Agribusiness最新文献

Background: Proprioception is vital for motor control and can be disturbed, for example, due to fatigue or injury. Clinical feasible, reliable and valid tests of shoulder proprioception are warranted. The aim was to investigate the effects of local fatigue on shoulder proprioception and the reliability of a feasible joint position sense test using an experimental repeated measures design.

Method: Forty participants repeated a shoulder joint position sense test to assess test-retest reliability. The test was then utilized on a subgroup of handball players who were subjected to five bouts of a repeated throwing task with the dominant hand. The effect of local fatigue was investigated by comparing the fatigued with the non-fatigued shoulder.

Results: There was a significant interaction for the arm × bout (p = 0.028, η_p² = 0.20) and a significant effect for the arm (p = 0.034, η_p² = 0.35) with a significant decrease in joint position sense for the throwing arm compared to the non-throwing arm. The intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.78 (95% CI = [0.57; 0.89]). The standard error of measurement between trials was 0.70° (range: 0.57°-0.90°).

Discussion: The results indicate that repeated throwing to fatigue disturbs shoulder joint position sense. Assessment with the modified test showed acceptable reliability and can be a valuable assessment tool in the clinic.

This study examines whether the market competitiveness of farm loan suppliers is affected by the US tax policy for the farm credit system (FCS) and its potential spillover on the farmers' cost of borrowing. We exploit the variation in the corporate income tax rate to estimate its relationship with the farm debt share of the FCS and the potential spillover effect on the estimated cost of borrowing for agricultural loans. Results suggest that a 10% rise in the state (federal) tax rate is associated with an increase in FCS's total farm debt market share by 1.76% (3.76%). A 10% rise in the FCS total farm debt market share tends to increase the cost of borrowing on agricultural loans by 0.06%. Overall, the findings imply that favorable tax treatment could increase FCS' competitiveness in the agricultural lending market. Also, an increase in the interest rate on farm debt is correlated with the increasing market share of FCS in the agricultural credit market. [EconLit Citations: Q14, N22, H2, H7, G21].

In contrast to the widespread adoption of agricultural commodities modified using biotechnology, the adoption rate of bioengineered specialty crops by growers remains low. The use of bioengineered crops has been controversial since their introduction in the 1990s due to concerns about their potentially harmful effects to human health, the environment, and other socioeconomic issues. To identify grower preferences, perceived opportunities, and barriers to growing bioengineered crops, we surveyed Minnesota specialty crop growers using a web-based survey. The survey measured whether adoption rates are influenced by the specific trait of the modification, the method of bioengineering (genetically modified [GM] vs. genetically edited [GE]), or the end use of the crop being grown (ornamental vs food). Overall willingness-to-pay for both GM and GE potatoes was significantly lower than for conventional potatoes, and nearly a quarter (25%) of our respondents never chose a bioengineered option no matter the benefits. Results were similar for petunias, but fewer respondents (18%) refused to consider the bioengineering option. The type of bioengineering did not have as significant an impact on adoption rate as price or end use. The bioengineered ornamental crop had a higher willingness to adopt than the bioengineered food crop. [EconLit Citations: Q160 Agricultural R & D; Agricultural Technology; Biofuels; Agricultural Extension Services. O330 Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes].

This article examines the impact of trade liberalization on export prices and quality. The article is innovative in two respects. First, unlike previous studies, it considers both input and output tariffs simultaneously in a theoretical model. Second, it empirically tests the effects of a combination of specific and ad-valorem tariffs on quality improvement. The theoretical analysis suggests that when firms face reduced output and input tariffs, they tend to improve their export quality and increase export prices. Using export data from 33 OECD countries, the empirical analysis demonstrates that output tariff reduction increases export quality but decreases prices. However, the effects of input tariff reduction on price and quality depend on product differentiation. The results also indicate that the presence of specific tariffs increase product quality while amplifying the positive effects of the reduction of ad-valorem tariffs on quality. This implies that to improve export quality, reducing ad-valorem tariffs is more efficient than a specific tariff. [EconLit Citations: F12, F14, Q17].

The “meat” marketing of new plant-based burgers distinguished them from traditional vegan burgers, yet it is still unknown if and to what extent this advertising appeals to meat consumers. We employ a novel digital advertisement dataset from Nielsen Ad Intel to investigate the market entry and advertising patterns of the Impossible Burger, one of the leading brands in the plant-based meat market. By merging weekly ad views at the DMA market level with Nielsen Homescan Panel, we find that prior purchases of meat burgers reduce the likelihood of consumers buying the new plant-based burger, whereas past vegan burger purchases elevate this probability. While advertising did boost the average purchasing likelihood for the Impossible Burger, the enhancement in purchase probability for meat burger consumers is approximately one fifth of that observed for vegan burger consumers. These findings have implications to effectively marketing plant-based meat products to different consumer groups [EconLit Citations: D12, M37, M31, L66].

