The sensitivity of net cash farm income to changes in selected production variables, output prices, and input costs varies significantly across representative U.S. dairies. Different regions of the country were impacted differently by changes to production and prices.

Historically, U.S. dairymen have been thought to move to a new location to seek better economic opportunities or to leave an area that has become disadvantaged due to regulation or economics. Recently, there again have been major shifts in dairy production across the United States.

The primary objective of this paper was to determine key factors impacting the frequency of consumer visits to Texas farmers’ markets measured in number of visits per month. Data obtained from in-person surveys administered in two farmers’ markets locations were used to determine consumer,...

Higher commodity price expectations have led to increases in cash lease rates nationwide. This study evaluates the farm level impacts of higher cash lease rates. Current levels of cash rents along with land tenure arrangements of specific farms are instrumental in determining the impacts of...

The deer breeding industry is a growing industry in the Texas economy, particularly the rural economy. Industry participants were surveyed to provide estimates of economic activity, which was then input into the IMPLAN model. The industry generates an estimated $652 million in economic activity,...

This study evaluates how the availability of animal tracing affects the cost of a hypothetical Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak in the Texas High Plains using alternative tracing scenarios. To accomplish this objective, the AusSpread epidemic disease spread model (Ward et al., 2006) is used...

This study will examine the competitive advantages that exist under current conditions. Representative dairies are used to simulate the financial impacts of the different feeding practices and compared to those a few years ago. The results indicate that the dairies the raise a majority of their...

With the 2009 milk prices still fresh on everyone’s mind, there has been increased interest in ways to limit milk price volatility. Using SERF, this paper determined some dairies are willing to pay for limited milk price volatility and found a value they are willing to pay using risk premiums.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) beef grading system plays an important role in marketing and promoting of beef. USDA graders inspect beef carcasses and determine quality grade within a few seconds. Although the graders are well-trained, the nature of this grading process may...