The first case of BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) outside Europe was discovered in Japan in September 2001. To assess its impact on Japanese retail meat demand, a Japanese meat demand system was estimated as a gradual switching Rotterdam model. The system distinguished beef by type and...

It is possible to obtain robust estimates of structural parameters using observational data, but it is difficult to do so. Necessary, but not sufficient, conditions are to adopt a modeling philosophy and to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of the results. Using a general-to-specific modeling...