Bovine trichomoniasis is a venereal disease that causes significant losses in the US beef industry. The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service views bovine trichomoniasis as endemic and delegates control to state agencies and producers. Disease management’s positive externalities are not reflected in a producer’s profit maximization problem, leading to potentially suboptimal levels of control. Our objective was to assess the economic impacts of 50% and 100% reductions of herd-level bovine trichomoniasis prevalence. The cumulative present value of net welfare increased by $388.856 and $193.222 million under the 100% and 50% scenarios, respectively. Feeder cattle producers and retail beef consumers benefit most from enhanced control.

Farmers make pest and disease management decisions without facing the social costs derived from their input choices. But given the sizable externalities involved, there is a rationale for government intervention. We model the profit-maximizing problem of a representative farmer by specifying a functional form for the damage function that incorporates the biological impact of the pathogen-vector system on yield as well as the abating impact of insecticides on the vector population. We use citrus greening disease in Florida as a case study because farmers there adopted an insecticide program that caused toxicity per acre to increase by 472%. Our simulation results show that a tax rate based on toxicity provides farmers with a strong incentive to substitute highly toxic chemicals with less toxic alternatives. Such a tax is also more efficient relative to a quantity-based tax that achieves a similar reduction in toxicity because it results in a significantly lower reduction in farmers’ yield and profit.

Past research shows that farm animal welfare (FAW) policies can reduce consumer and retailer welfare, but producer welfare implications are less certain. This study uses equilibrium displacement modeling of the U.S. wholesale shell egg market to determine how the transition to cage-free egg sales could affect short- and long-run producer welfare. Under varying assumptions and retailer demand shifts, the results consistently demonstrate that producer profits are expected to decline as retailers pivot toward cage-free purchasing, holding all else constant. These findings help explain the tension surrounding FAW policies across the supply chain and can be used to inform industry and policymaker discussions on the topic.

In this paper, we examine the effect of the “Fresh From Florida” marketing program on the preferences of consumers located in geographically distant regions. We administered a choice experiment to consumers from the Northeastern region of the US, the Eastern region of Canada, and from Florida. Our findings show that the logo recall rate is significant for out-of-state consumers. While the WTP for the “Fresh from Florida” attribute is not statistically significant for Northeastern US respondents, logo recall positively influences the WTP. Logo recall positively affects WTP in Canada, but only for respondents with positive or neutral opinions of Florida.

The USDA has implemented policies to address inequities for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. This research examines agricultural risk inequities and the impact of 2018 Farm Bill programs on crop insurance use among minority and veteran farmers. Results indicate that minority and veteran farmers are disproportionately located in regions of the U.S. with higher risks of drought and excess precipitation. Yet, these producer groups had lower use of crop insurance prior to the implementation of the 2018 Farm Bill. However, the incentive programs created under the 2018 Farm Bill have increased use of federal crop insurance among these vulnerable populations.

Almost 40 per cent of Brazil's native vegetation is located on over five million private properties. This study assesses the potential of agricultural land taxes and tradable forest certificates for conserving Brazil's fragmented native vegetation across commercial farms, using micro census data from 2006 and 2017. We explore the variability of optimal tax rates and market prices for forest certificates, revealing a supply-demand imbalance in the Amazon and high sensitivity of conservation outcomes to changes in farmland opportunity costs, especially in productive areas. Despite a more positively skewed distribution of opportunity costs by 2017, market outcomes remained unaffected. Notably, expanding the market to include the Amazon's agricultural frontier microregions could achieve 45 per cent of the conservation target. Our analysis underscores the interplay between market-based conservation mechanisms and regional agricultural economics, highlighting the need for tailored approaches to optimize conservation efforts.

The purpose of this study is to analyze agricultural producers’ willingness to adopt regenerative cover crop practices in their operation and the effects of producer and farm characteristics on willingness to accept (WTA) values. The paper utilizes the double-bounded contingent valuation method to analyze survey responses submitted by producers and non-operating landowners in the Texas and Oklahoma portions of the Southern Great Plains. Results showed an average WTA of $26.38/acre for producers to adopt cover crops and that programs aimed at increasing adoption rates may require more substantial investment compared to those focused on continuity with current adopters.

