Darwin C. Hall and L.Joe Moffitt
This paper revisits claims about implications of production function specification for pesticide productivity measurement and presents two extensions of the popular damage control…
Abstract
This paper revisits claims about implications of production function specification for pesticide productivity measurement and presents two extensions of the popular damage control specification, along with an empirical application. One extension eliminates bias caused by relying solely on economic data and shows how to include variables that represent the pest population when they are necessary to avoid bias. The second extension allows for the possibility of phytotoxicity. These extensions generalize the damage control specification by eliminating bias and allowing for a range over which the first and third stages of production may occur. The main contributions of the analysis are to clarify existing misconceptions about pesticide productivity modeling and to provide extensions to the damage control specification that permit greater realism for empirical analysis.
Karen Klonsky and Martin D. Smith
In California, organic acreage increased by 60% and sales of organic commodities increased by 110% between 1992 and 1997. The rate of growth in the organic industry does not…
Abstract
In California, organic acreage increased by 60% and sales of organic commodities increased by 110% between 1992 and 1997. The rate of growth in the organic industry does not reveal the dynamic nature of California's organic agriculture. In this chapter, we explore the characteristics of farmers entering and exiting the organic market in California. In so doing, our analysis provides insight into the impact of policy and growth on the future composition of the organic industry.
Jorge Fernandez-Cornejo and Yvan Pho
We present direct econometric tests of the induced innovation hypothesis. We test whether the price of herbicides relative to labor, machinery, and land, as well as research…
Abstract
We present direct econometric tests of the induced innovation hypothesis. We test whether the price of herbicides relative to labor, machinery, and land, as well as research stocks, affects the direction of technological change and long-run substitution of herbicides for labor, machinery, and land, in U.S. agriculture. In the long run, a decrease in the price of herbicides relative to labor induces a strong labor-saving and herbicide-using bias in technological change. Public research induces labor-saving, machinery-saving, land-saving, and herbicide-using biases. Exogenous changes in scientific knowledge and/or spillovers from other sectors are labor and machinery saving and herbicide using.
Lori Lynch and Janet Carpenter
Spatial regulations can restrict chemical use more efficiently by linking local benefits to local costs. California has instituted such a spatially based regulation of an…
Abstract
Spatial regulations can restrict chemical use more efficiently by linking local benefits to local costs. California has instituted such a spatially based regulation of an agricultural fumigant to meet air quality standards. We examine the implications of alternative allocation mechanisms: allocation of use based on a first come, first served basis; on quotas linked to historical use; and on the highest-value use. Although there are distributional impacts by crop, the overall change in aggregate value from using a highest-value use mechanism rather than a first come, first served approach is estimated to be less than $9 million of a total potential regulatory cost of $65 million.
Enthusiasts of the organically grown food industry often espouse a preference for produce grown in the local region, and suggest that consumers should buy locally produced organic…
Abstract
Enthusiasts of the organically grown food industry often espouse a preference for produce grown in the local region, and suggest that consumers should buy locally produced organic products. One reason consumers buy organic products is to improve the environment. There is a perception that transporting foods long distances is wasteful, in part because transport costs are not appropriately priced to include all externalities. Does this make sense?The focus of this paper is to examine conceptually how trade can contribute to a more environmentally-sound way of supplying agricultural products to consumers, even when transport costs are adequately taken into account. An example from the international wheat trade illustrates this point.
Uwe-Carsten Wiebers, Mark Metcalfe and David Zilberman
This paper uses survey data collected from tomato growers in California to determine the factors that influence pest control advisor participation and pesticide use…
Abstract
This paper uses survey data collected from tomato growers in California to determine the factors that influence pest control advisor participation and pesticide use recommendations. We find that advisor recommendations are dependent on the probability of infestation conditional on the calendar and on advisors' perceptions of growers' knowledge, while growers depend more on information obtained from observing their crop. We also determine that the pesticide use recommendations of advisors are, on average, higher than those of growers. Results demonstrate the incentives of grower and advisor pesticide use decisions that must be taken into consideration when regulatory policy is designed.
Rex Davis and Clement A. Tisdell
This paper outlines economic threshold models developed by various authors as an aid to decision-making about pest management and their applicability to pests of livestock. The…
Abstract
This paper outlines economic threshold models developed by various authors as an aid to decision-making about pest management and their applicability to pests of livestock. The definitional confusions relating to economic threshold models are raised as are limitations for applying threshold models. Complexities in the nature of yield loss function due to uncertainty in pest densities, the presence of multiple pests, and the occurrence of pesticide resistance are discussed. An extension is provided that incorporates both multiple-pest species and pest resistance to control measures. Complications relating to the cost functions for pest control are considered. The combination of these factors limits the applicability of profit-maximising thresholds for livestock management, especially compared to other strategies such as prophylaxis.