Geographical Indications and the Competitive Provision of Quality in Agricultural Markets

The economics of geographical indications (GIs) is assessed within a vertical product differentiation framework that is consistent with the competitive structure of agriculture. It is assumed that certification costs are needed for GIs to serve as (collective) credible quality certification devices, and production of high-quality product is endogenously determined. We find that GIs can support a competitive provision of quality and lead to clear welfare gains, although they fall short of delivering the (constrained) first best. The main beneficiaries are consumers. Producers may also accrue some benefit if production of the high-quality products draws on scarce factors that they own.     

The DPSIR framework in support of green infrastructure planning: A case study in Southern Italy

Human activities such as urban densification, soil sealing and the spread of service infrastructure are altering the quality and quantity of ecosystems. They are depleting natural capital, like water supply and air quality, on which society depends. To preserve natural capital, the European Commission is promoting new land-use policies, one of which is Green Infrastructure (GI). It has been postulated that GI planning can promote sustainable land-use by supporting a wide range of ecosystem services. Research conducted in the GREEN SURGE project (FP7-ENV.2013.6.2-5-603567) has suggested that a number of tangible benefits accrue when GI planning is implemented at different spatial scales. In support of this, GI has been conceptualized in a case study in Southern Italy using the Driving force–Pressure–State–Impact–Response (DPSIR) framework. This framework was employed to promote the GI approach with the aim of ensuring sustainable land development without compromising natural capital. In fact, the DPSIR framework used in the case study shows how GI, through the provision of ecosystem services, is a response to various critical environmental issues. Despite known limitations as reported in the literature, the DPSIR framework was selected for its simplicity in representing and reporting the interactions between the environment and society. Given the complexity of environmental issues and the presence of various stakeholders involved in decision-making processes, DPSIR provides planning professionals with a streamlined tool to develop strategic solutions for sustainable land-use and for promoting societal wellbeing.     

土地流转背景下农户经营规模与土地生产率关系再审视——来自固定粮农和地块的证据

农户经营规模和土地生产率关系是发展经济学领域的经典议题之一。本文在土地流转加速发展的背景下讨论了我国农户经营规模扩大对土地生产率的影响以及测量两者之间关系面临的种种干扰。除了农户规模本身的作用外,理论和实证检验均表明存在土地流转市场时不同规模农户在土地生产率上的差异还可能源于农户和土地的异质性,譬如土地更多流向经营能力强的农户、流转多劣地等等。基于固定农户的固定地块数据可以有效控制异质性的实证策略,本文利用4个省两期跟踪调查数据对两者关系进行了再检验。研究发现,来自固定农户固定地块的证据表明农户土地经营规模扩大并不会影响粮食单产,而不控制固定地块时往往会得到两者负相关的伪结论,并且仅控制固定农户时上述伪结论更为明显。这一结果意味着不必担心规模经营会威胁粮食供给。     

论发展中的土地经济学及其学科建设

研究目的 :旨在综述和探讨土地经济学的学科性质与定义 ,阐明土地经济学的发展历史与进展。研究方法 :文献研究法、系统分析法。研究结果 :从学科的基本任务、研究领域与内容 ,及研究方法等方面构建了现代土地经济学的框架。研究结论 :土地经济学的学科性质是社会科学 ,又与资源科学和土地科学学科体系有着广泛的交叉 ;土地经济学的根本任务主要是研究和阐明人类社会各发展阶段和特定阶段的不同地域空间土地的综合特性功能的经济意义 ,以人地关系为核心的土地经济问题的本质联系及其发展规律 ;在土地经济学学科建设中应注意采用一些科学且行之有效的研究方法。     

Green infrastructure planning: Unveiling meaningful spaces through Foursquare users’ preferences

The design of efficient Green Infrastructure —GI— systems is a key issue to achieve sustainable development city planning goals in the twenty-first century. This study’s main contribution is the identification of potential GI elements to better align the environmental, social and economic perspectives in the GI design by including information about the use, activities, preferences and presence of people. To achieve this, user generated content from Location Based Social Network —LBSN— Foursquare is used as a complementary data source. This involved the construction of an interdisciplinary correlation framework, between the Landscape Ecology principles and the GI elements, that included the classification of Foursquare data into grouping types. The classification considered the potential role of Foursquare venues in the GI network. Valencia City in Spain served as an illustrative case study to test the validity of the proposed method. The results suggest that Foursquare can provide a valuable insight on user perceptions of potential GI elements. Moreover, the findings indicate that user generated content from LBSNs like Foursquare can serve as a complementary tool for analysing the dynamics of urban outdoor spaces to assess GI network, thereby facilitating more effective urban planning and contributing to the social sustainability of the city.     

