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NEP: New Economics Papers
Agricultural Economics
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Edited by: Angelo Zago
http://ideas.repec.org/e/pza49.html
Universita degli Studi di Verona
Date: 2005-09-11
Papers: 12
This document is in the public domain, feel free to circulate it.
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In this issue we have:
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1. Production and Technical Efficiency on Australian Dairy Farms
Tom Kompas; Tuong Nhu Che
2. Market Reform, Productivity and Efficiency in Vietnamese Rice
Production
Tom Kompas
3. Conservation Reserve Program in the Presence of a Working
Land Alternative: Implications for Environmental Quality,
Program Participation, and Income Transfer, The
Feng, Hongli; Kling, Catherine L.; Kurkalova, Lyubov A.;
Secchi, Silvia; Gassman, Philip W.
4. Non-agricultural land use and land reform: theory and
evidence from Brazil
Juliano Junqueira Assun??o
5. Are Agricultural Extension Packages What Ethiopian Farmers
Want? A Stated Preference Analysis
Carlsson, Fredrik; K?hlin, Gunnar; Mekonnen, Alemu; Yesuf,
Mahmud
6. Testing competing explanations for the inverse productivity
puzzle
Juliano Junqueira Assun??o; Luiz Henrique Braido
7. The impact of gurus : Parker grades and en primeur wine prices
H?la Hadj Ali; S?bastien Lecocq; Michael Visser
8. Case Study of China?s Commercial Pork Value Chain, A
Fabiosa, Jacinto F.; Hu, Dinghuan; Fang, Cheng
9. Sweet land or Sweat land: Two proposals for facilitating
access to land and adjustment to eroding EU sugar preferences
in Fiji
Satish Chand
10. A Practical Optimal Quarantine Measure
Tom Kompas; Tuong Nhu Che
11. Why Does the Average Price of Tuna Fall During Lent?
Aviv Nevo; Konstantinos Hatzitaskos
12. The Impact on Nutrition of the Intrahousehold Distribution
of Power
Habiba Djebbari
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1. Production and Technical Efficiency on Australian Dairy Farms
Tom Kompas (Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource
Economics)
Tuong Nhu Che (Australian Bureau of Agricultural and
Resource Economics Canberra, ACT)
The dairy industry plays an important role in both Australia and
the world dairy market. Domestically, it is one of the most
important agricultural industries, valued at $A3.7 billion a year.
Internationally, the industry exports more than $A3 billion a
year, making Australia the third largest dairy exporter in the
world. Using traditional farm survey input and output data and a
unique biannual data set on farm technology use, this paper
estimates a stochastic production frontier and technical
efficiency model for Australian dairy farms, determining the
relative importance of each input in dairy production, the
quantitative effects of key technology variables on farm
efficiency and overall farm profiles based on the efficiency
rankings of dairy producers. Estimated results show that
production exhibits constant returns to scale and although feed
concentration and the number of cows milked at peak season matter,
the key determinants of differences in dairy farm efficiency are
the type of dairy shed used and the proportion of irrigated farm
area. Overall farm profiles also indicate that those in the high
efficiency group employ either rotary or swingover dairy shed
technology and have (by far) the largest proportion of land under
irrigation.
Keywords: dairy industry, agriculture, technical efficiency model
JEL: D21 D23 G14
Date: 2004-01
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:microe:588&r=agr
2. Market Reform, Productivity and Efficiency in Vietnamese Rice
Production
Tom Kompas (Asia Pacific School of Economics and Government,
Australian National University.)
This paper analyzes the dramatic increases in rice output and
productivity in Vietnam due largely to market reform, inducing
farmers to work harder and use land more efficiently. The reform
process is captured through changes in effort variables and a
decomposition of total factor productivity (TFP) due to enhanced
incentives for two main reform periods: output contracts (1981-87)
and trade liberalization (1988-94). The results show that the
more extensive is market reform the larger the increase in TFP
and the share of TFP growth due to incentive effects, suggesting
that more competitive markets and secure property rights matter
greatly. However, in the post-reform period (1995-99), the
incentive component of TFP dissipates as a result of falls in the
price of rice and slow increases in input prices, especially for
hired labour, fertilizer and capital. A stochastic production
frontier is estimated to determine what farm-specific factors
limit efficiency gains. Results show that farms in the main rice
growing regions, those with larger farm size and farms with a
higher proportion of rice land ploughed by tractor are more
efficient, suggesting the need for additional reforms to augment
productvity. In particular, the requirement that rice be grown in
every province in Vietnam, restrictions on farm size (especially
in the north) and the slow development of rural credit markets
for capital and land are seen to restrict the level and growth of
efficiency substantially.
Keywords: market reform, total factor productivity, efficiency,
rice production
JEL: O13 O47 Q10
Date: 2004-04
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:tradew:587&r=agr
3. Conservation Reserve Program in the Presence of a Working
Land Alternative: Implications for Environmental Quality,
Program Participation, and Income Transfer, The
Feng, Hongli
Kling, Catherine L.
