The U.S. Federal Crop Insurance Program

The US. Federal Crop Insurance Program has evolved from a government-run yield insurance program for wheat farmers to a public-private partnership that provides a variety of yield and revenue insurance products to producers of over 100 different crops. US. policy-makers continue to struggle with defining an appropriate role for the federal government in helping crop farmers manage revenue risk. New approaches using area-yield or weather-based options may hold promise for the future     

Private Insurance Company Involvement in the U.S. Crop Insurance Program

The participation of intermediaries in either public policy or private markets can be justified on the basis of efficiency gains. With respect to private insurance companies and the crop insurance program, efficiency gains may arise from either decreased transaction costs through better established delivery channels and/or the revelation of asymmetric information. However, anecdotal evidence indicates that delivery costs are excessive and it appears that for political economy reasons, rates have and will not be adjusted in response to new information. In conclusion, the value-added of private insurance companies is questioned in light of the current political economy and thus should serve as a caution to other countries wishing to emulate the U.S. system.     

The Varying Impacts of Agricultural Support Programs on U.S. Farm Household Consumption

Farm households are economic agents whose income is derived from farm, off-farm, and government sources. This article uses farm-level data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) and recent advances in the econometric theory of dynamic pseudo-panels to show that farm households consume various sources of income differently at the margin. Particular attention is given to a specific type of lump-sum government transfer payment intended to be decoupled from (independent of) farm production decisions. The results suggest that relatively decoupled government subsidies have a greater marginal effect on farm household consumption than subsidies that are tied to market conditions.     

Production Risk, Acreage Decisions and Implications for Revenue Insurance Programs

Revenue insurance programs are an increasingly popular alternative to direct price supports or federal farm income support programs. Such insurance programs are likely to have effects on cropping patterns, particularly if coverage is not universal. These effects on cropping patterns in turn may have unintended environmental consequences. This paper explores the relationship between production risk, cropping patterns and revenue insurance programs. These relationships are first examined using mathematical and statistical models of acreage response. An empirical analysis of these relationships is then performed using economic and environmental data from 421 counties in the Corn Belt, which in turn is used in a simulation analysis to predict changes in crop acreage under two revenue insurance programs. The results confirm that revenue insurance will alter cropping patterns. The effects of these acreage changes are likely to involve environmental consequences, as the counties most prone to acreage shifts are also those with higher potential for environmental damage. Les programmes d'assurance du revenu gagnent de plus en plus en popularité en tant que solution de rechange aux mesures directes de soutien des prix ou aux programmes fédéraux de soutien du revenu agricole. Les programmes d'assurance de ce genre auront sans doute des répercussions sur les systémes de culture, surtout en l'absence d'une couverture universelle. Ces répercussions pourront avoir des conséquences inattendues sur l'environnement. Les auteurs examinent les liens qui existent entre les risques de production, les systémes de culture et les programmes d'assurance du revenu. Pour cela, ils recourent d'abord à des modéles mathématiques et statistiques afin d'étudier la variation de la superficie des cultures. Ils procèdent ensuite à une analyse empirique des mêmes liens à partir des données économiques et environnementales recueillies dans 421 comtés de la ceinture de culture du maïs, avant de s'en servir dans une simulation qui prévoit la variation de la superficie cultivée consécutivement à l'introduction de deux programmes d'assurance du revenu. Les résultats confirment que les programmes de ce genre modifieront les systémes de culture. La variation de la superficie cultivée devrait avoir des répercussions sur l'environnement, car les comtés où la superficie cultivée changera le plus probablement sont aussi ceux où les risques de pollution sont les plus grands.     

U.S. Farm Policy and the Volatility of Commodity Prices and Farm Revenues

A dynamic three-commodity rational-expectations storage model is used to compare the impact of the Federal Agricultural Improvement and Reform (FAIR) Act of 1996 with a free-market policy, and with pre-FAIR policies. Results suggest that FAIR did not lead to significant increases in long-run price volatility or revenue volatility. The main impact of pre-FAIR, relative to the free-market regime, was to substitute government storage for private storage in a way that did little to support prices or to stabilize farm incomes. Results also indicate that U.S. grain market volatility in 1995–2000 was due to fundamental market forces and not to FAIR.     

