PATTERNS IN THE RELATIVE PRICE FOR DIFFERENT SIZES OF FARMED FISH

Fish farming is a biological production process dependent upon biological and environmental conditions. These constraints imply that different fish farmers are likely to have a similar distribution of different sizes of fish over time. If there are no perfect substitutes for the different sizes of fish in the shortrun, this production cycle can cause different relative prices between the different sizes over the year. By studying prices for different sizes of salmon for the period 1992–98, we show that such patterns exist. This can have important implications when studying aquaculture industries and markets. We look closer at two issues — optimal harvesting decisions and aggregation.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Aquaculture—Opportunities and Challenges: Special Issue Introduction

Production Economics,

Modelling Production Risk in Small Scale Subsistence Agriculture

In this paper we are investigating how production risk may influence the way a risk averse producer like a subsistence farmer chooses optimal input levels. Risk averse producers will take into account both the mean and the variance of output, and therefore we expect them to choose input levels which differ form the optimal input level of risk neutral producers. Production risk is of particular importance in developing countries, since variance in production here may have grave consequences for the farmer and his family. To model the production decision problem under such circumstances we have made use of the fact that production risk can be treated as heteroskedasticity. Our analysis is based on a dataset obtained from a survey on smallholders in the Kilimanjaro region in Tanzania. Since evidence of output risk in inputs is found, we reestimate the mean and variance function using a maximum likelihood estimator, and correct the standard errors to provide valid inference.Farm Management,

Import Demand Estimation and the Generalized Composite Commodity Theorem

A frequently encountered problem in import demand estimation is how to account for competition between imports and domestic production. Traditionally, use of the Armington model has been a way to handle this problem. This is a disaggregate model which distinguishes commodities by country of origin with import demand determined in a separable two-step procedure. The model appears frequently in analysis of international agricultural markets. However, the Armington model relies on a set of weak separability assumptions, which several authors have shown to be highly questionable. In this paper, a new aggregation theorem, the Generalized Composite Commodity Theorem (GCCT), is applied to test whether imports can be treated as a separate group. An advantage with the GCCT is that only import data is required to conduct the test. The application is to the imports of swordfish to the U.S. with implications for U.S. and international swordfish management policies.Armington, separability, GCCT, demand system, sword fish, International Relations/Trade, F18, Q11, Q22,

Investigating the formation of giant {Pd72}Prop and {Pd84}Gly macrocycles using NMR, HPLC and mass spectrometry

The formation of giant polyoxometalate (POM) species are relatively underexplored as their self-assembly process is complex due to the rapid kinetics. Polyoxopalladates (POPds) are a class of POMs based on Pd, the largest of which is the {Pd84}Ac wheel, and the slower kinetics mean the system is more amenable to systematic study. Here, we show it is possible to follow the assembly of two types of Pd-wheel; the {Pd84}Gly the smaller {Pd72}Prop wheel formed using glycolate and propionate ligands respectively. We analyzed the formation of {Pd72}Prop and {Pd84}Gly using mass spec-trometry (SEC-HPLC-MS and preparative desalting followed by MS). This was accompanied by studies that followed the chemical shift differences between the outer/inner ligands and the free ligand in solution for the {Pd84}Ac, {Pd72}Prop, and {Pd84}Gly species using NMR; this showed it was possible to track the formation of the wheels. Our findings confirm that the macrocycles assemble from smaller building blocks which react together to form the larger species over a period of days. These findings open the way for further structural derivatives and exploration of their host-guest chemistry

The demand for salmon in the European Union : the importance of product form and origin

Tins paper addresses the importance of different product farms and their origin when considering the market structure in the European salmon market. The competition between Farmed Atlantic salmon and wild-caught pacific salmon has received some attention previously. However, this was before frozen Atlantic salmon emerged as an important product form in the market. This could be important as frozen Atlantic salmon is more likely to be a close substitute for Pacific salmon, which is mostly marketed frozen, than is fresh Atlantic salmon. In this paper, an almost ideal demand system is used to estimate the demand for fresh Atlantic salmon, frozen Atlantic salmon and frozen Pacific salmon in the European Union.Keywords: Demand, Salmon, Frozen products, Traceability, Markets, Consumer

