The Economic and Environmental Benefits of Sheath Blight Resistance in Rice
By: Tsiboe, Francis; Nalley, Lawton Lanier; Durand, Alvaro; Thoma, Greg; Shew, Aaron
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Tsiboe, Francis; Nalley, Lawton Lanier; Durand, Alvaro; Thoma, Greg; Shew, Aaron, The Economic and Environmental Benefits of Sheath Blight Resistance in Rice, Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Volume 42, Issue 2, May 2017, Pages 215-235
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Abstract
The producer, consumer, and environmental impacts of a counterfactual of ShB-resistant rice production were calculated using data from U.S. county-level rice production in the Mid-South and simulated Sheath Blight (ShB) infection and yield-loss rates. Results indicate a $43 million increase in consumer surplus via ShB alleviation, with enough additional rice produced to feed 1.7 million people. A life cycle assessment (LCA) also shows that the counterfactual has lower environmental impacts than the status quo of ShB-prone rice production. These estimates provide important economic and environmental information to donors, policy makers, and breeding programs globally on the importance of increasing and maintaining genetic disease resistance.