Input‐Specific Dynamic Productivity Change: Measurement and Application to European Dairy Manufacturing Firms

We propose a new method for measuring and decomposing input‐specific productivity change in a dynamic context. The resulting input‐specific dynamic Luenberger productivity change indicator is decomposed to identify the contributions of input‐specific dynamic technical, technical inefficiency and scale inefficiency changes. The empirical application of the paper focuses on panel data of large firms in the European dairy processing industry over the period 2005–2012. The results show similar patterns for dynamic input‐specific productivity change and its components for labour across European regions (Eastern, Western and Southern), while differences between regions are found regarding materials and investments.     

Economic Liberalization and Productivity Growth: Further Evidence From Bangladesh

The impact of economic liberalization reforms on the productive performances of manufacturing firms remains a contentious issue in the literature. This paper attempts to contribute to the debate by empirically estimating productivity growth of Bangladesh food manufacturing using firm level data before and after reform. Empirical results show that the share of output growth was accounted for by input growth in most sectors of this industry. In some sectors, the estimated rate of total factor productivity (TFP) growth is negligible or even negative. Decomposition of the TFP growth shows that technological progress plays a significant role in TFP growth across firms within the sub-sectors of this industry. Empirical results also show that the relative contribution of capacity realization to TFP growth is not substantial in inhibiting the industry's high and sustained growth. These dismal performances indicate that the industries responded a little to the implementation of economic reforms.     

Dynamic Cost Inefficiency of the European Union Meat Processing Firms

We apply dynamic data envelopment analysis (DEA) to estimate dynamic cost inefficiency for a sample of European Union (EU) large meat processing firms over the period 2005–2012 and decompose this into the contributions of technical and allocative inefficiency. The estimation of dynamic inefficiencies controls for adjustment costs associated with firms’ investments. We further contribute by measuring dynamic cost inefficiencies and their components with regard to own region group (managerial inefficiencies) and the gap between the pooled frontier and the region-specific frontier (programme inefficiencies). Results show that technical inefficiency tends to be the largest component of cost inefficiency when both conducting the analysis for the EU as a whole and estimating a region-specific frontier. Results suggest significant differences in cost, technical, and allocative inefficiencies between meat processing firms in eastern, western and southern EU countries. We also find that the gaps between the pooled and region-specific frontiers tend to be small to negligible, which suggests that the main source of pooled inefficiencies are shortcomings in managerial practices rather than differences in region-specific conditions.     

金融危机后造纸产业技术创新效率变动实证研究——基于DEA-Malmquist指数法

运用基于DEA的Malmquist指数法对经济危机后的造纸产业技术创新活动的全要素生产率、技术效率、技术进步的变动情况进行测算,并与木材加工业、通信设备制造业、有色金属冶炼业等行业进行横向比较,发现:2008年金融危机后,造纸产业技术创新活动的全要素生产率逐步恢复,但由于技术效率大幅下降,即使技术进步指数提高,后期的全要素生产率的恢复速度仍然趋缓。最后,对造纸产业技术创新效率变动的可能原因进行探讨。     

Persistence of firm‐level profitability in the European dairy processing industry

Based on autoregressive (AR) models and Arellano‐Bond dynamic panel estimation, this article analyses profit persistence in the European dairy processing industry. The sample comprises 590 dairy processors from the following five countries: Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The AR models indicate that cooperatives which account for around 20% of all firms in the dairy processing sector are not primarily profit oriented. In addition, the results point toward a high level of competition as profit persistence is rather low even if cooperatives are excluded. The panel model reveals that short‐ as well as long‐run profit persistence is influenced by firm and industry characteristics.     

Mergers and Acquisitions and Productivity in the U.S. Meat Products Industries: Evidence from the Micro Data

This article investigates the motives for mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the U.S. meat products industry from 1977 to 1992. Results show that acquired meat and poultry plants were very productive before mergers, and that all but the very largest meat slaughter and processing plants and all but the bottom 20% of the poultry slaughter and processing plants significantly improved their productivity growth in their postmerger periods. These results lead to the conclusion that synergies and related efficiencies are important motives for M&As.     

