The spatial distribution of production is a defining characteristic of agriculture, and the location choice in geographic space and the spatial pricing policies adopted by agricultural processing/packing firms are key determinants of the competitiveness and efficiency of agricultural product...

Significant transport costs and spatially distributed supply and processing create oligopsony power in agricultural markets. Price discrimination expressed in the form of partial or complete absorption of freight charges by processors is often observed in these environments, but we understand...

This article examines the competitive implications of contract pricing arrangements, which link the contract price to the subsequent cash price. We focus on so-called "top-of-the-market pricing" (TOMP) in cattle procurement. The TOMP clause is shown to have anticompetitive consequences when the...

The U.S. Export Enhancement Program is evaluated from the perspective of the cost effectiveness of its bonus allocation mechanism. The current mechanism resembles a discriminatory-price, common-value auction. However, auction theory suggests that a discriminatory auction may not be optimal in...

Four beef-processing plants in the Texas Panhandle region procure cattle from feedlots in a form of first-price, sealed-bid auction. These auctions have features that distinguish them from standard auctions. Using transactions-level data, we estimated packer bid functions and, via simulations,...

Transportation costs and buyer market power reduce prices and income received by farmers in developing countries. Transportation costs directly affect the marketing margin and also exacerbate market power by limiting farmers’ access to buyers. This article develops a multistage spatial model...