Food Aid, Food Prices, and Producer Disincentives in Ethiopia

Although the short-term aims of food aid are well conceived, strong concerns have been voiced regarding the long-term impacts of such aid on incentives for agricultural producers in recipient countries. This article examines the statistical link between food aid shipments and food prices in Ethiopia over the period 1996–2006. Monthly data from three markets and three commodities are used to estimate a system of seemingly unrelated regression models for food prices. Results indicate that previous year food aid shipments reduce prices in all producer and consumer markets. These effects, however, appear to be limited to the set of internationally traded commodities that are domestically marketed. A recursive regression procedure is used to identify the food aid threshold at which a negative aid effect emerges. Food aid shipments that constitute less than 10% of domestic production appear to be benign, but shipments above this level show signs of being disruptive to local markets. We use a simple policy simulation to argue that production-sensitive targeting, e.g., conditioning food aid on local food production, would help to circumvent disincentive effects.     

On Crop Biodiversity, Risk Exposure, and Food Security in the Highlands of Ethiopia

This paper investigates the effects of crop genetic diversity on farm productivity and production risk in the highlands of Ethiopia. Using a moment-based approach, the analysis uses a stochastic production function capturing mean, variance, and skewness effects. Welfare implications of diversity are evaluated using a certainty equivalent, measured as expected income minus a risk premium (reflecting the cost of risk). We find that the effect of diversity on skewness dominates its effect on variance, meaning that diversity reduces the cost of risk. The analysis also shows that the beneficial effects of diversity become of greater value in degraded land.     

The private provision of public environment: Consumer preferences for organic production systems

This paper analyses individual preferences regarding environmental and health improvement technologies in organic food production systems. The impure public model is applied to explore the implications of organic food preferences for environmental market provision. Empirical results from a survey reveal that consumers are willing to pay for both health gains and environmental friendly technologies in organic milk production, although the valuation of the health aspects is higher. Prior information about organic production systems and shopping convenience are key variables in interpersonal comparisons of willingness to pay. The perceived overall value of organic production systems was higher among individuals with stronger environmental preferences than among those who prioritise health concerns. The conclusions of this study may have implications for the analysis of efficiency in the organic produce market.     

务实、责任、合作——浅析全球性粮食危机的中国应对

中国解决好自身13亿人口的粮食安全问题就已是对世界的一种贡献,而致力于解决全球粮食危机更是使得通过自己的实际行动使大部分国家和全球民众消除误解,更加了解开放的中国,树立良好的正面形象和国际影响。在科学发展观的指导下,从经济到外交,更好地融入到全球化的大潮中,维护国家利益,少树敌人、广交朋友。维护世界和平与安全,特别是通过解决粮食危机的合作,积极推动地区的和平进程。     

Market Incentives for Safe Foods: An Examination of Shareholder Losses from Meat and Poultry Recalls

Meat and poultry recalls, while voluntary, are carried out under governmental oversight. If firms have financial incentives to avoid being implicated in a recall situation, governmental involvement in recalls may cause firms to internalize social costs when making investment decisions concerning food safety controls. To examine these incentives, we analyze federally supervised meat and poultry recalls from 1982 to 1998 within an event study. Results show significant shareholder losses when publicly traded food companies are implicated in a recall involving serious food safety hazards. We find no evidence that the stock market reacts negatively when recalls involve less severe hazards.     

Gender,entrepreneurship and food security in Niger

In many African countries, the income generated from the informal sector and the entrepreneurship is particularly important for reducing poverty. Previous studies have not found clear evidence on the relationship between self‐employment by gender and food security. We argue that this may be a result of the gender inequality in resource accessibility. In this paper, we analyze the implication of household entrepreneurship on food security in Niger, where gender disparities in resource accessibility are reduced. We find that owning female‐managed non‐agricultural enterprises is positively related to food accessibility and food availability within female‐headed households. The results draw the attention on reducing gender differences in resource accessibility in entrepreneurship for improving food security.     

中国食品行业应诉国外反倾销的特点

近年来,中国食品行业在国际市场上屡遭反倾销投诉,企业损失惨重。因此,深刻了解国外对中国食品行业反倾销调查的特点,并采取相应措施,已成为中国企业进一步开拓国际市场的当务之急。针对上述现状,并结合国外对中国食品行业实施反倾销的四个特点,对其遭遇反倾销的原因及损害进行了深层次的分析。中国食品行业应该培养并形成自己的核心竞争力,并强化反倾销意识,这样可以从根本上改变食品行业出口频频遭遇反倾销的状况。     

河南省绿色食品产业发展现状及发展策略研究

随着我国绿色食品产业的快速发展,河南省作为农业大省,绿色食品产业也呈现了良好的发展趋势,但也存在绿色食品品种数量少、经济效益不高、品牌竞争力不强等问题。应该从确定绿色食品发展品种及区域合理布局、构建科学的生产经营模式、做好绿色食品品牌管理与营销三个方面制定绿色食品产业发展策略。     

A Conjoint/Logit Analysis of Consumers’ Responses to Genetically Modified Tofu in Taiwan

We use data collected from a consumer survey of face‐to‐face interviews to determine consumer demand for genetically modified (GM) tofu attributes in Taiwan. Conjoint analysis using logit models reveals that, on average, brand is the most important attribute in terms of influence on consumers’ preferences, followed by price, with GM content having the least influence. However, the analysis also reveals three distinct market segments for tofu. Apart from the largest segment (which reflects the average lack of concern about GM food), the remaining two segments are split according to their preference or antipathy towards GM tofu. This result suggests that GM labelling is helpful to Taiwanese tofu consumers.     

再论耕地总量动态平衡

研究目的:分析中国耕地保护政策和未来发展的极限状态,提出中国耕地保护新的思维框架,为国家制定相关政策提供参考.研究方法:反演思维法.研究结果:当中国人口达到16亿时,全国用于建设占用耕地的极限值大约在3.39×106ha～3.73×106ha左右.耕地总量到2020年将达到极限水平.到2030年人口高峰来临,尚有一定的耕地缺口.研究结论:变"耕地总量动态平衡"为"农用地总量动态平衡",变"粮食安全"为"食物安全",建立农用地总量动态平衡与食物安全监测与预警制度,从提高复种指数、增加草食养殖等途经保证食物安全.做到:总体控制,动态监测,提前预警,分区管理,统筹兼顾,逐步实施,整体发展.