Size and industry effects in the performance of agricultural cooperatives

The objective of this study is to determine if there are important size and industry effects on financial performance of agricultural cooperatives. The performance of 43 dairy, food, grain, and farm supply cooperatives in the U.S. was analyzed over the period 1970-1987 using financial ratios derived from accounting data. The analysis revealed significant size and industry effects. Large regional cooperatives are more efficient in utilizing their assets to generate sales, while small regional cooperatives have higher profitability. The findings suggest that the emphasis on growth may not always produce beneficial results among agricultural cooperatives. Among the four industries studied, the dairy regional cooperatives appear to be the strongest performers, while the food marketing cooperatives are characterized by the lowest performance measures. Since both dairy and food cooperatives engage in value-added processing, this difference in performance makes it difficult to reach clear conclusions about possible advantages of disadvantages or vertical integration relative to traditional cooperative activities. Trend analysis indicates that the profitability of the agricultural cooperatives in all industry and size categories declined in response to the downturn in U.S. agriculture after 1980. While the decline in profitability was at similar rates for both large and small cooperatives, the variation of efficiency and leverage was in opposite directions. Large cooperatives may be expected to continue improving their asset utilization without relative improvement in profitability, and increasing the level of their debt in relation to equity.     

Do subsidies cause a less competitive milk market in China?

After 2008, China dairy industry has experienced a consolidation supported by the government mainly for the reason of food safety. Subsidies are one of the tools to shape a concentrated market with goals of reducing regulation cost and accomplishing quality control. This gives a serious concern that subsidies would generate a less competitive dairy industry. We construct a parametric model and use the firm‐level panel data, specifically the top eight dairy firms, to test if government subsidies strengthen the market power in the dairy industry. Our empirical results indicate government subsidies have a negative impact on the Lerner index for the top privately owned firms, but no significant effect on state‐controlled ones after controlling for advertising, time trend, and proprietorship. It is possible that the subsidies give more room for private firms to increase the scale or suppress the price, which eventually reduces the market power and benefits dairy customers in the downstream.     

The efficiency of the Australian dairy processing industry

In this article we analyse trends in the economic performance of the dairy processing industry and evaluate the link between these trends and the deregulation of the industry. Using Stochastic Frontier Analysis to derive Malmquist total factor productivity estimates, we show that the industry exhibits a relatively high level of technical efficiency. Victoria, the major producing state, has been effectively on the frontier over the period studied. In recent years, the rapid expansion in capital investment that has attended the shift towards deregulation, has been accompanied by an apparent slowdown in both productivity growth and technical progress. There is also evidence of a convergence in productivity levels across states.     

我国海洋渔业第一产业劳动生产率的增长动力——基于转换份额分析法的实证分析

为研究我国海洋渔业第一产业劳动生产率增长的动力结构,运用转换份额分析法将1989-2014年我国海洋渔业第一产业劳动生产率增长率分解为由产业结构变迁引致的静态与动态结构变迁效应、由技术进步引致的生产率增长效应,结果显示生产率增长效应对海洋渔业第一产业劳动生产率的增长贡献远高于静态与动态结构变迁效应之和的贡献,静态与动态结构变迁效应之和的贡献表现为"先增大、后减少"态势,生产率增长效应的贡献表现为"先逐渐减少、后增大"态势。技术进步是海洋渔业第一产业劳动生产率增长的主要动力;海水养殖业对海洋渔业第一产业劳动生产率增长的贡献大于海洋捕捞业。     

