This study estimates change in productivity and profitability and their respective components for two major Indian pulse crops, pigeon peas and chickpeas. Results show that average profitability declined during the period under consideration (2009-2014) for both pulse crops. Lower profits are driven by increases in input prices and decreases in total factor productivity, output growth, and output (constant) prices. The reduction in total factor productivity is primarily due to a slow increase in output. Finally, the technical efficiency estimates are lower than cereal crops like rice and wheat, 72% for chickpeas and 71% for pigeon peas.

The social license between the US public and food producers has grown increasingly complex, especially related to the treatment of farm animals and workers. In this study, we employ two best-worst-scaling experiments to elicit the publicÕs preferences regarding animal and worker welfare farm practices within the dairy and poultry industries. Using a latent class modeling approach, we find that US consumers generally value animal welfare practices more than worker welfare practices. Yet, population sub-groups with strong preferences for worker welfare practices exist, especially among older, highly educated, Democrats primarily from the Northeastern US

While markets for agricultural commodities are often global, markets for cropland can be highly localized. Soil makeup and climate also tend to make farmland rental markets localized as well. This study compares different types of econometric models to measure the extent of spatial spillovers within these markets. A fully dynamic spatial model estimated on cropland transactions shows that sales are highly localized in the short term but face greater neighboring spillovers in the long term. Accounting for longer-term spatial interdependence of farmland markets can help to improve forecasts of land values.

This study introduces distribution-free methods to estimate interval-censored willingness to pay (WTP) models. The approaches proposed encompass the recovery of WTP values using an iterated conditional expectation procedure and subsequent estimation of the mean WTP using parametric and nonparametric models. Methods allow to estimate the effects of covariates on the mean WTP and the underlying probability distribution. Monte Carlo simulations are employed to compare the performance of the estimators proposed against standard parametric and nonparametric estimators. We illustrate the estimation techniques by assessing usersÕ WTP for services provided by an e-marketing website that helps connect farmers with local consumers.

Propensity score matching is used to estimate how Direct-to-consumer (DTC) marketing influences farm survival and growth over five-year periods. Results show that beginning farms with DTC sales grow more slowly but are more likely to survive in business compared to similar farms without DTC sales. The study finds DTC marketing is associated with lower financial performance and a greater likelihood of facing borrowing constraints, which might help explain the slower farm growth. DTC marketing is also associated with lower farm income volatility, which might help explain the higher survival rate.

The pain of payment is a negative feeling consumers experienced during the process of paying for a good or service, which can reduce access to the veterinary services market. We examine the potential of payment plans to reduce the pain of payment among pet owners from a theoretical and empirical purview. We find that payment plans do reduce the pain of payment by decreasing the price and income effects of purchasing veterinary services. An important, additional finding is that some consumers discount the payment plan option. We suggest payment plan option should be carefully considered for different groups of consumers.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine resulted in dramatic disruptions with the grain flows from that region as well as throughout the world. These changes are particularly important due to the warÕs influence on logistical costs, routes and capacities. As a result of the invasion, Ukraine has evolved from a country with some of the lowest logistical costs in the world to having the highest logistical cost. Logistics is critical for international competitiveness in commodities, and as a result of the invasion, these functions have been severely affected. Important features for logistical competition include internal logistical functions and costs, quality, port capacity and ocean shipping costs, each of which are compounded by seasonal demands. This paperÕs purpose is to analyze the effects of the Russian invasion on the logistical functions and the costs for corn exports from the Ukraine and its competitors using an optimized Monte Carlo simulation model. The findings indicate that, pre-invasion, Ukraine had logistical advantages for shipments to the European Union (EU) and was highly competitive in Indonesia and China; the United States had a logistical cost advantage over Ukraine to serve China, South Korea (from the U.S. Gulf) and Japan (from the Pacific Northwest (PNW)). The changes due to the invasion are substantial. Most important is the radical increase in shipping costs from the Ukraine, reduced port capacity and export supplies. However, concurrent with the invasion were changes in some critical trade and marketing policies, thus influencing the international competition for corn.

We study the adoption of a new pesticide-free wheat production system in Switzerland. Large-scale transitions into such production systems have implications for the entire agricultural and food sector. Using survey data from 1,073 Swiss wheat producers, we empirically test whether risk preferences and risks perceptions in four domains relate to farmersÕ decisions to adopt -and when to adopt pesticide-free production. We observe heterogeneity in farmersÕ risk perceptions (e.g., early vs. late adopter) and find that farmersÕ risk preferences, as well as their perceptions of production and institutional risk are related to adoption behaviour, in contrast to perceived market and investment risks.

The complexity of the trade policy environment in the European fruit and vegetables (F&Vs) market is mostly due to the Entry Price System (EPS), a non-tariff measure that regulates imports. We investigate the trade effects of the EPS by estimating a structural gravity model of trade flows from major European suppliers of apples, lemons, oranges, peaches, pears, table grapes and tomatoes. We assess how imports react to EPS overshoots, difference between import price and entry price threshold, and to level and volatility in Standard Import Values (SIVs). The EPS limits imports of F&Vs, but differences exist across products. While the efficacy of the EPS is valid for all products, its effectiveness is greater for less perishable F&Vs.

The stocker industry plays numerous critical roles in the cattle industry and is the most flexible, yet complicated segment of the beef supply chain. Stocker producersÕ calf purchasing decisions have historically been diverse and difficult to characterize. This study uses data from a unique survey to analyze factors affecting stocker producersÕ calf purchasing decisions. Latent class analysis is used to classify stocker producers into subgroups based on cattle purchasing preferences. Results indicate that stocker producers can be divided into four distinct latent classes according to calf purchasing preferences.