This article presents a mathematical programming model of wheat cleaning and blending decisions at a country elevator. Simulations are performed to illustrate the sensitivity of cleaning to selected variables, including the value of screenings, transportation costs, and market discounts for...

Changes in policy, institutional and competitive environments have led to increased trade and a rise in trade tensions in the Canada-U.S. barely market. These tensions stem from policies and marketing institutions that have evolved independently in these two countries. Results from a detailed...

Grain quality is typically measured via several attributes. As these attributes vary across shipments and time, grain quality can be described using multivariate probability or frequency distributions. These distributions are important in modeling blending opportunities inherent in various grain...

StarLink corn, a variety not approved for human use, disrupted the marketing system in 2000 because of inadvertent commingling. This paper provides an overview of the economics of testing grain for biotech content. What are the risks facing buyers and sellers, and how are these influenced by...

Commercialization of genetically modified (GM) traits leads to interesting strategic questions for agbiotechnology and seed firms. The purpose of the study is to evaluate equilibrium strategies of agbiotechnology and seed firms regarding commercialization of GM traits. Two game theory models...

The transcendental logarithmic function is used to derive demand functions which are estimated for wheat classes imported by Pacific Rim countries. Results indicate substantial differences exist in underlying demand parameters for wheat of different classes as well as across countries. In...

All major exporting countries of agricultural commodities have some form of credit guarantee program. As the importance of credit programs escalates, it is incumbent on policy makers to examine the value of their program relative to those of competitors. In this study, a model based on option...

Variety development and release decisions involve tradeoffs between yields and characteristics valued by end-users, as well as uncertainties about agronomic, quality, and economic variables. In this study, methods are developed to determine the value of varieties to growers and end-users...

This study examines three alternative models of correcting for heteroskedasticity in wheat yield: the time trend variance, the GARCH, and an econometric model that includes the potential sources of heteroskedasticity. Nonnested test results suggest that modeling the sources of heteroskedasticity...