Rethinking fuelwood: people, policy and the anatomy of a charcoal supply chain in a decentralizing Peru

In Peru, as in many developing countries, charcoal is an important source of fuel. We examine the commercial charcoal commodity chain from its production in Ucayali, in the Peruvian Amazon, to its sale in the national market. Using a mixed-methods approach, we look at the actors involved in the commodity chain and their relationships, including the distribution of benefits along the chain. We outline the obstacles and opportunities for a more equitable charcoal supply chain within a multi-level governance context. The results show that charcoal provides an important livelihood for most of the actors along the supply chain, including rural poor and women. We find that the decentralisation process in Peru has implications for the formalisation of charcoal supply chains, a traditionally informal, particularly related to multi-level institutional obstacles to equitable commerce. This results in inequity in the supply chain, which persecutes the poorest participants and supports the most powerful actors

General Equilibrium with Multi-Member Households and Production

We consider firms and multi-member households operating in a competitive market environment. Households are endowed with resources (commodity bundles) and shares of firm ownership. Household members are characterized by individual preferences, possibly with intra-household consumption externalities. Household decisions adhere to the collective rationality model. Existence of general equilibrium and validity of the first welfare theorem are investigated.household behavior, general equilibrium, production

Disaggregated estimates of output supply and input demand elasticities

Designed for consistency with competitive theory, nonrejected simplifying assumptions and multi stage choice, aggregate dual models are specified of Texas agricultural production. Disaggregated own and cross price elasticities are derived for 25 commodity supplies and six input demands. Estimated supplies and demands are largely inelastic. Outputs are mainly economic substitutes and inputs are economic complements.

Prospects and Challenges in Lithuanian Agricultural Markets After EU Accession

Medium-term prospects for key agricultural markets in Lithuania are analysed under alternative policies. Policy alternatives show the impacts of EU accession and also the impacts of implementing AP reforms in 2007. The model is a partial equilibrium, multi-commodity model where commodity prices are linked to key prices in major EU markets. The accession analysis shows significant impacts on production, prices, and even on relative prices. It indicates impacts on production and trade patterns. The most realistic scenario (SAPS to 2006 and SFP from 2007 to 2010) generates a growth in product value more than 10 percent higher than the non-accession scenario. The largest increase is in the value of milk production. There also is a decline in crops share and increase in milk share of the total market revenue, while cattle and dairy together increase from about 35 percent of output value in 2002 to over 45 percent in 2010.EU accession, CAP reform, policy, Industrial Organization, Q18,

Land Allocation Effects of the Global Ethanol Surge: Predictions from the International FAPRI Model

We quantify the emergence of biofuel markets and its impact on U.S. and world agriculture for the coming decade using the multi-market multi-commodity international FAPRI model. The model incorporates the tradeoffs between biofuel, feed, and food production and consumption and international feedback effects of the emergence through world commodity prices and trade. We examine land allocation by type of crop, and pasture use for countries growing feedstock for ethanol (corn, sorghum, wheat, sugarcane, and other grains) and major crops competing with feedstock for land resources such as oilseeds. We shock the model with exogenous changes in ethanol demand, first in the United States, then in Brazil, China, EU, and India, and compute shock multipliers for land allocation decisions for crops and countries of interest. The multipliers show at the margin how sensitive land allocation is to the growing demand for ethanol. Land moves away from major crops and pasture competing for resources with feedstock crops. Because of the high U.S. tariff on ethanol, higher U.S. demand for ethanol translates into a U.S. ethanol production expansion. The latter has global effects on land allocation as higher coarse grains prices transmit worldwide. Changes in U.S. coarse grain prices also affect U.S. wheat and oilseeds prices, which are all transmitted to world markets. In contrast, expansion in Brazil ethanol use and production chiefly affects land used for sugarcane production in Brazil and to a lesser extent in other sugar-producing countries, but with small impact on other land uses in most countries. Keywords: Acreage, area, biofuel, corn, crops, ethanol, FAPRI model, feedstock, land, sugar, sugarcane. JEL Code: Q42 Q17 Q15ethanol; acreage; area; biofuel; corn; crops; FAPRI model; feedstock; land; sugar; sugarcane

