Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 January 2021
The European grapevine moth is one of the most pertinent viticulture pests. In recent years, the moth extended to New World countries, some of which started eradication programs. We used a dataset for Mendoza and a county-fixed effects regression model to estimate the impact of the moth on grape production across the province's counties. Our results suggest that the moth led to a decrease of up to 8% of Mendoza's grape production; however, this may have been worse without strong eradication efforts. We conclude that moth eradication programs may be economically justified in Argentina, and perhaps in other countries. (JEL Classifications: Q10, Q18, C23)
The authors thank the editor, Professor Karl Storchmann, and the anonymous referees for the helpful comments and suggestions. The authors also thank Emeritus Professor Kym Anderson, Associate Professor Firmin Doko Tchatoka, and Dr. Di Zeng for helpful advice on an earlier draft of this article.