Kurkalova, Lyubov A.
Secchi, Silvia
Gassman, Philip W.
The United States has invested large sums of resources in
multiple conservation programs for agriculture over the past
century. In this paper we focus on the impacts of program
interactions. Specifically, using an integrated economic and bio-
physical modeling framework, we consider the impacts of the
presence of working land programs on a land retirement for an
important agricultural region?the Upper Mississippi River Basin
UMRB). Compared to a land retirement only program, we find that
the presence of a working land program for conservation tillage
results in significantly lower predicted signups for land
retirement at a given rental rate. We also find that the presence
of both a large working land and land retirement program can
result in more environmental benefits and income transfers than a
land retirement only program can achieve.
Keywords: Conservation Reserve Program, conservation tillage,
environmental quality, income transfer, working land
programs.
Date: 2005-09-01
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:isu:genres:12411&r=agr
4. Non-agricultural land use and land reform: theory and
evidence from Brazil
Juliano Junqueira Assun??o (Department of Economics PUC-
Rio)
This paper examines the effect of nonagricultural land use on
agrarian organization and land reform, providing a simple model
to determine its policy implications and some evidence on its
importance. It is argued that, if land-rental market is imperfect,
there is a role for redistributive land policies and the
following implications hold: (i) land reform is more probable to
enhance efficiency in a low-wage economy; (ii) such policies
should aim small farmers instead of landless people, obtaining
land from large landholders. Empirical evidence suggests this is
a relevant issue in Brazil, specially during periods of high
macroeconomic instability.
Keywords: land reform; land use; agricultural development
Date: 2005-02
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rio:texdis:496&r=agr
5. Are Agricultural Extension Packages What Ethiopian Farmers
Want? A Stated Preference Analysis
Carlsson, Fredrik (Department of Economics, School of
Economics and Commercial Law, G?teborg University)
K?hlin, Gunnar (Department of Economics, School of
Economics and Commercial Law, G?teborg University)
Mekonnen, Alemu (Department of Economics, Addis Ababa
University, Ethiopia; and Environmental Economics Policy
Forum)
Yesuf, Mahmud (Environmental Economics Policy Forum,
Ethiopian Development Research Institute, Ethiopia)
There is an evident dichotomy in many rural development policies
in the world between extension driven adoption of modern inputs
and community driven local public goods. However, the target
populations of these policies seldom have the possibility to
express their preference between these two policies. In this
paper we report the results of a stated preference survey in the
highlands of Ethiopia where the farmers are given a choice
between an agricultural extension package and a local public good
health care or protected spring. The study finds that a
majority of people prefers the public good. However, when the
extension package is combined with insurance in terms of no
payback of the credit in case of crop loss, then we find a
significant increase in the choice of the extension package. The
study thus sheds light on why Ethiopia?s major development
strategy has had limited success and gives evidence of how stated
preference methodologies can be utilized for development policy
design. <p>
Keywords: Agricultural extension; choice experiment; local
public goods; Ethiopia; Africa
JEL: D13 H41 H43 O13
Date: 2005-08-17
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:gunwpe:0172&r=agr
6. Testing competing explanations for the inverse productivity
puzzle
Juliano Junqueira Assun??o (Department of Economics PUC-
Rio)
Luiz Henrique Braido (EPGE/FGV)
We use plot-level data from ICRISAT to assess competing
explanations for an old empirical regularity - the inverse
relationship between land productivity and farm size. The
presence of farmers who simultaneously crop multiple plots with
di?erent sizes is used to test (and reject) explanations based
on household heterogeneity. The panel nature of the data is
explored to test (and refuse) explanations based on plot fixed
characteristics. We are then left with explanations based on time-
varying plot features or measurement errors in the plot size.
Theoretically, the input choices should reflect both plot-
specific features and the true plot size. Empirically, the
inverse relationship vanishes when we control for input use.
Keywords: Development, farm size, productivity.
Date: 2005-02
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rio:texdis:500&r=agr
7. The impact of gurus : Parker grades and en primeur wine prices
H?la Hadj Ali
S?bastien Lecocq
Michael Visser
The purpose of this paper is to measure the impact of Robert
Parker's oenological grades on Bordeaux wine prices. We study
their impact on the so-called en primeur wine prices, i.e., the
prices determined by the ch^ateau owners when the wines are still
extremely young. The Parker grades are usually published in the
spring of each year, before the wine prices are established.
However, the wine grades attributed in 2003 have been published
much later, in the autumn, after the determination of the prices.
This unusual reversal is exploited to estimate a Parker effect.
We find that, on average, the effect is equal to 2.80 euros per
bottle of wine. We also estimate grade-specific effects, and use
these estimates to predict what the prices would have been had
Parker attended the spring tasting in 2003.
Keywords: expert opinion, natural experiment, treatment effect,
Bordeaux wine price
JEL: C21 D89 L15
Date: 2005-09
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lea:leawpi:0507&r=agr
8. Case Study of China?s Commercial Pork Value Chain, A
Fabiosa, Jacinto F.
