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The Demand for Butter, Margarine, and Oils: A Nonparametric Test for Evidence of Structural Change

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 September 2016

Kim Jensen
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Scott Bevins
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine whether structural change in the demand for butter, margarine, and salad and cooking oils occurred between 1967 and 1986. A nonparametric method, which does not require that a functional form be imposed on the data, was used to test for violations from stable, well-behaved preferences. Violations were found, but they were small in magnitude. Therefore, the results failed to show strong evidence that consumption patterns for butter, margarine, and oils were inconsistent with stable preferences.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 1991

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