The impacts of economic and demographic variables on the demand for food grain commodities in urban Jiangsu province of China are estimated, using both the QUAIDS and the AIDS models. Results show that the demands for wheat flour and coarse grains are price-elastic while the demands for rice and grain products are price-inelastic. Certain demographic variables show as having a significant impact on food grain demand. Finally, a decomposition of causes of changes in rice consumption over the period of 1995-2007 is performed.

A choice experiment was conducted concurrently with eye-tracking technology to examine consumer preferences for local and organic produce, notably effects of logo- versus text-labeling formats. We find consumers prefer local to nonlocal, but some consumers will pay a higher premium for logo-labeled produce compared with text-labeled produce. Additionally, we find evidence that a local logo tends to attract attention quicker and hold attention longer compared with a text label. The organic text label was preferred by some consumers compared with the USDA certified organic logo, even with though consumers looked at the logo longer and more often.

The recent emphasis in farm management research has centered on issues of financial management and firm growth. Consequently, a number of studies have identified and evaluated alternative production, financial and marketing strategies that result in growth or expansion of the farm firm. These studies have explicitly or implicitly assumed that the firm is a viable economic unit and the ownership structure will not change during the growth process. Thus, the life cycle of the firm has been severed from the typical life cycle of the enterpreneur, and the financial, economic and human problems of entry and exit of farm entrepreneurs into and out of the agricultural production sector have not been confronted. The following discussion will briefly review the characteristics of the life cycle of the family firm and indicate why entry-exit problems are particularly acute in the agricultural production sector. Then, specific micro and macro issues that merit empirical investigation, including the firm and industry implications of coordination (or the lack thereof) of the entry and exit processes, will be identified and discussed.

A sample of 226 cash grain farms in the Lake States-Corn Belt region are analyzed to estimate the impact of restricting pesticide use on profits. These 226 farms are classified into small, medium, and large farms according to their sale revenues. The results suggest the existence of pest management practices that could substantially reduce pesticide use without incurring economic losses. The reductions in profits associated with gradual reductions in pesticide expenditure appear to increase with farm size.

Job satisfaction is likely the most studied work-related attitude and isassumed to influence a variety of behaviors. This study analyzes the jobsatisfaction of agricultural employees using Herzberg's theory, which isbroadly employed in management. Fourteen horticultural businessesparticipated in case studies of labor-management practices. Fifteennonsupervisory employee interviews were analyzed regarding job satisfaction.Components of job satisfaction relevant to horticultural employees werefamily-business values, achievement, recognition, work itself, involvement,personal life, interpersonal relationships, job security, supervision,working conditions, organization, safety, compensation, and information.While support for Herzberg's theory is weak, it is useful for classifyingemployees' attitudes.

This study investigates the relationship between cash and futures prices of soybeans and soybean meal from 1992 to 2013. Error correction models are estimated for the prices of both commodities. An exogenous measure of price variability is included in both models to determine if variability increases the speed with which cash and futures prices return to their long-run equilibrium relationship. This is used to measure the impact of price variability on short-run market efficiency and the price discovery process. The findings indicate that the level of price variability influences market adjustment rates and the price discovery process.

This paper develops a simultaneous-equations panel data econometric model to obtain point estimates of market power and pricing conduct in a representative product-differentiated, oligopolistic food market. The importance of this class of markets is recognized given its prevalence in the food and fiber system, especially for final consumer food products. The $1.3 billion domestic spaghetti sauce industry is featured. Although the results indicate firms exert limited market power, a portion of this power is derived from tacit price collusion. A higher degree of price collusion was found among brands within a market segment than between segments.

If adoption of herbicide-resistant seed and adoption of conservation-tillage practices are determined simultaneously, adoption of herbicide-resistant seed could indirectly reduce soil erosion and adoption of conservation-tillage practices could indirectly reduce residual herbicide use and increase farm profits. Our objective was to evaluate the relationship between these two technologies for Tennessee cotton production. Evidence from Bayes' theorem and a two-equation logit model suggested a simultaneous relationship. Mean elasticities for acres in herbicide-resistant seed with respect to the probability of adopting conservation-tillage practices and acres in conservation-tillage practices with respect to the probability of adopting herbicide-resistant seed were 1.74 and 0.24, respectively.

A microcomputer program to perform Generalized Stochastic Dominance (GSD), Quasi-Second Degree Dominance (SSD), and Quasi-First Degree Stochastic Dominance (FSD) is described. The program is designed to run on IBM-compatible personal computers with a Hercules or CGA graphics adapter. It is menu-driven and has options for GSD, quasi-FSD, quasi-SSD, graphics, and calculations of premiums associated with use of dominant distributions.

While a substantial amount of research has been devoted to showing what social capital does, research explaining social capital itself lags behind. The literature has a long tradition of examining the effect of social capital on local economic growth and development. In this paper we examine whether local economic development can explain the variation in social capital across various geographical clusters in the state of Georgia. We begin by devising a measurement tool, a Human Development Index (HDI), to measure community development. Our social capital measure includes associational memberships, voluntary activities, and philanthropy obtained from the Georgia Social Capital Survey. The findings show that even after accounting for various demographic and economic characteristics, the HDI explains the variation in a number of social capital levels (especially those measured by associational involvement) across various geographical clusters in the state of Georgia.

