Native warm-season grasses (NWSGs) have demonstrated potential to reduce summer forage variability in the region, and there has been growing interest in the use of NWSGs as a lignocellulosic biomass crop. The objectives of this research were to determine if there was a difference in beef yield...

Livestock Risk Protection Insurance (LRP) is a risk management tool available to cattle producers protecting against price declines. It can be used to establish a price floor much like a put option. The primary difference between put options and LRP is LRP can be purchased for as few as one...

Profit-maximizing nitrogen rates were determined for two bermudagrass hay producers, one who considers nitrate toxicity to cattle and one who does not consider nitrate toxicity. Producing bermudagrass hay with a reduced probability of nitrate toxicity requires a $6.02/ton premium to breakeven...

Irrigation is expensive in Tennessee because of small, irregular fields. We calculated the breakeven corn prices for irrigated corn in Tennessee. Breakeven prices were $4.02-$7.94/bu depending on field size, energy source, and energy price. At current prices, irrigated corn is profitable, but...

Two primary potable water-treatment technologies used in South Texas include conventional surface-water and reverse-osmosis (RO) desalination of brackish-groundwater. As the region's population continues to grow, municipalities are searching for economical means to expand their water supplies....

Past research about the efficiency of nitrogen application in winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) based on source and timing has produced inconsistent results. The majority of the literature used data from few locations over short time periods. This study used a unique data set of yields and...

Controversy remains about the effectiveness of the 1999 Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting Act (MPRA). We determine the likely changes in beef packers' market power after the MPRA by using an agent-based, first-price common-value auction. Past research has employed Cournot models, but we use an...