Gatekeepers' Perceptions of Thai Geographical Indication Products in Europe

This study is aimed at exploring perceptions of European gatekeepers toward renowned Thai fruit and coffee products protected by geographical indication (GI) and factors influencing purchasing decision of gatekeepers toward imported food products. Sixteen qualitative interviews with distribution channel gatekeepers were administered in Austria, Italy, and Switzerland in 2010. Content analysis and concept mapping were used to analyze data. Results show that Thai GI products might be interesting for European gatekeepers, but the GI attribute alone might not be sufficient to ensure that the product is successful. Support of consistent information and promotion campaigns and fulfillment of other gatekeepers' requirements of both products and suppliers are necessary.     

A pluralistic economics methodology for analysing landrace conservation on farms: a case study of Hungarian home gardens

Crop landraces contribute to food security and agricultural research that supports productivity or enhances product quality. The few extant landraces still grown in Hungary are found in home gardens, which are subsistence-oriented, small-scale family farms managed with traditional practices. A pluralistic economics methodology was developed to analyse the prospects of including landraces and home gardens in Hungary's National Rural Development Plan. The methodology draws from three fields of economic inquiry: institutional economics, environmental economics and agricultural economics. Data were collected using qualitative and quantitative approaches from over 300 farmers across 22 communities in three regions. This paper summarizes the methodology and highlights its advantages. A synopsis of findings is also reported.     

Effect of soil heterogeneity on the welfare economics of biofuel policies

Biofuel policies (blend mandate or tax credit) have impacts on food and energy prices, and on land-use. The magnitude of these effects depends on the market response to price, and thus on the agricultural supply curve, which, in turn, depends on the land availability (quantity and agronomic quality) and relative prices. To understand these relationships, we develop a theoretical framework with an explicit representation of land heterogeneity. The elasticity of the supply curve is shown to be non-constant, depending on land heterogeneity and the availability of land for agricultural expansion. This influences the welfare economics of biofuels policies, and the possible carbon leakage in land and fuel markets. We emphasize that the impacts of biofuel policies on welfare and land-use change depend strongly on the potential development of the agricultural sector in terms of expansion and intensification, and not only on its current size.     

The Effects of Transaction Costs,Power and Risk on Contractual Arrangements: A Conceptual Framework for Quantitative Analysis

Increased reliance on commercial traders in liberalised agricultural markets poses questions about the nature of contractual relations between traders and farmers; about welfare, efficiency and equity characteristics of these relations; and about conditions necessary for traders to engage in these markets. A new institutional economics analysis seeks to understand the institutions that affect transaction costs and risks for each party, and power relations between them. Transaction cost analysis has not, however, developed a unifying conceptual or quantitative framework to integrate these issues. This paper develops a methodology for modelling negotiated choice of contractual arrangements in buyer/seller relationships, taking account of the socioeconomic characteristics of each party, economic and technical characteristics of the commodity, and the institutional environment. The model is setup as a non‐linear programming problem. The approach provides a framework for the application of transaction cost economics to quantitative empirical study of markets, to individual firms' supply chain decisions, and to the analysis of policy interventions in markets.     

TAXATION: A NEGLECTED ASPECT OF PRODUCTION ECONOMICS*

The economics of taxation as a major element of agricultural policy is seldom analyzed, although taxation can be and is an important part of the agricultural policies of many nations. This paper describes some of the ways taxation policy can be employed to achieve a variety of public policy objectives. Using a production economics framework, the discussion indicates some of the consequences of viewing policy primarily in a taxation (or factor) dimension as opposed to a product dimension.
LA F1SCALITÉ: UN ASPECT NÉGLIGÉ DE ĽÉCONOMIE DE LA PRODUCTION–Ľeconomie de la fiscalité en tant qu'élément important de la politique agricole est rarement analysée, bien que les impôts puissent être et sont un élément important de la politique agricole de beaucoup de nations. Le présent mémoire décrit certains des moyens par lesquels la politique fiscale peut être employée pour atteindre divers objectifs ďordre public. Utilisant le cadre de ľéconomie de la production, la discussion indique certaines des conséquences de considérer la politique surtout dans une dimension fiscale (ou élémentaire) par opposition à une dimension de produit.     