粮食价格如何影响土地流转租金及收益分配？ ——基于2013—2019年农户调查面板数据

研究目的：探究粮食价格对农村土地流转租金的影响,明确粮食价格异常波动下,土地租金及流转双方收益分配格局的变化。研究方法：基于2013—2019年河南、山东四轮实地调研获取的1 355例土地流转数据进行面板固定效应回归,并在村庄层面对标准误进行聚类。研究结果：上期粮食价格对土地流转租金有显著正向影响,其与双方是否亲属的交互项系数在转入户样本中为负值,并通过了显著性检验。对流转双方收益进行Shapley分解可知,粮食价格下跌造成的损失70%以上由转入土地种植粮食作物的农户承担。研究结论：粮食价格对土地流转租金的正向影响存在一定滞后性,且流转双方为亲属关系时,粮食价格对土地租金的影响在转入户中被削弱,粮食价格波动使流转双方收益分配朝着不利于转入户的方向发展。建议政府稳定国内粮食价格,引导土地规范化流转,并着力提高规模种粮农户对粮价波动的抵抗能力,确保农民种粮积极性。     

U.S. Crop Farmers' Use of Market Advisory Services

Abstract

This study reports that Market Advisory Services (MAS) are used by about 82% of commercial U.S. crop producers, based on the results of a recent survey. Only 43% of MAS users rely on a single service, while the other 57% subscribe to multiple services. MAS users' profiles in terms of their (1) demographic characteristics, (2) risk attitude, and (3) marketing behavior are presented. The results indicate that MAS users can be differentiated based on their location and use of computers, though not on age and farm size. MAS users are shown to be significantly more risk seeking than non-users. Furthermore, MAS users apply significantly more forward-pricing techniques, but are no different from non-users in terms of marketing frequency.     

Impacts of the U.S.-Canadian Potash Dispute on the Costs of U.S. Crop Production

The 1987 U.S. antidumping case against Canadian potash producers has had a significant impact on the production costs of major potash-using crops in the United States. This paper examines these impacts for selected U. S. crops by way of a counterfactual analysis. A transfer function is used to model retail potash prices and the change in the series resulting from the case. Results indicate that expenditures on potash by U. S. farmers increased by an average US $ 0.08 per acre for wheat to US $ 1.78 for potatoes during 1988–92 (July-June). Overall, total U.S. potash expenditures increased by an estimated US $ 629.1 million over this period as a result of the antidumping case.
Le cas américain « anti-dumping >> 1987 contre les producteurs canadiens depotasse aeuun effet majeur sur le coût de production des produits agricoles utilisant intensivement de la potasse awe États-Unis. Cet article évalue ces effets pour certains cultures américaines avec une analyse contrefactuel. Un fonction à transfert est développé pour analyser les prix de vente au détail de la potasse et le changement des prix résultant. Les résultats indiquent que les frais d'achats depotasse par les producteurs américains augmentaient d'une moyenne de 0,08 $ E-U par acre pour le bléà une moyenne de 1,78 $ E-Upour les pommes de terres pendant 1988–1992 (juillet-juin). En somme, l'augmentation des dépenses américains totales pour la potasse est estiméà 629,1 millions de $ E-U durant cette période en conséquence de l'affaire >> antidumping «.     

U.S. Farm Safety Nets and the 2000 Agricultural Risk Protection Act

Although crop insurance programs have been an important part of U.S. agricultural policy since the 1930s, the safety net matra has taken on new relevance and importance in recent policy deliberations and rhetoric. This paper contains a non technical review of issues underlying the safety net concept in U.S. agricultural policy. We outline recent changes in U.S. crop insurance programs and review provisions of the 2000 Agricultural Risk Protection Act (ARPA), which had a significant impact on U.S. risk management programs by expanding crop and revenue insurance subsidies and stimulating new product development. A simple empirical analysis of how these changes may have affected program participation is considered. We then outline points relevant to 2002 Farm Bill deliberations. As is pointed out, the safety net concept seems pervasive to all policy discussions. Countercylical payments, even when provided on an ad hoc basis, may distort production and trade conditions.     

