Microcredit has expanded rapidly since its beginnings in the last 1970s, but whether and how much it reduces poverty is the subject of intense debate. Generally it depends on how the program is implemented and the set of policies that regulate it. In this spirit, microcredit impacts in the...

In a meta-analysis of trade policy models, Hess and von Cramon-Taubadel (2008) use over 5800 simulated welfare effects from 110 studies of potential Doha Development Agenda outcomes to identify characteristics of models, data and policy experiments that influence simulation results. This...

U.S. dairy companies became more important exporters beginning in the mid-2000s when international and domestic developments changed the economic environment facing the U.S. dairy industry. This paper looks at five U.S. dairy firms and how their domestic and international strategies will...

This Discussion Paper is a case study of Kerry Group/PLC of Ireland. Kerry grew from a small dairy cooperative (annual sales of US $50 million) in the early 1970s into an international food ingredients and consumer food products company with sales of US $2.6 billion in 1998. Kerry Group/PLC...

This Discussion Paper provides an analysis of the structure of Argentine dairy and non-dairy food expenditures using a series of econometric models.

This paper analyzes the capacity of Nicaragua's dairy industry to expand domestic dairy product sales and exports profitably. The paper (a) presents information on traits of Nicaragua's dairy industry that influence domestic and export market expansion capabilities, and (b) benchmarks...

This Discussion Paper describes the challenges associated with marketing livestock, meat, milk, and dairy products in Post-Communist Kazakhstan. A major finding is that Food Master, a joint venture between Developed Technologies, Inc. of the US and Ak-Bulak, Ltd. of Kazakhstan, achieved profits...

The paper uses a stochastic frontier analysis of production functions to estimate the level of technical efficiency in agriculture for a panel of 29 developing countries in Africa and Asia between 1994 and 2000. In addition, the paper examines how different components of an agricultural...

The relationship between trade and productivity has not been established theoretically. Some researchers have indeed found some, if not complete, support for the view that increasing openness has a positive impact on productivity. This study used a Cobb-Douglas production function as in Miller...

This paper’s goal is to assess the extent to which producers in Developing Countries have coped stricter US food safety regulations. We approach the question by calculating refusals/imports ratios and their trends for a sample of Developing Countries. We conclude there is a learning process in...