Purpose: This paper aims to examine the competitiveness trends and rankings of the Irish dairy sector at the farm and trade levels, relative to selected European Union (EU) Member States, in the context of the removal of the EU milk quota in 2015. Design/methodology/approach: Competitiveness...

Despite the well-known importance of innovation to productivity growth in the agri-food sector, very few studies have attempted to measure farm-level innovation. This article contributes to the literature by developing an agricultural innovation index that goes beyond measuring innovation...

This article compares standard stochastic frontier models for panel data with a number of recently developed models which attempt to control for unobserved heterogeneity in the inefficiency component. Results are used to construct a generalized Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (TFP) index for...

A key challenge internationally is the design of future electricity systems which will bring about emissions savings and fuel security at least cost. Peat is used to generate electricity in several EU countries, mainly to take advantage of indigenous resources and increase fuel mix diversity....