2008/09 U.S. Sugar Supply and Use

Crop Production/Industries,

U.S. IMPORTS OF CANADIAN WHEAT: ESTIMATING THE EFFECT OF THE U.S. EXPORT ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM

It is hypothesized that the U.S. Export Enhancement Program (EEP) has had a role in increased U.S. imports of Canadian wheat. Using a set of world wheat models that differentiate wheat according to class and source, several conclusions concerning the role of EEP are reached. Over the period 1986-1993, EEP has been accountable for 40 to 48 percent of the yearly growth in U.S. imports of Canadian wheat. EEP subsidies in 1991/92 to China and Brazil caused significant diversion of Canadian wheat that would have been destined for those markets instead to the U.S. market. Further, it is argued that a quota on imports is not likely to have price-enhancing effects for U.S. wheat.Canada, export enhancement program, wheat, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade,

MEASURING THE EFFECT OF INCREASED HORTICULTURAL IMPORTS: AN APPLICATION TO WINTER VEGETABLES

This report describes and applies a methodology to measure the impact of increased horticultural imports on U.S. vegetable producers. The methodology is applied to a hypothetical surge in winter vegetable imports. The paper describes how Florida winter vegetables could be affected by both short-term and long-term changes in import availabilities.Florida, imports, Mexico, trade model, winter vegetables, Crop Production/Industries, International Relations/Trade,

2009/10 U.S. Sugar Supply and Use

Crop Production/Industries,

2010/11 U.S. SUGAR SUPPLY AND USE

Crop Production/Industries,

The Application of Sediment Source Fingerprinting Techniques to River Floodplain Cores, to Examine Recent Changes in Sediment Sources in Selected UK River Basins

In recent years there has been an increasing awareness of the detrimental influence of diffuse sources of pollution on aquatic systems and of the integral role played by sediment in the mobilisation and transport of pollutants. The recognition of the environmental, societal and economic importance of the ecological health of aquatic environments has led to a change in emphasis regarding agricultural and environmental policy. To implement successful delivery of emerging policy requirements, there is a current need to have an enhanced understanding of the relationship between different forms of land use and sources of diffuse pollution, particularly sources of fine sediment. To understand the potential impacts of future land use changes, including environmental conservation measures on sources of sediment, it is useful to consider them within a longer-term context. This study has successfully applied the sediment source fingerprinting technique to floodplain overbank sediment cores in a retrospective study of six diverse UK river catchments with identified sediment problems. The varying estimates of relative sediment contributions from differing sources have been compared to known land use change in the study catchments over concurrent time periods, to explore any associations which might be apparent. Over the last 40 years, the increased cultivation of high erosion risk crops, such as those which are harvested late in the season (e.g. maize) and those which are sown in the autumn (e.g. winter wheat), has contributed disproportionately to the total sediment load relative to the area of land occupied by such cultivation. Increased stocking densities have resulted in increased relative sediment contributions from grassland sources, particularly intensively managed temporary grassland, but can have an even greater impact on sediment contributions derived from channel bank sources. The installation and maintenance of drainage for agriculture or for flood risk management has resulted in increased relative sediment loads from channel bank and associated sub-surface sources. Through the further development of such research, the efficacy of mitigation measures can be tested against evidence-based historic trends and those management approaches which provide identifiable improvements can be developed as best practice options for future land management targeted at reducing the negative impacts of excessive sediment ingress to river systems. The design of the source fingerprinting methodology used in this work was based on an established successful approach and this was developed further through the incorporation of a number of refinements designed to improve the robustness of the technique and expedite its implementation.ADAS (UK) Lt

Value-Based Change: Accountable Care Organizations as a Method of Healthcare Reform

In the past, there have been several attempts to overhaul the healthcare system. Despite this, the healthcare system in the United States has been relatively the same for over a hundred years. Consumers are at the forefront of a major push for a better healthcare system that meets all of their needs without emptying their bank accounts, restricting access to services and providers, communicating in unclear and insufficient ways, and requiring consumers to jump through hoops of complex processes. This project analyzes value-based reimbursement by way of accountable care organizations and coordinated healthcare as a front-running alternative healthcare model currently being explored. Changing healthcare demands innovative, affordable adaptations to better serve consumers. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Innovation and programs like the MassHealth ACO pilot program are building a foundation for the future of the healthcare industry by branching away from the old system, and creating new and innovative methods of delivering high value, high quality healthcar

Response Functions of The Diffusion-Model of One-Dimensional Disordered-Systems

The configurational average response of discrete one-dimensional disordered systems modeled by the classical diffusion equation is investigated. Perturbation expansions of the system response functions based on the average deviation ⟨ΔW⟩ of the nearest-neighbor interaction constants Wn are developed in the frequency domain. It is shown that for probability distributions ρ(W) such that ⟨W−1⟩ is finite, a frequently applied effective-medium approximation is exact to second order in ΔW for all frequencies. The frequency dependence of the hopping conductivity is a second-order effect

Wheat Cleaning and its Effect on U.S. Wheat Exports

This analysis shows that there could be net gains to the U.S. wheat industry if all U.S. export wheat were to be cleaned to a dockage level between 0.35 to 0.40 percent. These results are based on survey results of major importers of U.S. wheat, and a model of world wheat trade. Larger benefits to the U.S. wheat industry would be possible from cleaning only wheat destined to countries that demand higher quality U.S. wheat. However, these gains in export revenue from selling cleaner wheat could be offset if other exporters, especially Canada, responded in ways that would maintain their market share.wheat, grain quality, trade model, Crop Production/Industries, International Relations/Trade,