Hu, Dinghuan
Fang, Cheng
In China, with the cost of improved technology rising, surplus
labor shrinking, and demand for food quality and safety
increasing, it will be just a matter of time before the
country?s hog production sector will be commercialized like
that of developed countries. However, even if China?s cost of
production converges to international levels, as shown in this
case study, China may continue to retain some competitive
advantage because of the labor-intensive nature of the marketing
services involved in hog processing and meat distribution. The
supply of variety meats offers the most promising market
opportunity for foreign suppliers in China. The market may open
further if the tariff rate for variety meats is reduced from 20%
and harmonized with the pork muscle meat rate of 12%, and if the
value-added tax of 13% is applied equally to both imported and
domestic products. The fast-growing Western-style family
restaurant and higher-end dining sector is another market
opportunity for high-quality imported pork.
Keywords: commercial, cost structure, imports, pork value chain.
Date: 2005-08-23
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:isu:genres:12410&r=agr
9. Sweet land or Sweat land: Two proposals for facilitating
access to land and adjustment to eroding EU sugar preferences
in Fiji
Satish Chand (Asia Pacific School of Economics and
Government, Australian National University)
The resolution of problems with lease renewals in Fiji,
particularly in the sugarcane districts, has ramifications for
private investment and growth in the entire economy. The
impending withdrawal of subsidies to sugar as world trade is
liberalised has increased the urgency of finding solutions to
these problems. This paper draws on game theory to characterise
the problems facing the Fiji sugar industry. The incentives for
land and ethnic politics are identified. Separate proposals are
put forward to facilitate secure access to land and to minimise
adjustment costs from the erosion of preferences under the Sugar
Protocol. The rationalisation forced upon the sugar industry, if
managed well, could induce land reforms that could improve the
investment climate and the prospects for growth, whilst
minimising pains of adjustment.
Keywords: Fiji, access to land, EU, Sugar, European Union,
economic growth, private investment, game theory,
rationalisation
JEL: C70 O13 H71
Date: 2004-06
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:microe:561&r=agr
10. A Practical Optimal Quarantine Measure
Tom Kompas (Asia Pacific School of Economics and Management,
Australian National University)
Tuong Nhu Che (Australian Bureau of Agricultural and
Resource Economics, Canberra)
Quarantine programs have generally provided an essential
protection against the importation of exotic diseases, thus
protecting both consumers and producers from major health
concerns and pests and diseases that can potentially destroy
local agricultural production. However, quarantine measures also
impose costs in the form of expenditures on the quarantine
program itself and the welfare losses that are associated with
such trade restrictions. This paper develops a simple model to
determine the optimal level of quarantine activity for imported
livestock by minimizing the present-value of the direct costs of
the disease, the cost of the quarantine program and any resulting
welfare losses. The result defines a practical measure for the
optimal number of infected livestock that may potentially enter a
region in a given year. The model is then applied to the case of
Ovine Johne?s Disease and its potential entry to the sheep
industry in Western Australia. All key parameter values are
subject to random variation and the optimal solution and
sensitivity measures are obtained with a genetic algorithm.
Keywords: Quarantine measures, Ovine Johne?s Disease,
agricultural policy
JEL: Q17 Q28 R59
Date: 2004-01
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:govern:586&r=agr
11. Why Does the Average Price of Tuna Fall During Lent?
Aviv Nevo
Konstantinos Hatzitaskos
For many products the average price paid by consumers falls
during periods of high demand. We use information from a large
supermarket chain to decompose the decrease in the average price
into a substitution effect, due to an increase in the share of
cheaper products, and a price reduction effect. We find that for
almost all the products we study the substitution effect explains
a large part of the decrease. We estimate demand for these
products and show the price declines are consistent with a change
in demand elasticity and the relative demand for different brands.
Our findings are less consistent with "loss-leader" models of
retail competition.
Date: 2005-08
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:11572&r=agr
12. The Impact on Nutrition of the Intrahousehold Distribution
of Power
Habiba Djebbari (Universit? Laval, CIRP?E and IZA Bonn)
The distribution of income within the household is found to
matter for the allocation of resources towards nutrition. Rural
Mexican households do not pool income, nor do they attain a
Pareto-efficient allocation of resources. In contrast to what is
commonly done in the literature, I do not assume that only the
head of household and his wife share the decisionmaking. In
particular, I present a new test of the unitary model in the
context of extended families, which acknowledges that any
household member may participate to the decisionmaking as long as
he or she earns some income. I find that a change in the number
of income earners is associated with a change in food calorie
consumption controlling for the change in household size and
household income. Both the number and identities of income
earners matter in the extended family. In particular, when a
female household member starts earning income, food consumption
increases substantively. When it is a male household member who
starts earning income, it decreases substantively.
Keywords: nutrition, intrahousehold allocation, extended families
JEL: I12 D13 I38
Date: 2005-07
URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp1701&r=agr
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