Area Yield Index Insurance or Farm Yield Crop Insurance? Chinese Perspectives on Farmers' Welfare and Government Subsidy Effectiveness

We evaluate the performance of area yield crop insurance (AYCI) and farm yield crop insurance (FYCI) using farm-level yield data from China, focusing on their effects on farmers' welfare, and their cost-effectiveness in terms of government subsidy. Given a subsidy rate sufficient to generate a politically acceptable participation level, the price advantage of AYCI may no longer offset its higher basis risk, and consequently FYCI may be preferred by farmers. From the government's perspective, AYCI is the cheapest option to maintain reasonable farmer participation in insurance, but is not necessarily the most cost-effective choice. Our findings suggest that, contrary to an assumption that informs many developing country agricultural insurance programmes, AYCI schemes are not necessarily preferred to FYCI. Decisions on the structure of a national agricultural insurance programme should be based on careful consideration of local conditions.     

An Analysis of U.S. Aggregate Output Response by Farm Size

Past empirical evidence on supply response by size of farm in the U.S.A. provides no clear basis to conclude that supply elasticities vary systematically with farm size. In this paper, the central hypothesis that no systematic relationship exists between production response to price and size of farm is rejected. U.S. farms are disaggregated into nine economic size categories and own-price supply elasticities are measured for per farm and total agricultural output. Empirical results from this study suggest that supply response does vary systematically by farm size, with smaller farms exhibiting greater elasticities than midsized farms.     

美国农地保护及其借鉴

经过数十年的探索与积累,美国农地保护取得了一些经验和成果。美国农地保护的方法与措施大体可分成四大类型:法律法规调控型、激励机制型(市场经济手段)、政府参与型及其他配套型。美国农地保护的突出特点:(1)保护的方法多样,体系完善,具有互补性和互换性,在保护的同时注意保护农地所有者的合法利益;(2)特别注重公众的参与性;(3)美国的农地保护成功之处在于使土地所有者和农民都能成为受益人。文章在借鉴美国农地保护相关经验的基础上,提出了中国农地保护的建议。     

A New U.S. Farm Household Typology: Implications for Agricultural Policy

Changes in U.S. agriculture have yielded a diversity of farm types. These changes have extended beyond the farm business and into the farm household. The objective of this research is to motivate, develop, and discuss the policy implications of a new typology of U.S. farm households, which is based on household economic theory. Using the 2003 Agricultural Resource Management Survey and statistical analysis, the U.S. Farm Household Typology identifies six mutually exclusive groups of U.S. farm households. This typology is then compared to the current Economic Research Service Farm Typology and used to investigate the distribution of government payments.     

Stability of Farm Income and the Role of Nonfarm Income in U.S. Agriculture

This study measures the variability in real net farm income in the U.S. agricultural sector and per farm and determines if variability has diminished over 1933 to 1999. Second, the role of nonfarm income in reducing the variability in total farm household income is examined. Results indicate that the variability in real net farm income in the sector and at the farm level has not diminished and that nonfarm income has helped to reduce the variability in total farm household income.     

美国以自然资源保护为宗旨的土地休耕经验

美国土地休耕制度包括一系列水土保持计划和以土壤侵蚀度为主要指标的水土保持评价标准,它通过一系列耕地保护计划来推行。回顾美国农业耕作土地采取休耕政策及其实施情况,讨论了值得我国学习和借鉴的土地休耕计划的政策的成本费用等问题。     

A Political Economic Analysis of U.S. Rice Export Programs to Japan and South Korea: A Game-Theoretic Approach

The Uruguay Round Agreement on agriculture has contributed to the increase in U.S. and world rice trade since 1994. Despite this, the Japanese and Korean rice markets continue to be characterized by high levels of trade intervention. This article attempts to analyze both import markets incorporating econometric estimates and public choice theory in a game-theoretic framework. Various scenarios are analyzed. The results show that the overall Nash equilibrium occurs with a 4% tariff reduction for Japan and Korea under the U.S. Market Development Program, which includes the Market Access Program and Foreign Market Development Program.