In a 2003 report, International Evidence on Food Consumption Patterns, ERS economists estimated income and price elasticities of demand for broad consumption categories and food categories across 114 countries using 1996 International Comparison Program (ICP) data. This report updates that...

The level of residentiary employment in areas such as counties is an important component of rural development, environmental, and energy impact analysis. Volatile employment changes lead to migration, population, and wage changes. This study demonstrates a procedure for estimating disaggregated...

Voluntary participation in U.S. farm programs significantly influences the economic consequences of these programs. The voluntary nature of these programs produces two important considerations for policy analysis. First, program provisions designed to induce participation create distortions in...

The ERS Eating and Health Module, a supplement to the American Time Use Survey (ATUS), included questions on height and weight so that respondents’ Body Mass Index (BMI—a measure of body fat based on height and weight) could be calculated and analyzed with ATUS time-use data in obesity...

A linear programming economic development model can help regional planners influence the most desirable type of growth for rural areas. Optimal resource use, investment, and industry mix for manufacturing, services. government. and agriculture are reviewed for nine regional macroeconomic goals,...