Carel Ligeon

We examined peanut production systems and selected factors affecting the development of commercial peanut enterprises in Bulgaria. A survey of 220 individual farms and farm cooperatives engaged in the cultivation of peanuts was conducted during 2000 and 2002. Poor farm structure, low level of technology, and nonconformity to farm decision making impede the financial and economic development of Bulgarian peanut production and farm growth, thus limiting farm enterprises emergence into competitive economic units financially operative in a freemarket economy. The underlying cost structure, couple with small farms, averaging 0.8 ha in size, prevent farmers from capturing economies of scale, limit farm profitability and hence farm modernization. The lack of owned farm machinery, equipment and storage facilities renders the restructuring and specialization extremely difficult. However, peanut production is still a viable farm enterprise for Bulgarian farmers.Изследвана е системата на произ...

As farmers in a transition economy search for new crop enterprises with a potential for income enhancement they are faced with increased risks in the process of resource allocation. It has been noted that biased estimation of production function estimates results from the lack of accountability of risks. Since peanut production in Bulgaria has increased at a varying rate since 1989 it is important that we examine the risks associated with input use. The data for this study were collected from farmers from 18 villages in the southern part of Bulgaria. A total of 205 farmers were surveyed for this study. Peanut yield in Bulgaria is positively related to the quantity of seed used, fungicide, manual labor, investment level and mechanized labor used. Peanut yield is negatively influenced by investment levels but positively by the increase of manual labor. The response of yield to quantity of seed used is elastic, and an addition of a kg of peanut seeds may increase yield by 32kg. However...

We use the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) to evaluate the profitability and sustainability of aquaculture in Jamaica. We also examine the combined application of these methods to provide holistic and reliable information. In March 2010 we administered the AHP and the CBA survey instruments among 27 Jamaicans engaged in large- and medium-scale tilapia production and marketing. The overall ranking of criteria is reliable, with an inconsistency ratio (IR) of 0.075. Participants classified 'better feed conversion ratio' as their first criteria for increasing profitability and sustainability, with a rank score (RC) of 0.050. In second and third places were 'decreased disease problems' and 'decreased mortality,' with RCs of 0.036 and 0.031, respectively. The net operating income ($33,103.05), the IRR of 30.36% and P.I of 1.55 shows that tilapia production is profitable and feasible. When participants' preferences of methods...

Seafood consumption in the U.S. has increased over the period 1990 to 2003. A large percentage of the seafood consumed in the U.S. is imported. The most important seafood products imported to the U.S. are shrimp, Atlantic salmon, tilapia, catfish, crayfish, mussels and a mixture of mollusks. In 2003, the U.S. imported 199 million pounds of tilapia and tilapia products, at a value of $241.2 million, a 38% increase from the previous year. The seafood market has been considered an important foreign exchange earner for the Caribbean Common Market (CARICOM), and Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) member countries. Jamaica is the only CARICOM country that exports tilapia products from aquaculture sources to the U.S. In 2003, Jamaica exported 39,950 pounds of frozen tilapia fillet to the U.S. at a value of $77,952 (Aquaculture Outlook, 2004). Given that tilapia culture may be a promising enterprise for CARICOM and FTAA member countries, it is important to evaluate changes in U.S. marke...

The effects of globalization on smaller nation Caribbean states have not been thoroughly examined, and the trade performance of these states has not been evaluated since the WTO came into existence. In this paper, we report on a study that conducted a comparative analysis of selected Caribbean nation states with other countries at different stages of development to determine their levels of performance from 1990 to 1995, the period before the WTO began full operation, and the period 1996 to 2002, the period after globalization. The selected Caribbean countries were Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Suriname. The measures for comparison are changes in GDP per capita, capital investment as a percentage of GDP, foreign direct investment, current account balance, trade balance, export services, infant mortality, literacy rates, and agricultural and service labor force change. We also compared the economic and social performance of these countries with th...

The effects of increased exports from NAFTA member countries on the U.S. domestic catfish industry were evaluated. Results showed that the quantity of catfish imported will fall if the domestic price of catfish falls relative to the import price. Past imports have no effect on present imports. The income elasticity was negative indicating that imported catfish may be an inferior good. Doubling present levels of imports from NAFTA member countries is not a threat to the U.S. catfish industry.

Alcohol consumption is considered an important social activity but a major health risk in Latin American and Caribbean countries (LAC). Alcohol consumption net benefits are doubtful and the factors influencing alcohol consumption in the LAC countries are not well documented. In this study, we use secondary data and Ordinary Least Squares Regression models to evaluate the factors influencing alcohol consumption in LAC countries. The factors that significantly affect alcohol consumption are: alcohol imports, alcohol exports, alcohol production, consumer price index, real GDP per capita, urban population, number of television sets available to the household, and whether the person is from the Caribbean or not. A closer look at the factors indicates that a 1.0 percent increase in alcohol imports is associated with a 0.17 increase in alcohol consumption, while a 1.0 percent in alcohol exports reduces alcohol consumption by 0.05 percent. A 1.0 percent increase in alcohol production influe...

