A discrete stochastic, programming model is formulated to study the gains from diversification when farming operations are augmented with off-farm financial assets that are not highly correlated with returns from farming. We extend past research by considering the dynamics of accumulating these...

Government support uncertainty, scarce yiel d information, and the inherent risk in bio- economic phenomena are some of the deterrents faced by investors in the nascent cellulosic biofuel industry. A financial probabilistic model was developed to contrast the economic feasibility of producing...

This paper employed a variety of sources of data and a number of methods to describe rural lending markets. Over the sample period, 1992 through 1998, there was a pronounced trend towards affiliation of banks, both urban and rural, with holding companies, although over this period there was...

A sample of 226 cash grain farms in the Lake States-Corn Belt region are analyzed to estimate the impact of restricting pesticide use on profits. These 226 farms are classified into small medium, and large farms according to their sale revenues. The results suggest the existence of pest...

This research uses data from the 2004 Agricultural Resource Management Survey and probit regression to examine the determinants of poverty among U.S. farm households. The findings reveal, among others, the importance of a livelihood strategy that combines participation in government programs and...