To capitalize on potential opportunities presented by growing consumerdemand for locally grown foods, farmers need insight into significantmotivations and behavioral characteristics of consumers in their region.This article aims to evaluate the characteristics of southeastern urbanconsumers who purchased food directly from producers. Novel study findingsinclude the impact of disease incidences that occurred in respondent andrelated family members, a more accurate understanding of U.S. agriculture,relatively higher levels of concern about U.S. food safety, and greaterphysical activity levels, which are significant motivators of increasedlikelihood to purchase direct from producers.

This study examines the various factors affecting household expenditures on fresh and processed fruit and vegetables in the U.S. using the 1992 Consumer Expenditure Survey. Empirical results suggest that higher income, better educated, larger, and older households spend more on fresh and processed fruit and vegetables than do other households. Seasonal and regional variations are also evident.

The genetic traits of a purebred bull convey the reproductive and economic value to buyers. This study examines and compares the value of actual production weights (birth, weaning, and yearling weight), production expected progeny differences (EPDs) (birth, weaning, milk, and yearling), and ultrasound EPDs (carcass quality predictors) for purebred Angus bulls sold at auction. One EPD, birth weight, was valued by buyers more than its corresponding actual weight, though both actual weights and EPDs significantly impact price. Predictors of carcass quality were important in determining price. Finally, several individual animal factors and sale characteristics were significant in determining price.

This paper quantifies advances of the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station (KAES) wheat breeding program for two time periods: (1) 1911 to 2006 and (2) 1977 to 2006. Using multiple regression, increases in yields of wheat varieties grown in Kansas are quantified, holding growing conditions and other improvements in productivity constant. Differences in KAES variety yields and those released by other public and private breeders are quantified. During the “new age” of wheat breeding (1977-2006), wheat breeding alone is found to have increased yields by 6.182 bushels per acre, or an average increase of 0.206 bushels per year.

This article analyzes factors that affected the decision to exit tobacco production in the wake of the tobacco buyout program using the data collected through a survey of Kentucky tobacco farmers. Using the Heuristic logistic regression model, we find that the decision to exit tobacco growing was affected by efficiency considerations, availability of off-farm employment, and exit barriers. Availability of off-farm employment had the strongest effect on farmers younger than 46, while the effect of variables measuring efficiency and exit barriers seemed to be more uniform across age groups. Based on the results we suggest several policy interventions.

Noncognitive factors such as discipline (and its mirror, punishment in the form of discipline referrals) can affect school and labor market outcomes, human capital development, and thus the economic well–being of communities. It is well–known throughout the United States, but particularly in rural areas of the south that black males drop out of school more frequently than white males, face higher levels of unemployment, and are incarcerated at a disproportionate rate compared with their white cohorts. Also students in low–income homes were three times more likely to drop out than those from average–income homes and nine times more likely than students from high–income homes. This paper tests the hypothesis that the odds of a student being referred for disciplinary action in the middle school setting (8th grade) increases if the student is male, black, in special education classes, or is poor. We conclude that is indeed the case, with the exception of students assigned to special education classes. In particular, we find that low income students are up to eight times more likely to be sent for disciplinary referrals than others. We next tested the hypothesis that the gender and race of the teachers who refer students for disciplinary action have a significant impact on the first hypothesis. Here the evidence that there is a “color to discipline“ in this school district is weak.

The culture of marine invertebrates, collectively termed mariculture, has received much attention as a new and potentially lucrative industry. Much research has been devoted to molluscs (oysters, clams, and mussels) and crustaceans (shrimp, crawfish, crabs, and lobsters) (Bardach, Ryther, and McLarney). In particular, effort has been directed to the development of a technologically and commercially feasible penaeid shrimp mariculture scheme (Broom; Mock and Murphy; Neal and Latapie; Parker and Conte; Wheeler). Results of extensive research efforts show promise that the technological feasibility of penaeid shrimp farming in Gulf coastal regions of the United States is near to being a reality.

A triple hurdle model estimates cattle farmer willingness to adopt or expand prescribed grazing on pasture in the United States in response to a hypothetical incentive program. Interest in adoption/expansion is estimated first, then willingness to participate in the program, followed by intensity of participation measured as additional acres enrolled. The supply elasticity of enrolled acres with respect to the incentive is 0.13. Nonpecuniary factors inter alia farmer sentiment about stewardship, current farm management practices, farm location, and education are associated with farmer willingness to participate and with participation intensity.

In this paper, a conceptual model for estimating option price for groundwater quality protection is developed, and the effects of subjective demand and supply uncertainty and other variables on option price are examined. A contingent valuation study to measure option price for groundwater quality protection was conducted in southwestern Georgia. Valuation results suggest that the monetary benefits to citizens of protecting groundwater supplies from agricultural chemical contamination are quite large.

We use survey data to study the degree to which new farming operations inAlabama were financially constrained after the 2008 financial crisis. Next,we control for farmers' self-selection out of the credit market and identifywhich farmers were able to secure loans during the period of 2009–2010. Theresults show that new farmers that started any part of their operation after2005 were financially constrained but no evidence that their financingconstraints were affected by the crisis. As expected, we find that lendingwas collateral-driven, although lenders also considered farmers'profitability and cash flows.