生物质能源林基地中原料供应模式选择的理论分析

运用契约经济学的观点对原料供应模式问题进行了探讨,建立了"交易成本和管理成本"及"交易特性影响因素"2个理论分析模型。在对影响生物质能源林原料供应模式的有关因素进行详细分析的基础上,提出了原料供应模式的选择建议。     

林产品市场模型文献综述

关于林产品市场的数量研究开始于上个世纪50年代。早期的研究主要以时间序列数据为主。近几十年来,由于经济理论在林产品市场模型中的应用,模型估计方法的改进,以及详细数据的获得,林产品市场模型越来越完善。文章对近几十年来出现的主要建模方法,及其应用作一回顾,并对这些方法的优缺点作简单的比较。     

费改税：实现水资源保护税制对水资源费征收制度的替代

针对我国现行水资源费制度实施中存在的问题,依据经济学的基本原理,以规范分析为主,在必要性与可行性分析的基础上,提出水资源费“费改税”的观点,并构建了水资源费改税的系统框架。     

Blackleg or blackmail? Economics of the Canada–China canola trade dispute

The Chinese government's recent decision to suspend the export licenses of two Canadian grain firms has garnered international attention. The dispute has been portrayed by some as a diplomatic dispute between two countries, and by others as a concern about plant health. We analyze the economics of the dispute, including a simple economic model of international trade in which a large-country importer imposes a targeted import ban on one large-country exporter. The model provides a framework for understanding the economic effects of a trade ban under various market conditions. We also discuss the legal framework and dispute settlement process that would be encountered if the disagreement proceeds to a formal dispute in the World Trade Organization.     

天然橡胶的弹性研究

通过建立天然橡胶需求函数模型,估算了天然橡胶的需求弹性系数和天然橡胶与合成橡胶的替代弹性系数。研究结果表明:天然橡胶属于需求缺乏弹性的商品;从经济学角度证明天然橡胶与合成橡胶在一定程度上可以相互替代。     

河北省水产品供给与需求预测分析

论文在河北省水产品供给与需求分析基础上,选择时间序列数据,运用线性回归模型和灰色预测模型对2010～2014年的水产品市场供给与需求趋势进行了预测。预测结果显示,"十二五"期间河北省水产品市场的供求状况将由供给大于需求向需求大于供给转变。随着城乡居民消费和水产品加工消费的增加,2012年将达到供需均衡,2013年后将出现需求大于供给的形势。根据对未来水产品市场的均衡分析,提出应选择政、产、学、研相结合的开发模式,实现科技兴渔和产业化发展;提高水产品加工效率,提升产业附加值;大力加强渔业流通和服务业等渔业经济发展等建议。     

ECONOMICS OF SIZE IN AUSTRALIAN FARMING

Economics of size is an important but relatively neglected aspect of Australian agriculture. The theory and methodology for analysis of economics of size are summarized and a survey made of evidence for Australian agricultural industries. The conclusion is reached that economies of size exist, particularly for small to medium farms and diseconomies appear to be absent. Further research is needed and some important areas are indicated.     

Presidential Address How Does Economics Fit the Social World?

This paper considers the present state of applied economics and the difficulties of integrating its findings and insights with those of other social sciences. The philosophical basis of social science is re‐considered as a route to resolving these difficulties. Without a more integrated narrative about how our social systems work, applied economics, and all applied social sciences, run the substantial risk of being considered part of the world's problems, rather than offering serious routes to their solution. Some possible strands of a more coherent and integrated framework are outlined, which indicate some potentially fruitful avenues for further development. The paper concludes with illustrations of this outline for the food chain and land use agenda of the Research Councils' Rural Economy and Land Use (RELU) initiative     

AGRICULTURE AND THE MACRO-ECONOMY: PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

Agricultural economics is sometimes criticised for being microcentred. We should not apologise; colleagues who study industrial organisation or many aspects of public sector economics are neither more nor less guilty. The fact remains, however, that agriculture, like all sectors, operates within a macro-economic framework and there is a growing spate of literature focusing on that broader perspective. It runs in two directions: the farming consequences of macro-economic developments where much of the attention focuses on exchange rates and interest rates, and the effects of agricultural policies on the economy at large. The objective here is to review the situation. Topical issues considered range from the value of the dollar and the operation of the European exchange-rate, mechanism, to controversies surrounding the recent GATT negotiations.     

竹藤制品市场研究与对策

本文采用问卷调查的方法 ,在全国范围内对竹藤制品的消费者市场进行了研究 ,并根据消费者的性别、年龄、受教育程度、收入、所处地区经济繁荣程度和是否处于产竹大省等变量对消费者进行了分类 ,通过分析不同的消费者对竹藤制品的态度 ,从而获知竹藤制品在市场竞争中所具有的优势、劣势。结合调查分析结果 ,作者就如何提高竹藤制品市场竞争能力和扩大竹藤制品市场份额提出了积极的建议