Cost effective disease control on the dairy farm can enhance productivity and subsequently profitability. Previous economic studies on animal disease have focused on production losses and evaluation of disease eradication programs and provided little guidance as to the optimal prevention action....

The risk balancing literature suggests that business risk management (BRM) programs may, through risk balancing (offsetting adjustments between business risk and financial risk), lead farmers to take on more financial risk than they would take otherwise, which, in turn, increases the risk of...

Previous empirical studies of multiple job holding have tended to focus on the characteristics of those obtaining off-fann employment and the factors affecting the hours supplied to those obtaining off-farm activities. None of these studies have explicitly addressed the reasons behind the...

Best management practices (BMPs) for cropping systems that involve conservation tillage and nutrient management are proposed as potential win-win solutions for both farmers and the environment. While originally targeted as a means for improving soil and water quality, these BMPs may also...

The objective of the 1997 Kyoto agreement was to limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions among signatory countries and thereby slow global warming. Under the agreement, Canada has committed itself to reduce GHGs over the next decade by 6 percent from estimated 1990 levels. Debate has now begun on...

Cost-effectiveness is an important consideration in evaluating choices for meeting environmental quality objectives. Estimated crop yield response functions and the associated groundwater-nitrate pollution production functions were used to evaluate the optimal N fertilization and on-farm...

This article examines farm operating risks and cash-rent determination through the use of the efficient set mathematics. The efficient set mathematics proves to be a pragmatic approach to characterizing operating risks, and the relationships between operating risks and cash-rent determination....

This study examines the extent to which farming practices have adjusted to the presence of urbanization in Canada. In particular, we compare the adoption rates for environmental management systems (EMSs) by farmers close to urbanized areas versus those in more rural, isolated regions. Using...

A stochastic dynamic programming model is developed to determine optimal replacement intervals and depreciation schedules for a combine on a cash grain farm in north central Montana, where the optimal decision is based on the stochastic nature of winter wheat prices. Empirical results indicate...