Competition and power imbalances in the food chain are under increased scrutiny from policy makers. We assess the competitive conditions in the EU food sector, using firm-level accounting data to examine firm size distributions and market concentration (for 10 countries), and production-function-derived markups (for 7 countries) for food manufacturing, retail, and wholesale industries. Key findings include the following: (i) most firms are small, but larger firms generate most turnover; (ii) concentration is notable in certain subsectors (25% of retail/wholesale and 50% manufacturing subsectors); (iii) the correlation between turnover size, markups, and concentration at subsector level is weak. We discuss the implications for the use of turnover-based classification in the EU policy initiative on unfair trading practices.

In 2018 and 2019, China’s outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) and the U.S.–China trade war captured media headlines worldwide. This research uses a unique data set of media headlines and sentiments to estimate the impact of media on U.S. lean hog futures prices for nearby and distant expiration contracts. Findings suggest futures prices are influenced by news media content, with results differing by time to contract expiration and sentiment of the headline. International headlines with positive and negative connotations toward ASF and trade war have more significant effects, indicating sensationalist media creates the greatest price movements compared to neutral headlines.

The beef industry is facing increasing pressure to adopt sustainable practices, driven by environmental, economic, and social concerns. Designing effective policies that satisfy industry demands while aligning with public interests is a complex challenge. Using a nationally representative survey of 3,001 U.S. residents, we employ a best–worst scaling approach to assess preferences for nine beef sustainability policies. Results reveal consumers prioritize affordability of beef products and welfare of cattle as most important sustainability policies. Conversely, policies addressing greenhouse gas emissions from cattle production are least important, with less than 6% of respondents preferring them.

This study investigates whether wording a promotional marketing message as originating from the US government vs. the US president impacts consumers’ responsiveness to the message. Using a discrete choice experiment, it examines consumer responsiveness to President Biden’s order promoting domestic production. Results indicate that consumers are willing to pay a premium for domestically produced tomatoes, with variations based on political affiliations and product attributes like organic labeling and farm employment practices. However, findings on the significance of information treatment effects are mixed, suggesting that consumer responsiveness is unaffected by wording the message as originating from a broad political body vs. a specific politician.

Prevented planting payments reimburse crop producers for losses from not being able to plant. These payments provide critical protection to producers; however, these payments, which are determined using a nationwide, crop-specific coverage factor, have been questioned to induce moral hazard. Depending on the region and crop insurance coverage, payments from this provision exceed producers’ losses. This paper estimates the prevented planting coverage factor by coverage level and region that would equitably reimburse corn and soybean producers for their losses. We find the prevented planting coverage factor has significant variation across coverage levels and location within our study region. The prevented planting coverage factor was found to decline as the policy coverage level increases. The further north in the study region the higher the coverage factor, likely due to increased land rent expenses. The results provide a unique perspective of how these coverage factors would vary to equitably compensate producers for losses, which addresses the moral hazard concerns with prevented planting.

The adoption of fungus-resistant grapevines may be a key strategy for substantially reducing fungicide use in pesticide-intensive viticulture. In a representative survey conducted among 436 grapevine growers in Switzerland, we elicited growers’ expected share of land devoted to fungus-resistant varieties in ten years. More specifically, using regression analyses, we explore the main predictors behind the stated adoption intentions. We find that one-third of new plantings in the next decade will be fungus-resistant varieties. As a result, the expected share of land devoted to fungus-resistant varieties in ten years is 27.4% (compared to 10.2% in 2022), thus increasing by 169%. Farmer- and farm characteristics explain most of the adoption dynamics, especially growers’ beneficial health perceptions about fungus-resistant varieties, which correlate positively with their expected land share devoted to these varieties. Moreover, non-organic grapevine growers are particularly likely to increase their land devoted to these varieties. These findings have important implications for agricultural policy and industry in Europe and elsewhere, facilitating the expected plantation increase using a policy mix tailored to farmer- and farm-level characteristics.

