In this paper we model the tradeoff between regional oligopsony power and cost efficiency resulting from consolidation in a food processing industry. The model can be used to calculate the cost reductions necessary to offset the anticompetitive effects of market power and to compare them to...

Iowa State University has a strong economic impact in the state of Iowa. A portion of that impact is attributable to the university's role educating Iowa students and providing community services via its Extension services and through other outreach activities. Another portion of the...

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To help pork processing firms evaluate the costs of pathogen-reducing interventions, Jensen and Unnevehr explore the various trade-offs associated with multiple pathogen reduction targets. They find that the costs of individual pathogen reduction technologies range from $0.03 to $0.20 per...

We analyze the incidence of ad valorem and unit excise taxes in an oligopolistic industry with differentiated products and price-setting (Bertrand) firms. Both taxes may be passed on to consumers by more than 100 percent, and an increase in the tax rate can increase short run firm profits (and...

The English auction is susceptible to tacit collusion when post-auction inter-bidder resale is allowed. We show this by constructing equilibria where, with positive probability, one bidder wins the auction without any competition and divides the spoils by optimally reselling the good to the...

This paper studies fertility choices and fertility policies when children's earning abilities are random and parents are altruistic. We characterize equilibrium allocations arising in endowment economies with either complete or incomplete markets. Both models can replicate a number of empirical...

Many issues and some myths are drivers of change in the emerging transition to a bioeconomy.   This working paper focuses on two of the key drivers in much of the discussion and they are not likely to disappear from the agenda anytime soon. First is the broad based national priority for...

 There are many issues and some myths that are drivers of change in this transition. World hunger, biotechnology, food versus fuel, and indirect land use; organic, natural, local foods, obesity, nutrition, and food safety; housing, healthcare, credit institutions, and economic recovery; and...