黑龙江省木材产业发展影响因素的灰色关联分析

根据11年的《中国林业统计年鉴》和《黑龙江省统计年鉴》数据,对黑龙江省木材产业产品的发展变化趋势进行描述;选择影响发展的主要指标对黑龙江省三类木材加工产业进行灰色关联分析,以产值作为参考数列。结果表明,各指标与不同加工产业的产值的关联度各不相同,企业数量对木材加工及木制品业的产值影响最大,年人均劳动生产率对家具制造业的产值的影响最大,造纸及纸制品业的产品销售率对总产值的影响最大。依据研究结果提出提高木材产业技术含量、推进木材产业集聚发展、保障产业可持续发展等提高产业竞争力的对策。     

Measuring the Impact of Meat Packing and Processing Facilities in Nonmetropolitan Counties: A Difference-in-Differences Approach

Considerable controversy exists regarding the costs and benefits of growth in the meat packing and processing industry for rural counties. This study investigates the effects of this industry on social and economic outcomes in nonmetropolitan counties of 23 Midwestern and Southern states from 1990 to 2000. Results suggest that as the meat packing industry's share of a county's total employment and wage bill rises, total employment growth increases. However, employment growth in other sectors slows, as does local wage growth. Industry growth has little impact on local crime rates or on growth of government spending on education, health, or police protection.     

Measuring Market Power for Food Retail Activities: French Evidence

In this paper we develop and estimate an empirical model of pricing behaviour for food retail firms in both a quantity‐setting oligopoly engaged in the joint production of demand‐related final goods and a quantity‐setting oligopsony for supply‐unrelated wholesale goods. The procedure consists of estimating an inverse demand system for the final goods, single supply functions for the wholesale goods and the retail industry first‐order profit‐maximisation conditions, from which an estimate of the degree of imperfect competition and of oligopoly‐oligopsony power for the different commodities can be retrieved. The model is applied to the French food retail industry and three commodities are distinguished: dairy products, meat products and other food products. We strongly reject the hypothesis that French food retail firms behave competitively, and more than 20 and 17 per cent of the wholesale‐to‐retail price margins for dairy products and meat products, respectively, can be attributed to oligopoly‐oligopsony distortions.     

林业企业应对金融危机的成长策略分析——以安吉县竹材加工业为例

本研究以浙江省安吉县竹加工业为例,通过对30家竹材加工企业调查,针对有形资源、无形资源和人力资源3个方面分析安吉竹材加工企业成长的影响因素,并提出了安吉竹产业的成长策略:包括与当地合作建设长期竹材原料利用基地,提高原材料利用率;健全林业企业融资服务体系;根据市场导向,调整企业销售模式和渠道,建立林业企业自主品牌;继续加大政府农林产业扶持政策;产学研结合,强调产品技术创新和人力资源管理,从而为其他地区林业企业特别是木竹加工企业更好的应对全球金融危机提供政策依据。     

Internal and contextual drivers of dairy restructuring: evidence from French mountainous areas and post‐quota prospects

The end of the milk quota system in Europe has resulted in substantial structural changes to the dairy industry, calling its future into question, especially in mountainous areas. This study analyzes the internal and contextual factors that influence dairy restructuring in French mountainous areas. Three complementary logit models are used to specify farmer decisions (e.g., dairy production exit, stability, and growth). Original and exhaustive geo‐located administrative datasets are combined to create a farm longitudinal dataset and characterize farm‐restructuring patterns on a fine geographical scale. Farm size, corporate legal status, and specialization are positively associated with farm growth. Viable diversification strategies through either farm processing or agro‐environmental scheme contracting are also highlighted. Farm sustainability is supported by the economic success of the local industry and the propensity to adopt extensive practices. With respect to public policy, dairy policy appears to have the strongest impact. Thus, the liberalization of dairy policy threatens the future of dairy farming, particularly in areas with low milk density and no production under labels. This work calls for a policy that promotes the collective dimension of dairy farm performance. The current rural development policy alone may be insufficient to support farms’ long‐term sustainability.     

