity, and is known as the “Capitalization rate” or “Cap Rate.”

Buyer Willingness To Pay For Irrigation Systems: Evidence From The 2011 Nebraska Farm Real Estate Market Survey, Chris L. Thompson, Bruce B. Johnson

Cornhusker Economics

In Nebraska, irrigation is the best risk management tool to hedge against weather variations that negatively impact crop production. An agricultural producer’s ability to “make rain” is insurance against yearly variation in both yields and financial returns. As technology has progressed, reducing labor requirements and increasing efficiency of water application, irrigation has become a mainstay on thousands of Nebraska farms. In fact, the state ranks first in irrigated acres.

Along with increased irrigation come irrigation regulations to control over-use or abuse of water rights. With legal restrictions forcing the year to year management of irrigation allocations, some producers in Nebraska …

The Economic Effects Of Purity Standards In Biotech Labeling Laws, Konstantinos Giannakas

Cornhusker Economics

Discussions on the appropriate regulatory norms for biotech or genetically modified (GM) foods date back to the early 1980s. Twenty-five years later, a consensus on what such norms should be remains elusive. While the safety of GM foods prior to their commercialization is evaluated through, more or less, the same methods around the world, countries differ widely on their treatment of GM foods that have been deemed safe for market introduction. Some countries, including the United States and Canada consider these GM foods substantially equivalent to their conventional counterparts, and do not require segregation and labeling of these products. Others, …

Economic Outlook For The Second Quarter, Emmanuel Opoku, Scott Fausti

Economics Commentator (1972- 2016)

No abstract provided.

Supply Chain Performance Of The Australian Beef Industry: Comparing The Industry Structure, Inter-Firm Relationships And Knowledge Systems Of Western Australia And Queensland, Mohammad Nasir Uddin,, Nazrul Islam, Mohammed Quaddus

Books & book chapters

The meat and livestock industry in Australia accounts for more than 45 per cent of Australia’s total value of agricultural production, within which beef is the largest industry in value terms (Nossal, Sheng and Zhao 2008). But the industry is experiencing a long-term decline in terms of trade, and has lagged behind other industries in rates of productivity improvement (MLA 2008). As it is critical for the economy that the beef industry maintains profitability and sustainability, it is believed that the performance, competitiveness and success of the industry depends on improving cost efficiency and productivity of the whole supply chain …

Farmland Leasing In South Dakota 2011: Emphasis On Share Lease Arrangements, Nelly Bourlion, Larry Janssen, Burton Pflueger

Economics Staff Paper Series (1969 - 2017)

Farmland leasing is an important source of capital and method of controlling land resources in production agriculture allowing land owners and tenants flexibility to enhance, maintain or expand their income-generating capacity. In this report, we (1) provide information on the importance of farmland leasing in South Dakota, and (2) update information on crop-share leasing and hay-share leasing arrangements in South Dakota, based on a survey conducted in 2011. Farmland leasing is important in South Dakota where over 70% of farm operators are involved in farmland leasing and nearly two-fifths of agricultural land acres are leased. Leased farmland acres comprise even …

Applying Data Mining Techniques To Evaluate Applications For Agricultural Loans, Emile J. Salame

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

Financial lending institutions continuously look at improving their credit risk models. This study examines the performance of three estimation methods: logistic regression, decision tree, and neural networks, in terms of their misclassification rates of credit default. The study uses 17,328 loans of grain producers for the period of 2006 - 2010. Those loans belong to the category of “diversified loans / core standard” originating from a large financial lending institution. The data has been split into nine different sets to acknowledge three factors: the shift in price of grains to a higher plateau after 2006, the contamination effect on defaulting …

Sustainable Practices Like Recycling: Could Colleges And Universities Be Role Models?, Prabhakar Shrestha, Gary D. Lynne

Cornhusker Economics

For the very first time in the history of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, this year's summer graduates wore a "green" gown for their commencement exercises. The gown is made from sustainably harvested wood pulp, with zippers made from 100 percent recycled plastics. Practices like these are a step in a positive direction, suggesting colleges and universities could become leaders in sustainable practices, as well as in ensuring that the curriculum used in helping form the education obtained by students includes sustainability principles.

A Proposal To Make Grain Storage Financially Feasible, David L. Garrett

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The United States has a National Oil Reserve but not a food reserve. Just as the oil reserve is designed to buffer unforeseen disruptions in the critical supply, the nation should also have a food reserve for the same purpose.

