Interest in establishing nationally uniform certification, labeling, and management standards for organic products grew out of concern that the existence of multiple standards led to consumer and supply chain confusion about, and lack of confidence in, these products. The National Organic...

This paper discussed food quality issues associated with both food safety and food nutritional content. Policy approaches to satisfying consumer demands for safe, nutritious food are described from administrative as well as economic perspectives. Current priority issues include instituting...

Consumers are increasingly considering information on how foods are produced in making their buying decisions. For example, in the United States sales of products labeled as organic were estimated at over $3 billion in 1996. Federal and state governments are facing tough choices in deciding how...

The policy environment surrounding issues of the safety and nutritional quality of the U.S. food supply is in considerable,although not unusual,turmoil. Calls for reform touch on every aspect of the regulatory effort,including standards,methods of achieving standards,and the choice of agencies...

Traditionally, the key policy issues for the agricultural and food sector have focused on prices and quantities. For example, one of the major stated purposes of the 1990 farm bill is "to ensure consumers an abundance of food and fiber at reasonable prices." Now, however, assuring the quality of...

The impact of consumer demand for quality on the agricultural and food system is an increased emphasis on quality differentiation but not all in the direction of upgrading quality. The more elite market segments are thriving and reaching growing numbers of consumers but the basic price/quality...

CSA farms establish a loyal customer base and, potentially, market power. Two new empirical industrial organization (NEIO) approaches and survey data from Northeast CSA farms are used to determine the presence and extent of market power. Results suggest CSA farms exert only about 3.5 percent of...

We analyze the social and economic correlates of air pollution exposure in U.S. cities. Copyright (c) 2004 by the Southwestern Social Science Association.

Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL) was implemented on seafood in the United States on April 4, 2005. MCOOL exempts the foodservice sector and excludes processed seafood from labeling. This paper contributes to understanding the economics of the MCOOL law for seafood by showing that...