Do Voluntary Biotechnology Labels Matter to the Consumer? Evidence from the Fluid Milk Market

This article examines the effects on the demand of voluntary labeling for the use of genetically modified growth hormone for retail fluid milk using supermarket scanner data. Retail fluid milk tracks one of the first biotechnology products approved, is fairly standardized and ubiquitous, and allows for cross-sectional differentiation between labeled and unlabeled products and between conventional and organic brands. The results indicate that voluntary labeling increases the demand for recombinant bovine growth hormone free milk. In addition, the estimated effects of labeling appear to have increased over time.     

(How) Do Prerequisites Matter? Analysis of Intermediate Microeconomics and Agricultural Economics Grades

Success in intermediate economics and agricultural economics classes with respect to course prerequisites was evaluated. Prerequisites were statistically important for both intermediate microeconomics and in two of the three agricultural economics courses evaluated. The primary finding was that—for three of the four courses evaluated—the higher the proportion of students who completed the listed prerequisite, ceteris paribus, the lower the grade for any given student. Results also indicate that students with higher ex ante GPAs and to some extent higher math equivalent SAT scores, received higher grades.     

Subsidized Options in a Thin Market: A Case Study of the Dairy Options Pilot Program Introduction

We explore how a thin market responds to a subsidized put option program. The United States Department of Agriculture initiated the Dairy Options Pilot Program in 1999 in an effort to provide dairy producers with real-world experiences trading options. The volume from this program represented a large share of total trades.
Our empirical analysis shows that Dairy Options Pilot Program trades occurred at statistically significantly high prices, Dairy Options Pilot Program volume had a price-reducing effect on other options trades, and some brokers filled Dairy Options Pilot Program orders at relatively high prices. We also find that these brokers appear to be providing acceptable service to their producer clients.     

Policy reform and farmers' wheat allocation in rural China: a case study*

Market‐oriented policy reforms often have important effects on farm‐level grain production and utilisation decisions in developing countries. China's grain farmers are of particular interest because of China's importance in world grain markets and because of China's recent major agricultural policy advances and retrenchments. An empirical evaluation of market liberalisation among farmers located in two provinces in China on farm‐level wheat consumption, market sales and on‐farm storage during 1994 is presented. The results indicate that policymakers should account for such changes in farm household behaviour in designing and assessing the consequence of market liberalisation programs for agricultural sectors in developing countries.