The United States and other developed nations have little or no food reserve beyond the typical demands between growing seasons. Marvelous production achievements in agriculture beginning in the early 1960s and known as the “Green Revolution” are now leveling off. Food production, suffering from such negative side effects as reduced water tables, is being outstripped by population growth (Bourne, 2009).

Business Competency For Ag Businesses; A Key To A Prosperous And Sustainable Future, Matthew Stockton

Cornhusker Economics

Husker Ag SMARTS, a statewide professional business management training program was developed and is delivered by the Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It is in conjunction with several partners, University of Nebraska Extension and financial institutions across the state. This joint effort has been financially supported by banking institutions and public funding through the North Central Risk Management Education Center. Local banks and cooperatives have been excited to see this program offered, and have been very supportive in giving scholarships, identifying possible participants and encouraging their clients to become involved.

The SMARTS portion of the program’s name is …

Legal Fences In Nebraska, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

This week I received two telephone calls asking “What is a legal fence in Nebraska?” Our recent fencing statute - which requires all landowners to split the cost of a division fence 50/50, is probably the source of this interest. So this newsletter begins with a brief history of the legal fence’s role in Nebraska fence law, and then lists the legal fence provisions in the 2011 Nebraska fence statutes.

Nebraska And “The Great Recession” - Jobs And Income: 2007-2009, Randolph L. Cantrell

Cornhusker Economics

Recovery may be seen as weak, but “The Great Recession” which officially began with a second consecutive quarter of negative economic growth in December, 2007, officially ended in June, 2009.

The effect of the recession on employment was dramatic and continues through today, with a seasonally adjusted national unemployment rate at 9.2 percent as of July, 2011, according to the National Bureau of Labor Statistics. Unemployment remains at or above ten percent in seven states.

Nebraska fared better than most states during the recession. The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate never exceeded five percent and is currently at 4.2 percent …

South Dakota 2011 Crop Forecast, Kelley Highbear, Matthew Diersen

Economics Commentator (1972- 2016)

No abstract provided.

Departmental Publications In Agricultural Economics 2010, Pamela A. Holmes

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

Publications by Faculty, Research Associates and Graduate Students in the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Department of Agricultural Economics in 2010.

Gender, Interdisciplinarity And Global Food Crises, Marianna Khachaturyan, Ann Mari May, Gale Summerfield

Cornhusker Economics

Higher education plays a pivotal role in analyzing and offering potential solutions to the world’s problems, and seldom have the world’s economic and social problems appeared more critical. As the world’s population increases and faces the unpredictable effects of climate change and begins to come to terms with the possibility of peak oil and its implications, we face rising concerns about food security and global food crises.

As we work to address these growing concerns it is increasingly apparent that our research must be interdisciplinary in nature. Because women play critical roles in the supply and consumption of agricultural products, …

Satisfied Customers Are Not Good Enough, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel

Cornhusker Economics

There used to be a time when all a business wanted were satisfied customers. Having satisfied customers was seen as the pinnacle of success. But today it appears that is not the case.

With everyone wanting to take their business to “the next level,” it is no surprise that businesses, especially in the service and sales area, are looking for new ways to take their satisfied customers and transform them into passionate advocates.

Use Of And Satisfaction With Home Broadband Service By Business Ownership, Rebecca J. Vogt, Charlotte Narjes, Connie Hancock

Cornhusker Economics

Technology is critical for businesses to remain competitive in this knowledge-based economy. Many businesses are home-based, making it necessary to have adequate Internet service at home. So how are business owners and farmers/ranchers currently using technology in their homes? Is their home Internet service meeting their needs?

The Nebraska Public Service Commission was awarded a grant from the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to conduct a study of broadband use and needs in Nebraska. The University of Nebraska- Lincoln conducted the survey for the Commission. In addition, the Nebraska Information Technology Commission (NITC) Community Council and …

Past Successes And Future Prospects For Nebraska Agriculture, Ray Supalla

Cornhusker Economics

When I joined the University of Nebraska-Lincoln faculty in 1976, Nebraska had 5.5 million irrigated acres, irrigated corn yields averaged 115 bushels per acre, irrigation water was worth $25 per acre per year, center pivot irrigated land was selling for $1,000 per acre, net farm income averaged $0.8 billion per year and both groundwater pumping and nitrogen fertilization practices were unrestricted. Today as I prepare to retire, Nebraska has 8.5 million irrigated acres, irrigated corn yields average 186 bushels, irrigation water is worth more than $100 per acre per year, pivot irrigated land is selling for over $4,000 per acre, …