This study examines the trade-off between the offered rental rate and on-farm and off-farm benefi... more This study examines the trade-off between the offered rental rate and on-farm and off-farm benefits made by North Carolina farmers during the 15 sign-up of the US Conservation Reserve Program. This program allows farmers to offer a ten year contract for an annual rental rate from the government to remove land from production and put it to a conservation use. Bid acceptance depends on the potential environmental benefits to be gained and the public cost as represented in a scoring mechanism called the Environmental Benefits Index. Using individual bid data and some county-level proxies for the opportunity cost of placing land in the program, the offered rental rate was regressed on each component of the Environmental Benefits Index (some representing on-farm and some, off-farm environmental benefits) and the opportunity cost proxies. The results show that North Carolina farmers are willing to offer a lower bid if they expect future productivity gains from erosion control (on-farm ben...
An extensive empirical literature has examined the behavior of crop yields over time. Corn yields... more An extensive empirical literature has examined the behavior of crop yields over time. Corn yields have been characterized by significant increases reflecting an array of technological developments that have substantially boosted productivity. While much of the focus has been on modeling deterministic and possibly stochastic trends in yields over time, an equally important question involves the extent to which yield changes may occur in response to price. This paper addresses two dimensions of this issue. We first look at the extent to which realized yields (i.e., at harvest) tend to be influenced by planting–time quotes of post–harvest futures contracts. Second, we examine the potential for intra–seasonal responsiveness of yields to significant price swings. The latter response is especially important in light of recent arguments that weather offers identification through instruments that are completely exogenous to market conditions—a view often expressed in terms of a “natural exp...
Potato acreage and total production in Maine have declined steadily since the 1960s. In 1991, a U... more Potato acreage and total production in Maine have declined steadily since the 1960s. In 1991, a University of Maine research team established a large-scale, long-term, comparative study of three factors that form the foundation of productive potato cropping systems: soil management, pest management, and variety choice. This study, the Potato Ecosystem Project, included 96 main plots (5.8 ha total) and near-by “component studies.” The project contrasted amended vs. unamended soil management strategies; conventional vs. reduced-input vs. bio-intensive pest management strategies; and disease and stress susceptible vs. tolerant potato varieties. Given recent concerns over resistance to pesticides and increasing costs of agricultural chemical inputs, the reduced-input and bio-intensive pest management systems provided encouraging results. Weed growth was similar in the conventional and reduced-input systems. Colorado potato beetle thresholds were exceeded less often and their densities w...
verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial purposes by any means, provided that this cop... more verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial purposes by any means, provided that this copyright notice appears on all such copies.
Northeastern Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics
This study examines the notion that fresh-fruit prices follow a time trend separate from the effe... more This study examines the notion that fresh-fruit prices follow a time trend separate from the effect of seasonal supply changes over the marketing season. In particular, quality changes and a limited marketing season are hypothesized to contribute to the seasonal changes in demand. The empirical results support these hypotheses for the Boston fresh-blueberry market.
Northeastern Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics
A model is developed to determine the minimum weed population where a decision to apply a posteme... more A model is developed to determine the minimum weed population where a decision to apply a postemergence herbicide would be profitable. The economic threshold model accounts for changing economic conditions, the effect of weeds on crop quality, the effect of multiple weed species on yield and quality, and uncertainty about spraying period length. The model is uncomplicated enough for microcomputer or programmable calculator applications. An example of weed threshold calculations for round white potatoes is given.
Ray et al. have examined the national agricultural sector impacts of the 1996 FAIR Act using a st... more Ray et al. have examined the national agricultural sector impacts of the 1996 FAIR Act using a stochastic simulation model based on the Policy Analysis System (POLYSYS). The model outcomes are predictions of various economic measures, including the coefficient of variation of net returns for corn, wheat, soy-beans, and cotton. Then Knutson et al. use the results of the Ray et al. simulations to predict the distribution of net farm income over the next 10 years for several types of representative southern farms. Any attempt to measure the changes in riskiness in southern agriculture is commendable—even heroic—and I applaud these efforts, both the national modeling effort by Ray et al. and the application to southern representative farms by Knutson et al. This task has a lot in common, I think, with trying to “tease out” the temperature changes associated with the greenhouse effect. The number of factors and mechanisms at work is mind-boggling. It's tough enough to try to get a ha...
A revealed-preference–based approach is proposed for valuation of the environmental and human imp... more A revealed-preference–based approach is proposed for valuation of the environmental and human impacts of pesticides. It is assumed that farmers reveal their willingness to pay for improved pesticide safety by selecting a specific product out of the set of available alternatives based on their costs, effectiveness, and safety. The approach is applied to estimate the welfare impact of changed patterns of herbicide use on Roundup Ready soybeans. The results indicate that farmers associate positive values with safety improvements. The aggregate welfare impact of the reduced risk for the U.S. soybean farmers was estimated to be $90.3 million in 2001.
Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, 2013
This article investigates how information from cotton yield monitors influences the perceptions o... more This article investigates how information from cotton yield monitors influences the perceptions of within-field yield variability of cotton producers. Using yield distribution modeling techniques and survey data from cotton producers in 11 southeastern states, we find that cotton farmers who responded to the survey tend to underestimate within-field yield variability (by approximately 5-18%) when not using site-specific yield monitor information. Results further indicate that surveyed cotton farmers who responded to a specific question about yield monitors place a value of approximately $20/acre/year (on average) on the additional information about within-field yield variability that the yield monitor technology provides.
