Expanded processing of agricultural products in rural areas has been widely pursued as a strategy for rural economic development. By adding value to farm products before they leave the area, new processing plants can create new employment opportunities and generate economic spinoffs in rural...

The rural retail sector has been particularly hard hit during the last decade of economic turmoil. Small town businesses typically have been garnering a declining share of a shrinking market. Several factors have contributed to the declining market share of the smaller rural trade centers. A...

This paper describes the use of input-output modeling in estimating the economic impacts of the conservation reserve program (CRP) in North Dakota, discusses challenges faced in conducting the analysis, and examines lessons learned from the study. The study had two major phases: (1) a statewide...

Information from the groups of development communities and control communities is compared and contrasted to discern similarities and differences in the effects of the different types of development initiatives and to develop a set of general principles and recommended actions for community...

Many North Dakota communities find it financially difficult to provide or maintain such necessary services as public safety, water and sewer services, garbage disposal, grocery and retail stores, local credit, medical care and similar other services due to gradual decline in both population and...

This article assesses factors influencing the location of agribusiness firms and evaluates their economic contribution to the local economy vis-a-vis other types of firms. Data are from a survey of 297 basic-sector firms (70 of which were agribusiness) in the Upper Midwest region. Factors...

For rural areas in which large scale industrial and resource development projects are located, the need for timely projections of the magnitude and location of economic, demographic, fiscal and other likely impacts is clearly apparent. The purpose of this paper is to describe a computerized...

Impacts of energy development on the secondary business sector of development-impacted counties are examined in a survey of seven western counties. Problems experienced by businesses in attracting and retaining qualified employees and in expanding to take advantage of growing markets are...