This paper focuses on the ability of microfinance rating agencies to impose market discipline on microfinance institutions by rating these organizations' performance. Results indicate that not all rating agencies are equal as only one rater was able to impose market discipline by promoting...

Numerous reforms to introduce financial incentives and flexibility into the Clean Water Act have been proposed. Cooperative organizational forms that consolidate multiple regulated entities under a single organizational umbrella are an overlooked, but potentially useful avenue for reform. In...

California has exploited its production advantages and marketing efficiency to increase strawberry production at the expense of traditional production areas like Louisiana. Conjoint analysis is used to examine consumer's preferences for selected product attributes of fresh strawberries in...

This study examined the role of consumers' perceived risks and benefits of agro-biotechnology in shaping the purchase pattern for organic food among US consumers. Consumers' general purchase behavior, knowledge of GM technology, and socio-demographic variables were examined in relation to their...

Nutria harvests vary with price. As pelt prices declined, nutria populations - and wetland degradation have risen. This paper develops a nutria supply model to predict harvests at various prices which are incorporated into a wetland loss model to determine how alternative incentive programs...

We analyze two types of crop marketing contracts between agricultural producers and processors, delivery-at-harvest and an "option-to-purchase" that emerged in US peanut market after the 2002 Farm Act. This contract structure is interpreted as a marketing strategy trying to fill the gap left by...

This paper focuses on determining the core of undergraduate human resource economics and evaluating the coverage of these topics in undergraduate agricultural economics texts and curricula. We include survey results which provide information on undergraduate students' exposure to and their...

Expectations abound that a tobacco quota buyout will soon materialize. This paper provides a description of major elements of proposed tobacco quota buyout legislation. An input-output model is used to estimate the economic impacts-total output, value added, and employment-of a quota buyout on...

Cost efficiency measures of a sample of catfish farms in Chicot County, Arkansas are estimated using a data envelopment analysis technique. A measure of overall efficiency is used to determine operator's characteristics, farm practices, and institutional support services that are likely to lead...

Winter wheat is grown for three purposes in the Southern Plains, grain-only, forage-only, and as a dual-purpose forage plus grain crop. The USDA's wheat cropping practices survey does not differentiate among the three uses. Little information on actual production practices across use is...