Functional Forms Used in CGE Models: Modelling Production and Commodity Flows

Various well-known functional forms, such as the Cobb-Douglas function, the Leontief function and the Constant Elasticity of Substitution (CES) function, are used frequently in economic modelling. Traditionally these functional forms have been used to model the production side (isoquants) or consumption side (indifference curves) of microeconomic models. The standard approach in CGE modelling has been to adapt the single-level value-added type production structure to a multi-level production structure, thereby including value-added as well as intermediate inputs. This is typically referred to as 'nested' production structures, and often makes use of combinations of Cobb-Douglas/CES and Leontief functions. In open-economy CGE models CES functions and the related Constant Elasticity of Transformation (CET) functions have been used to model consumers' and producers' decision-making process regarding consumption of production of traded goods (imports or exports) and domestic goods. The various applications of these functional forms are discussed in this paper, with a specific focus on the production side and commodity flows.Production Economics,

Analysis of Trade and Environmental Policy Options on the Basis of a National Agricultural Sector Model with Multifunctional Outputs

Studies on liberalisation normally do not take into account the external benefits and costs of agriculture. Empirical studies on the valuation of externalities should be integrated into quantitative modelling. MULTSIM is a national supply model of agriculture. Besides commodity output the model depicts also external benefit linked to landscape preservation and external environmental costs of agriculture. Internalisation scenarios are defined showing that the reduction of commodity-linked support and the introduction of land subsidies and intermediate input taxes have differentiated impacts on the farm types’ competitiveness. A comprehensive policy approach to multifunctional agriculture requires market feedbacks to be taken into account. Internalising externalities may lead to a strong reduction of commodity output quantities. This gives rise to expectations that commodity prices would increase, which in turn would dampen the production impacts. As a consequence MULTSIM should be regarded as a bridge tool that may be linked to microeconomic based multi market models and agricultural trade models. A further strain of model development is an improved consideration of multiple policy objectives.environmental costs, multifunctional agriculture, policy analysis, agricultural sector modelling, Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy, International Relations/Trade,

An intertemporal, multi-region general equilibrium model of agricultural trade liberalization in the South Mediterranean NICs, Turkey, and the European Union

With the aid of an intertemporal, multi-region general equilibrium model, the authors study issues of agricultural trade liberalization, growth and capital accumulation in the context of a world economy moving towards a multi-polar structure. They specifically focus on Turkey, the European Union, the Middle East, and the Economies in Transition; and study alternative scenarios of formation of customs unions and increased trade orientation. The model is based on intertemporal general equilibrium theory with Ramsey-type dynamics. The world economy is fully endogenized within a 9-region specification, with Turkey, EU, Middle East and the Transition Economies constituting as one of the indigenous regions. A key feature of the model is its explicit recognition of both the commodity and foreign capital flows across regions in an endogenous setting, and its explicit portrayal of the out-of-steady state dynamics under an intertemporal optimization framework. They explore the short- versus the long-run economic impacts of alternative trade and investment policies on agricultural production, foreign trade, resource allocation, accumulation, consumer welfare, and income distribution in the regions of analyis. The results reveal significant gains from increased bilateral trade between the identified regions, and further underscore the crucial importance of financing commodity trade deficits in sustaining the accumulation patterns.Economics Models. ,Trade liberalization. ,Foreign trade Mathematical models. ,Agricultural trade. ,TMD ,

Marketing Assistance Loans, Loan Deficiency Payments and Marketing Loan Gains for Minor Oilseed and Pulse Crops

Marketing assistance loans are available to Montana producers of minor oilseed and pulse crops. The USDA differentiates county-level loan rates from national rates for minor oilseeds and dry peas . County-level lentil and small chickpea loan rates for all pertinent counties throughout the United States are differentiated at the multi-state, regional level from the national loan rates. Montana county-level rates for the 2003 crop year are shown in Appendix A: Figures 1 through 7 for canola, crambe, flaxseed, mustard, rapeseed, safflower, and sunflower. For each of the pulse cropsdry peas, lentils, and small chickpeas the county-level loan rates are the same in all Montana counties, as reported in Table 1. Loan deficiency payments are available on all or a portion of harvested production when posted-county prices for a loan commodity are below county-level loan rates. Similarly, marketing loan gains are available when posted-county prices are less than county loan rates at the time marketing assistance loans are settled. Mechanisms for determining loan deficiency payments and marketing loan gains are described. Mechanisms for determining posted-county prices are described including the use of differentials for each commodity. Differentials specified by the USDA, generally considered some depiction of commodity transportation and elevation costs, are shown for the 2003 crop year for all Montana counties in Appendix B, Figures 8 through 14 for canola, crambe, flaxseed, mustard, rapeseed, safflower, and sunflower.Marketing,