This paper investigates the effects of extremely high temperatures on wage losses for workers in the Chinese agri-food industry. Our estimated results suggest extreme heat is associated with a decrease in worker wages, and that these welfare losses could be attributed to the adverse impacts of extremely hot days on worker productivity. We also observe that, compared to male workers, female workers are more likely to bear wage losses when exposed to extremely hot weather. Furthermore, workers in private firms may experience more wage losses due to extremely hot days than those in other ownership types. Regarding the industry-level heterogeneity analysis, we find that wage losses in the agri-food manufacturing industry are more severe than those in the agri-food processing industry, while no significant wage losses are observed in the beverages and alcohol industry. In the long term, wage losses induced by climate change are projected to rise by 10.93% under RCP8.5, if no extra adaptation actions are implemented. [EconLit Citations: O13, P46, Q54]

This study explores how nutrients, new ingredients, and health claims from product reformulation influence consumer decisions, dietary intake, and population health in the beverage market. We focus on the beverage market in the United States as a case study because of the emerging health demand for “better-for-you” beverage options. We formulate a random coefficient discrete choice model to evaluate consumer preference for reformulated products in the nonalcoholic beverages market. We find that new ingredients that provide functionality such as energy ingredients, carbonation, or no artificial flavors have a significant positive impact on consumer choices. Further, the use of health claims can significantly increase consumer demand for beverages. Results from simulations suggest that the use of “no/low sugar,” “no/low sodium,” and “no artificial sweetener” health claims will increase the net sugar and sodium intakes from sugar-sweetened beverages, leading to an increase in body mass index and the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) and diabetes. The nutrient reformulation by cutting sugar and sodium content by 10%, on the other hand, will result in a decrease in sugar and sodium consumption, and further lower the incidence of CHD and stroke. However, the policy aimed at lowering the intake of one single nutrient may have an unintended spillover effect on other nutrient intakes, and policymakers should take a comprehensive approach and consider the broader nutrient impact of any policy aimed at reducing a specific nutrient.

Land consolidation represents a valuable tool for enhancing agricultural productivity. However, there is a notable gap in the literature, with few studies effectively estimating the impact of land consolidation on microlevel crop changes. In our study, we estimated how land consolidation affects cropland use and vegetation productivity in Turkey, specifically examining wheat and corn. To analyze microlevel datasets from various villages, we applied multiple difference-in-differences approaches. Our results show that land consolidation affects farmers' cropland usage, particularly transitioning from wheat to corn. Land consolidation also leads to increased yields for both wheat and corn, although these benefits are not long-lasting and diminish within a few years. Thus, our findings provide valuable insights for land-use policy and planning, highlighting the critical role of land consolidation in determining farmers' cropland uses and its effect on overall productivity [EconLit Citations: Q12, Q15, Q18].

Encouraging the food industry to reformulate their products is a possible public intervention to improve diet quality. In this paper, we assess the impact of food reformulation on per capita salt and saturated fatty acids (SFAs) intake, in France, for four product categories, namely, potato chips, fresh pizzas, frozen pizzas, and frozen meals, taking into account the changes in products' nutritional quality and consumer choices. Nutrient intake is calculated by matching data on food purchases and nutritional data, collected at the same date. An algorithm is run to disentangle the specific effect of food reformulation. We find that food reformulation, which is based on voluntary individual firm choices or voluntary industry-wide agreement in our case studies, contributes to decrease SFAs and salt intake in seven out of eight cases. However, the magnitude of the impact is moderate, except in the case of potato chips for which a much stronger impact is observed. Product renewal has an ambiguous effect, depending on the nutrient considered. By contrast, changes in consumer behavior increase the intake of SFAs and salt in all cases. Finally, food reformulation generally benefits all consumers equally, regardless of income or age. For food categories with consumption disparities, product reformulation can reduce heterogeneity in nutrient intake across socioeconomic groups, provided that recipes are greatly and widely improved  [EconLit Citations: D12, D22, I1].

Local labeling is an important issue within the horticultural industry as many producers have devoted considerable resources to advertising their products as local. Further, all states have implemented some form of local labeling program to increase local purchasing. As states expand the reach of these programs, the programs begin to compete as awareness and perception move across state lines. Using an online survey to study consumers in the Southeastern United States, we look to identify how state labeling programs are viewed in nearby states. Notably, we assess awareness, perception, and its impact on the local definition of these programs in their “home” state as well as nearby states. Specifically, we evaluate the impact of nine Southeastern state-level branding programs. Our results indicate that consumers are more aware of their home state's local label, but awareness does exist for other states' labels. We also find that a home state label moves some consumers to a more state-level local boundary, while seeing another state's label increases the boundary for what is perceived as local [EconLit Citation: Q13].