In emerging markets for high-value food products in developing countries, processing companies search for efficient ways to source raw material of consistent quality. One widely embraced approach is contract farming. But relatively little is known about the appropriate design of contracts,...

Many developing countries are currently experiencing a rapid expansion of supermarkets. New supermarket procurement systems could have important implications for farming and wider rural development. While previous studies have analyzed farm profit and income effects, possible employment effects...

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...

Economic theory suggests that price incentives can be used to encourage water conservation in residential consumers. Conservation water rates are designed to send price signals that encourage households to reduce discretionary water use in the long term. However, it is not always clear that...

In addition to regional variations, demand for poinsettias was shown to depend on its price. Based on state-level data for 2005,demand in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the U.S. were found to be inelastic. This suggests that the market for poinsettias in both regions could support higher...

The stock management of irrigation and drainage facilities was macro-economically evaluated. The recursive-dynamic CGE model was developed and used for policy simulation. Results demonstrated that effects of activity spread to other industries and total benefit calculated by the consumers’...

The paper examines relationships and linkages between the conventional supply chain actors (wholesalers and retailers) and local food producers based on a study conducted in Southeast Michigan. A case study approach was employed to examine chain actors’ operations and to explore their...