Fish Is Food - The FAO’s Fish Price Index

World food prices hit an all-time high in February 2011 and are still almost two and a half times those of 2000. Although three billion people worldwide use seafood as a key source of animal protein, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations–which compiles prices for other major food categories–has not tracked seafood prices. We fill this gap by developing an index of global seafood prices that can help to understand food crises and may assist in averting them. The fish price index (FPI) relies on trade statistics because seafood is heavily traded internationally, exposing non-traded seafood to price competition from imports and exports. Easily updated trade data can thus proxy for domestic seafood prices that are difficult to observe in many regions and costly to update with global coverage. Calculations of the extent of price competition in different countries support the plausibility of reliance on trade data. Overall, the FPI shows less volatility and fewer price spikes than other food price indices including oils, cereals, and dairy. The FPI generally reflects seafood scarcity, but it can also be separated into indices by production technology, fish species, or region. Splitting FPI into capture fisheries and aquaculture suggests increased scarcity of capture fishery resources in recent years, but also growth in aquaculture that is keeping pace with demand. Regionally, seafood price volatility varies, and some prices are negatively correlated. These patterns hint that regional supply shocks are consequential for seafood prices in spite of the high degree of seafood tradability

Análise do mercado do abacaxi Gold e Perolera em dois principais centrais maioristas da Colômbia

In this work the behavior of the price of two varieties of pineapple Gold and wholesalers Perolera two plants in Colombia is analyzed. The techniques used were the cointegration and Granger causality test, for which prices were taken pineapple, in the period 2006-2011 of wholesale markets Corabastos (in the case of Bogotá) and the Central Wholesale Itagui (for Medellin). The theoretical framework was the law of one price. The work proved that there is market integration in the process of price formation. The results allow us to see that there is independence between the prices of the two markets. Cointegration tests indicate that the series are cointegrated itself, so that in the absence of external shocks, the series converge in the long term. We conclude that, although there is no causal link between the markets, these are themselves integrated in the long run, evidencing a fulfillment of the law of one price. The study does not include an analysis of the distances between production areas and consumption centers to consider the effect of transport costs when setting the price. Future research could consider such variables as quality and consumer preferences.En este trabajo se analizó el comportamiento del precio de dos variedades de piña Gold y Perolera en dos centrales mayoristas en Colombia. Las técnicas utilizadas fueron la de cointegración y la prueba de causalidad de Granger, para lo cual se tomaron los precios de la piña, en el periodo 2006-2011 de los mercados mayoristas de Corabastos (para el caso de Bogotá) y la Central Mayorista de Itagüí (para Medellín). El marco teórico fue la ley de precio único. El trabajo probó que existe integración de los mercados en el proceso de formación de precios. Los resultados permiten ver que existe independencia entre los precios de los dos mercados. Las pruebas de cointegración indican que las series sí están cointegradas, por lo que, en ausencia de choques externos, las series en el largo plazo convergen. Se concluye que, a pesar de que no existe causalidad entre los mercados, estos sí están integrados en el largo plazo, lo que evidencia un cumplimiento de la ley de precio único. El estudio no incluyó un análisis de las distancias entre las zonas de producción y los centros de consumo para considerar el efecto del costo del transporte al momento de fijar el precio. Una futura investigación podría considerar estas variables al igual que la calidad y las preferencias de los consumidores.Em este trabalho se analisou o comportamento do preço de duas variedades de abacaxi Gold e Perolera em duas centrais maioristas na Colômbia. As técnicas utilizadas foram a de cointegração e o teste de causalidade de Granger, para o qual se tomaram os preços do abacaxi, no período 2006-2011 dos mercados maioristas de Corabastos (para o caso de Bogotá) e a Central Maiorista de Itagüí (para Medellín). O marco teórico foi a lei de preço único. O trabalho provou que existe integração dos mercados no processo de formação de preços. Os resultados permitem ver que existe independencia entre os preços dos dois mercados. Os testes de cointegração indicam que as séries estão cointegradas sim, pelo que, na ausência de choques externos, as séries no longo prazo convergem. Conclui-se que, a pesar de que não existe causalidade entre os mercados, estes estão integrados sim no longo prazo, o que evidencia um cumprimento da lei de preço único. O estudo não incluiu uma análise das distâncias entre as zonas de produção e os centros de consumo para considerar o efeito do custo do transporte ao momento de fixar o preço. Una futura pesquisa poderia considerar estas variáveis ao igual que a qualidade e as preferências dos consumidores.