The impact of ethanol plants on cropland values in the Great Plains

Farms - Valuation

Specialty Crops and the 2007 Farm Bill: The Potential Role of Farm Savings Accounts

This paper discusses the findings of a research project that examined the potential benefits of establishing farm savings accounts for specialty crop growers1. The primary goal of the project was to determine whether farm savings accounts would provide specialty crop growers with a useful tool for managing financial risk. The project examined how various farm savings account proposals ultimately impacted the benefits that specialty crop growers would receive from the accounts.Agricultural Finance, Crop Production/Industries,

SEGMENTING THE COMMERCIAL PRODUCER MARKET FOR AGRICULTURAL INPUTS

A cluster analysis procedure was used to develop a market segmentation of U.S. crop and livestock farms with annual sales in excess of $100,000. The results indicate that four distinct segments exist: convenience buyers, balance buyers, price buyers, and performance buyers. Differences in preferences across these segments have important implications for the marketing strategies of agricultural input suppliers.Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Marketing,

THEME OVERVIEW: FARMLAND VALUES

Farmland, Land Values, Farm Real Estate, Land Economics/Use, Q14, Q15,

The Paradox of Risk Balancing: Do Risk-reducing Policies Lead to More Risk for Farmers?

The study presents stochastic optimal control/dynamic programming (SOC/DP) to derive the optimal debt level and consumption in farm models concerning two sources of uncertainty: the return on assets and interest rate. The SOC/DP analytic framework is used to analyze the impacts of risk-reducing farm policies on farm’s financial and risk adjustments. The results show the violations of the risk-balancing concept, which theorizes that risk-reducing farm policies may lead to increases in financial leverage, total risk, and the expected returns. Also, this study examines the extent to which the estimates of the optimal debt level are biased when interest rate risk is ignored.Stochastic Optimal Control/Dynamic Programming, Financial Leverage, Uncertainty, Risk Balancing, Agricultural and Food Policy, Risk and Uncertainty,

EXAMINING THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF FEDERALLY SUBSIDIZED FARM SAVINGS ACCOUNTS FOR DAIRY FARMERS

Financial data from a panel of New York dairy farms was analyzed to examine the potential benefits of establishing federally subsidized farm savings accounts for dairy farmers. The paper examines whether farmers would have sufficient cash flow to fund the accounts, how the accounts would influence farm income variability, and how program design influences eligibility for the benefits received from the accounts.Financial Economics,

FORCES AFFECTING CHANGE IN CROP PRODUCTION AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Competitiveness, Crop Production, Agricultural Biotechnology, Agricultural Sustainability, Agricultural Inputs, Agricultural Profitability, Crop Production/Industries, Q10, Q12, Q13,

CREDIT RISK MIGRATION EXPERIENCED BY AGRICULTURAL LENDERS

Loan records and lender credit risk classifications are used to examine agricultural credit risk migration. The results include estimates of the likelihood of borrowers transitioning among five credit risk tiers. The paper also examines factors that influence or predict credit risk migration and its impact on loan pricing.credit risk, agricultural lending, credit risk migration, credit quality, Agricultural Finance,

THE USEFULNESS AND INFLUENCE OF INFORMATION SOURCES ON COMMERCIAL FARMS

The usefulness of several information sources is examined for U.S. farms with sales in excess of $100,000. The results indicate that crop/livestock-specific magazines and general farm magazines are the most useful information sources. Analyses indicate that the types and number of different commodities that the farm produced, as well as Internet use, are the most consistent predictors of attitudes toward various information sources. However, characteristics that explain attitudes toward different information sources vary substantially across the information sources.Farm Management,