This study examines the trade-off between the offered rental rate and on-farm and off-farm benefi... more This study examines the trade-off between the offered rental rate and on-farm and off-farm benefits made by North Carolina farmers during the 15 sign-up of the US Conservation Reserve Program. This program allows farmers to offer a ten year contract for an annual rental rate from the government to remove land from production and put it to a conservation use. Bid acceptance depends on the potential environmental benefits to be gained and the public cost as represented in a scoring mechanism called the Environmental Benefits Index. Using individual bid data and some county-level proxies for the opportunity cost of placing land in the program, the offered rental rate was regressed on each component of the Environmental Benefits Index (some representing on-farm and some, off-farm environmental benefits) and the opportunity cost proxies. The results show that North Carolina farmers are willing to offer a lower bid if they expect future productivity gains from erosion control (on-farm ben...
An extensive empirical literature has examined the behavior of crop yields over time. Corn yields... more An extensive empirical literature has examined the behavior of crop yields over time. Corn yields have been characterized by significant increases reflecting an array of technological developments that have substantially boosted productivity. While much of the focus has been on modeling deterministic and possibly stochastic trends in yields over time, an equally important question involves the extent to which yield changes may occur in response to price. This paper addresses two dimensions of this issue. We first look at the extent to which realized yields (i.e., at harvest) tend to be influenced by planting–time quotes of post–harvest futures contracts. Second, we examine the potential for intra–seasonal responsiveness of yields to significant price swings. The latter response is especially important in light of recent arguments that weather offers identification through instruments that are completely exogenous to market conditions—a view often expressed in terms of a “natural exp...
Potato acreage and total production in Maine have declined steadily since the 1960s. In 1991, a U... more Potato acreage and total production in Maine have declined steadily since the 1960s. In 1991, a University of Maine research team established a large-scale, long-term, comparative study of three factors that form the foundation of productive potato cropping systems: soil management, pest management, and variety choice. This study, the Potato Ecosystem Project, included 96 main plots (5.8 ha total) and near-by “component studies.” The project contrasted amended vs. unamended soil management strategies; conventional vs. reduced-input vs. bio-intensive pest management strategies; and disease and stress susceptible vs. tolerant potato varieties. Given recent concerns over resistance to pesticides and increasing costs of agricultural chemical inputs, the reduced-input and bio-intensive pest management systems provided encouraging results. Weed growth was similar in the conventional and reduced-input systems. Colorado potato beetle thresholds were exceeded less often and their densities w...
verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial purposes by any means, provided that this cop... more verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial purposes by any means, provided that this copyright notice appears on all such copies.
Northeastern Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics
This study examines the notion that fresh-fruit prices follow a time trend separate from the effe... more This study examines the notion that fresh-fruit prices follow a time trend separate from the effect of seasonal supply changes over the marketing season. In particular, quality changes and a limited marketing season are hypothesized to contribute to the seasonal changes in demand. The empirical results support these hypotheses for the Boston fresh-blueberry market.
Northeastern Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics
A model is developed to determine the minimum weed population where a decision to apply a posteme... more A model is developed to determine the minimum weed population where a decision to apply a postemergence herbicide would be profitable. The economic threshold model accounts for changing economic conditions, the effect of weeds on crop quality, the effect of multiple weed species on yield and quality, and uncertainty about spraying period length. The model is uncomplicated enough for microcomputer or programmable calculator applications. An example of weed threshold calculations for round white potatoes is given.
Ray et al. have examined the national agricultural sector impacts of the 1996 FAIR Act using a st... more Ray et al. have examined the national agricultural sector impacts of the 1996 FAIR Act using a stochastic simulation model based on the Policy Analysis System (POLYSYS). The model outcomes are predictions of various economic measures, including the coefficient of variation of net returns for corn, wheat, soy-beans, and cotton. Then Knutson et al. use the results of the Ray et al. simulations to predict the distribution of net farm income over the next 10 years for several types of representative southern farms. Any attempt to measure the changes in riskiness in southern agriculture is commendable—even heroic—and I applaud these efforts, both the national modeling effort by Ray et al. and the application to southern representative farms by Knutson et al. This task has a lot in common, I think, with trying to “tease out” the temperature changes associated with the greenhouse effect. The number of factors and mechanisms at work is mind-boggling. It's tough enough to try to get a ha...
A revealed-preference–based approach is proposed for valuation of the environmental and human imp... more A revealed-preference–based approach is proposed for valuation of the environmental and human impacts of pesticides. It is assumed that farmers reveal their willingness to pay for improved pesticide safety by selecting a specific product out of the set of available alternatives based on their costs, effectiveness, and safety. The approach is applied to estimate the welfare impact of changed patterns of herbicide use on Roundup Ready soybeans. The results indicate that farmers associate positive values with safety improvements. The aggregate welfare impact of the reduced risk for the U.S. soybean farmers was estimated to be $90.3 million in 2001.
Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, 2013
This article investigates how information from cotton yield monitors influences the perceptions o... more This article investigates how information from cotton yield monitors influences the perceptions of within-field yield variability of cotton producers. Using yield distribution modeling techniques and survey data from cotton producers in 11 southeastern states, we find that cotton farmers who responded to the survey tend to underestimate within-field yield variability (by approximately 5-18%) when not using site-specific yield monitor information. Results further indicate that surveyed cotton farmers who responded to a specific question about yield monitors place a value of approximately $20/acre/year (on average) on the additional information about within-field yield variability that the yield monitor technology provides.
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