ABSTRACT Little is known regarding the correlation between channel catfish female body weight and relative fecundity and fry production when the females are induced to ovulate with carp pituitary extract and fertilized with blue catfish sperm. A total of 145 female channel catfish were used in the early, middle, and late spawning season. Female body weight of channel catfish had negative correlations with relative fecundity (r = −0.33 and −0.25, P < .05; r = −0.23, P > .05) and before the late spawning season with fry/kg (r = −0.21, P > .05; r = −0.30, P < .05). Eggs/kg female body weight and fry/kg female body weight followed a parallel pattern throughout the season, illustrating the logical relationship between relative fecundity and fry output. The size of females used is a consideration to maximize hybrid catfish embryo production during the early and middle spawning season but not late in the spawning season. However, these correlations are relatively small even though significant; thus a dramatic change in fry production would not be predicted. Since reproductive relationships can change during the spawning season, conclusions and recommendations could be flawed if data are not collected periodically during an entire spawning season.

ABSTRACT Female channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) broodfish were injected with seven different dosages of carp pituitary extract (CPE) to induce ovulation. Eggs were fertilized with sperm from blue catfish (Ictalurus furcatus). The effects of CPE dosage on ovulation, eggs per kg of broodfish body weight (BW), fertilization rate, estimated hatching rate, and estimated fry production per kg of broodfish BW were determined. When the seven different dosages of CPE were considered, the dose (0,11) (first injection, second injection mg/kg female BW) of CPE was inferior (P < .05) to the doses (2,6), (2,7), (2,8), (2,9), and (2,10) for ovulation rate, fecundity, fertilization rate, hatch rate, and fry/kg. The doses (2,6) and (2, 9) gave the highest (P < .05) mean percentages of ovulation, 100% and 97.0% respectively. The treatments (2,8) and (2,9) resulted in higher (P < .05) mean eggs per kg (7,825 and 7,323 respectively) than the doses (0,11) and (3, 6, 3). The carp pituitary dosage had a dosage effect (P < .05) on the fertilization rate. The dose (2,7) resulted in 78.1% fertilization, which was higher (P < .05) than the doses (0,11), and (2,6). The dose (2,7) produced a higher (P < .05) mean, 69.5%, for estimated hatching than the treatments (0,11), (2,9), (2,10), and (3,6,3). The doses (0,11) and (3,6,3) had lower (P < .05) mean estimated fry per kg compared to the other five doses. The fish receiving dose (2,7) had the highest observed fry per kg, 2,788. As the spawning season progressed, the fry output increased until the final trial in late May. The results indicated that the dose (2,8) currently recommended to catfish farmers for ovulating channel catfish is only appropriate early in the spawning season and that the treatments (2,6) and (2,7) are as effective or more effective once peak spawning is reached. During May, the dose used should be gradually reduced to obtain optimum fry output.

The U.S. catfish industry is one of the fastest growing businesses in the agricultural sector. Annual production growth rate has been above 6.0% from 1991 to 2000. While sales have increased, real prices have fallen. There is expansion of production in nontraditional producing states and reduction in growth rates in others. Yields and surface area continue to increase, while the

Abstract A sample of 606 students, staff and faculty from Auburn and North Carolina A&T State universities were self-administered a questionnaire to evaluate their weekly consumption of peanut butter and products containing peanut butter. The age group ...

We evaluated the returns to catfish hybrid (CB hybrid) research using an ex‐ante approach and results from enterprise budgets and a linear programming (LP) model for an average size farm. Benefit cost (B/C) analysis and internal rates of return (IRRs) are estimated based on periods of 30 and 25 years. Lag lengths of five and eight years for research and development are considered. IRRs ranged from 10.4 to 32.6% and B/Cs from 1 to 76. All IRRs are greater than the required rates of return (RRR) and B/Cs are larger than 1. The IRRs and the B/Cs obtained from projected incremental net benefits from the LP models are larger than those obtained using the incremental benefits from the enterprise budgets. The ERRs and the B/Cs suggest that investment in CB hybrid research is worthwhile. Lag lengths for research and development affected the sizes of the IRRs and the B/Cs. The length of the adoption process has only a small effect on the IRRs and the B/Cs. Effects of the hypothesized shape of the adoption process are dependent on the time of adoption, but not length of the plateau.

Catfish production has expanded at an increasing rate from 1980 to 1994. As production has adjusted over time so have prices. Catfish farmers and processors are operating at narrow net margins and knowledge of future prices and factors influencing prices would be helpful to them in decision making. Theoretical models suggest that aquaculture experiences price fluctuations which can be analysed

Abstract Peanut is not listed as one of the major crops in the Bulgarian agricultural sector, but its economic and fi nancial viability is promising, but unknown. We use enterprise budgets, capital budgeting techniques, risk analysis and logistic regression models to ...

Abstract We compare manual stripping to pen spawning for production of hybrids of female channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus× male blue catfish I. furcatus, as well as to aquarium spawning of channel catfish. The ovulation rate for manually stripped females (91%) was ...