Perceived characteristics of thin markets are described and approaches to furthering their study are suggested. Design features of a laboratory thin market, patterned after a typical livestock marketing situation, are described. Price bias and variation from a “thick” private negotiation market with 22 traders is compared to that from a “thin” auction market with 8 traders. No systematic price bias was found in any of the markets. Price variation was actually lower in the thin auction market.

Models are developed to measure the effect of socioeconomic factors on the probability of consuming fish and shellfish in both the away from home and at home markets. Factors that significantly affect the likelihood of eating fish and shellfish at home include: urbanization, region, race, ethnicity, age, diet status and income. On the other hand, region, employment, diet status, household size, age and income significantly affect the likelihood of eating fish and shellfish away from home.

The national four-firm concentration ratio in the lamb slaughtering and processing industry increased from 55 percent in 1980 to 70 percent in 1992. The effect of increasing lamb packer concentration on lamb marketing margins is examined. A relative price spread (RPS) model for farm-to-wholesale and wholesale-to-retail marketing margins was estimated using three-stage least squares (3SLS). The 3SLS results indicate that increased lamb packer concentration has had relatively small, positive effects on lamb marketing margins.

This research examines the success of stabilization policies to control hyperinflation in Bolivia. Money demand functions for the hyperinflation and stabilization periods were econometrically estimated and statistically tested. We conclude that the demand for money in Bolivia changed after stabilization policies were implemented, indicating that the new government's objectives were met. Stabilization policies resulted in real economic growth for Bolivia's economy, including its agricultural sector, where agricultural export shares increased tenfold as stabilization policies corrected overvalued exchange rates.

Impacts of alternative specifications for heteroscedastic error structures are examined by estimating various production functions for corn in Central Texas. Production- and profit-maximizing levels of inputs and the shape of the profit equation obtained from models not corrected for heteroscedasticity differed from those obtained from models corrected for heteroscedasticity. Using the profit-maximizing input levels for each production function gave essentially the same estimated yield and profit, regardless of the specification for heteroscedasticity employed. Differences of up to one-quarter to one-third are noted, however, in the amount of profit-maximizing levels of inputs used, depending on the heteroscedasticity correction.

Efficient allocation of water requires knowledge of water's value in both consumptive and nonconsumptive uses. This study estimates the marginal value of water in lake recreational and aesthetic (RA) use. An hedonic price equation (employing the Box-Cox functional form) indicates lake front location, distance to lake, and scenic view are significant RA characteristics of housing. Water front properties command a premium price for the private access they offer. Beyond the water front, the marginal RA price falls rapidly with increasing distance, becoming asymptotic to some minimum. Twenty-two percent of housing price is found to be attributable to the RA component.

Data from a 1992 Georgia Farm Practices survey are used to examine the structure of farmers' perceptions of ground water pollution and their support of regulations to protect ground water. Estimates of the influence of farm and farmer characteristics on pollution perceptions and support for pollution control were computed using a multiple-indicator model. Results show that the willingness to change farm practices to protect ground water is positively related to how an operator perceives the seriousness of the pollution problem. Regulatory policies that negatively affect farmers' income are likely to be opposed by farmers.

Recent legislative initiatives call for studies to evaluate costs associated with cleaning U.S. grains to meet more stringent standards. This paper reports on a study which developed a mixed-integer programming model of the U.S. sorghum sector to (1) determine the least-cost geographic location for new cleaning investment at the country, terminal and port elevator stages of the marketing system and (2) measure additional system marketing costs associated with implementing the proposed standards. Results show the least-cost cleaning location to be at country and terminal elevators in excess supply regions. Implementing the proposed standard would increase system costs about 2 percent.

This study investigates the determinants of crawfish consumption in South Louisiana using a generalized limited dependent variable model that accounts for both participation and consumption decisions. Income, Catholic, white, and household size increase the likelihood of crawfish consumption but not the conditional level of consumption. Education and employment status are among the other household characteristics that determine the conditional level of consumption.

This experiment demonstrates principles of decision-making in dynamic oligopolies, especially the difficulties in forming and maintaining cartels. As an illustration of firm behavior under imperfect competition, the game distinguishes between procedurally rational choices and substantively rational decisions in the context of collusive, Cournot, and competitive equilibria. The paper discusses results from an actual classroom exercise and suggests some additional variations in institutional details. Instructions for students and a spreadsheet program for producing payoff tables are provided in the appendices.

Obtaining estimates of pesticide productivity is an economic response to the growing public concern about the steady increase of pesticide use in the United States. This type of research indicates the cost of limiting pesticide use in terms of foregone output. Previous empirical studies give a “snap-shot”, or “average”, look at pesticide productivity. This research effort employs a random coefficient model to determine the trend of the marginal value product of pesticides in agriculture in the United States. Results show a distinct downward trend in two states, Iowa and Texas. California, however, shows no evidence of a downward trend.

This study examines the trade-off between agricultural production and groundwater contamination potential for ten potential herbicide cancellations. Theoretical and empirical models are developed for estimating losses in consumer and producer benefits in the agricultural commodity market and changes in groundwater quality. Using com and soybean production in the southeastern Coastal Plain as a study area, the analysis concludes that (1) effects of herbicide cancellations on groundwater quality can be very significant; (2) a cancellation does not guarantee groundwater quality improvement; (3) effects of a multiple cancellation are different from the summation of the effects of independent cancellations; and (4) weed density has a very strong effect on losses to farmers and consumers from cancellations, but output demand and supply elasticities do not.

Investigating the underlying producer characteristics associated with regional pest control adoption revealed an interesting proposition. Early adopting producers of firm-specific techniques with characteristics including higher education, more specialized operations, and larger sized business units are dissatisfied with a regional pest control technique. This study provides an explanation of the proposition based on a principal-agent model. Empirical support for the proposition is also presented by developing a multinomial logit model for predicting producers' dissatisfaction with boll weevil eradication.