Animal welfare is often ignored in decision-making, despite widespread agreement about its importance. This is partly because of a lack of quantitative methods to assess the impacts of policies on humans and nonhumans alike on a common scale. At the same time, recent work in economics, philosophy, and animal welfare science has made progress on the fundamental theoretical challenge of estimating the well-being potential of different species on a single scale. By combining these estimates of each species’ well-being potential with assessments of how various policies impact the quality of life for these species, along with the number of animals affected, we can arrive at a framework for estimating the impact of policies on animal health and well-being. This framework allows for a quantifiable comparison between policies affecting humans and animals. For instance, it enables us to compare human QALYs to animal QALYs tailored to specific species. Hence, the intrinsic value of animal welfare impacts of policies can be monetized on the same scale as market and non-market impact for humans, facilitating benefit–cost analysis. Many challenges remain though, including issues of population ethics, political feasibility, and new complexities in addressing equity and uncertainty.

In Europe, uptake of multi-peril crop insurance remains limited, leading to discussions on premium subsidies. A study of 228 Saxony farmers investigated their attitudes and willingness to pay for a multi-peril crop insurance in 2022. Using a cluster analysis based on farmers’ satisfaction with current risk management as well as market supply of tools, perceived benefits of the insurance, and views on governmental intervention, four farmer segments were identified. Each showed varied attitudes toward insurance subsidies, willingness to pay, and farm characteristics. As an initial ex-ante study on this topic, the insights are invaluable for insurance providers and policy makers.

Exploiting the fact that hypertension is diagnosed when a person’s blood pressure reading exceeds a medically specified threshold (90 mmHg for diastolic blood pressure or 140 mmHg for systolic blood pressure), this study estimates the effect of a first-ever hypertension diagnosis on Chinese adults’ alcohol consumption using a two-dimensional regression discontinuity design. Analyzing data on 10,787 adults from the China Health and Nutrition Survey, our estimation reveals that hypertension diagnoses based on diastolic blood pressure readings exert a number of desirable effects. Hypertensive adults’ drinking frequency and the incidence of excessive drinking among them were reduced by 1.2 times/week and 17.9 percentage points, respectively, about three years after the diagnosis. Meanwhile, their beer and Chinese spirits (Baijiu) intakes were reduced by 518.6 ml/week and 194.8 ml/week, respectively. Interestingly, we also found modest evidence that hypertension diagnoses based on diastolic blood pressure readings increase Chinese adults’ wine intake, suggesting a substitution pattern upon hypertension diagnoses. In contrast, based on systolic blood pressure readings, no significant effects of hypertension diagnoses on alcohol consumption were found.

New breeding methods have provided scientists with opportunities to improve traits in a wide range of crops, however, there remains resistance to foods that are produced from these crops, and mandates on labels used to describe such processes continue to be a source of policy debate. Here we focus on gene editing and examine (i) whether consumer acceptance varies when the technology is applied to different ingredients (unrefined versus highly refined ingredients) and (ii) the impact of two different claims related to gene editing (health-focused claim versus an environment-focused claim). Our results show that consumers are less likely to purchase a food product that includes gene-edited ingredients, yet the ingredient that is gene-edited is not important. We also find evidence that both of our selected claims about foods produced using gene-edited ingredients would increase consumers’ likelihood to purchase relative to the case with no claims.

This study examines the impact of repealing Sunday blue laws on alcohol sales and retail competition, focusing on Connecticut’s 2012 policy change allowing Sunday beer sales in grocery stores. Using nationwide data from 2004 to 2021, we find a short-term increase in beer sales post-policy change, but no significant long-term economic effects on grocery and liquor stores. Our analysis also shows similar treatment effects for chain and standalone liquor retailers, suggesting limited lasting implications for the liquor retail industry’s performance and conduct after Sunday sale restrictions were lifted.

Dairy farming in Europe faces profound environmental, social, and economic sustainability challenges, which are of significant policy interest. These challenges support the need for a transition toward the uptake of more sustainable dairy farming practices. This paper examines the effects of an advisory instrument “balanced sustainability information” on farmers’ preferences for more grass-based feeding systems using a between-subjects design and a discrete choice experiment among a sample of Swedish dairy farmers. Conceptually, we develop a state-dependent utility framework with Bayesian updating to motivate the impact pathway. Our results demonstrate that on average, balanced sustainability information has negligible effects on farmers’ feed choices, which could be a consequence of opposing responses to the information, among others. Considering farmer heterogeneity based on their identities and prior knowledge, we find support for some evidence of treatment effects. Our findings highlight important and policy-relevant critical reflections about overoptimistic expectations of information provision as an instrument to nudge behavioral change toward more sustainable farming practices.