In this paper, we assess the potential for rehabilitation of comparative analysis under its new guise of benchmarking. After a brief description of comparative analysis, we discuss the deficiencies that surrounded its fall in reputation: neglect of economic principles, limited scope for action,...

Impacts on Australian agriculture of projected climate change are likely to be spatially and temporally diverse, with many regions likely to experience increased downside risk in agricultural production. Some regions, such as south-west Australia, are projected to be particularly at risk of...

China's food processing sector has arrived at a critical stage and the challenges for the food industry including undergoing relevant structural adjustments are well documented (OECD 2000). The Chinese domestic economy continues to boom and living standards of people continue to improve. Food...

The unique and somewhat problematic challenges of marketing fresh fruits and vegetables have received attention from a variety of perspectives in recent years. The role that price plays for consumer purchases of them is complex, and will depend on the buyer, product and situation. This article...

Grain is China’s most significant agricultural product, its output being the most watched indicator by government officials, traders and researchers inside and outside China. This paper looks into China’s grain production trends in the recent decade, both before and after...

The use of economic analysis to aid farm input investment decisions has been contentious because of observed flatness of economic response in the region of the optimum input. In this paper an application of a crop simulation model, to specify the production response, in conjunction with...

The island of Bali is one of the main cattle producing areas for Indonesia. Bali is also known for its extensive tourist sector. Frozen and chilled beef are imported to fulfil the tourist demand. This imported beef, most of it from Australia, competes with the local beef in the tourist sector....

Despite approval being given by the Gene Technology Regulator to plant genetically modified (GM) canola varieties in Australia, the question as to whether farmers would be prepared to grow GM canola is still being explored. The purpose of this paper is to establish not only if producers would...

The occurrence of low night temperatures during reproductive development is one of the factors most limiting rice yields in southern Australia. Yield losses due to cold temperature are the result of incomplete pollen formation and subsequent floret sterility. Researchers have found that in 75%...