中国木质林产品的出口二元边际及影响因素分析

利用联合国商品贸易数据库HS六分位编码,对1996~2014年间中国木质林产品出口的二元边际情况进行分析的结果表明:中国对美国、日本、中国香港、英国等主要贸易伙伴的出口增长来自于集约边际和扩展边际的共同作用。对二元边际的相关影响因素进行实证分析的结果表明:目的地市场规模对集约边际呈正相关关系,但对扩展边际呈现负相关关系;可变贸易成本对二元边际呈现负相关关系;多边阻力对二元边际呈现正相关关系;劳动生产率对二元边际呈现正相关关系;经济危机对集约边际几乎不构成影响,但对扩展边际有明显冲击。基于此,提出调整出口市场结构,发挥扩展边际作用;加快自由贸易进程,逐步减少贸易阻力;加大科研资本投入,提升劳动生产效率等建议。     

Melitz Meets Milk: The Impact of Quota Abolition on EU Dairy Export Competitiveness

Previous studies of EU milk quota abolition usually assume perfect competition (PC) in the dairy industry, despite evidence to the contrary. We use a global computable general equilibrium framework with an imperfectly competitive (IC) model variant, which offers insights into structural change (i.e. scale of output, firm entry/exit) and varietal diversity in the dairy industry. A heterogeneous‐firm Melitz extension enriches our analysis by endogenising the decision‐making process of domestic firms when exporting (or not) to specific foreign markets. The results from a PC CGE model variant are found to be consistent with respected market outlooks and official data. Furthermore, PC and IC variants generate broadly similar trends – a result corroborated in a previous study of Italian dairy firms. Our IC model prediction of a ‘shakeout’ among EU dairy firms is tentatively supported by actual observations. Finally, as an industry characterised by significant product innovation, increased extra‐EU export orientation by remaining dairy firms increases varietal choice, which further boosts EU dairy exports compared with the PC model variant.     

基于SCP范式的中国乳业市场绩效的实证分析

基于SCP范式的理论对我国乳业市场结构和市场行为的各项指标以及对市场绩效的影响进行实证分析,发现市场结构作用于市场行为并最终影响市场绩效,为企业在调整市场结构以提高市场绩效方面提供可借鉴的理论和政策建议。研究结果表明:①我国乳业行业规模经济效益越来越显著,行业进入壁垒提高,市场结构逐渐向中高度寡占型转变;②我国乳业的市场绩效与市场集中度、行业规模之间的相关关系通过显著性检验;③乳制品行业内各乳企之间的产品差异化不明显,技术程度有待加强。     

Financing Constraints and Agricultural Investment: Effects of the Irish Financial Crisis

This paper considers the role of financing constraints in agricultural investment since the recent financial crisis. Using Irish micro data over the period 1997–2010, we estimate the Q model of investment and test for financing constraints using a measure of internal finance dependence. Our econometric method controls for censoring, heterogeneity and endogeneity. We find that financing constraints are binding and the impact of constraints becomes much more acute following the financial crisis. Constraints are found to be well above pre‐crisis levels and especially elevated in 2007, 2008 and 2009. The effects are greatest for medium‐sized farms and farms in the dairy sector.     

Sources of productivity growth on Finnish dairy farms—application of an input distance function

The objective is to examine sources of productivity change on Finnish dairy farms in the 1990s. The decomposition of productivity change into technical and technical efficiency change is widely recognized but it neglects the scale effect. Generalized decompositions incorporating all three components are calculated for a sample of Finnish dairy farms from 1989-2000. This period is of interest because of the drastic change in agricultural policy when Finland joined the European Union (EU) in 1995. The results indicate that productivity growth was on average low, approximately 0.15% per year. Neutral technical change was identified as the most important source of productivity growth (1.1%). Technical efficiency decreased by almost 0.5% annually. The contribution of the scale effect in productivity change increased towards the end of study period.