Explaining German imports of olive oil: evidence from a gravity model

In this study the case of olive oil imports of Germany is examined since olive oil is a traditional Mediterranean commodity and Germany is the biggest importer in the EU. A gravity model has been employed so as to analyse those factors that explain the German imports of olive oil that were identified in a preceding analysis of the German olive oil supply chain. The results of two random-effects models corrected for serial correlation and heteroskedasticity suggest that being a Mediterranean Partner country of the EU has the highest impact on trade flows to Germany, thus supporting further Euromediterranean trade integration. The level of trade to Germany is positively related to existence of direct marketing channels and to tourism implying that these factors should be explored more in the future by the Mediterranean countries so as to boost their exports.gravity model, olive oil, Germany, International Relations/Trade,

Evolution of olive oil import demand structures in nonproducing countries: the cases of Germany and the UK

Consumption patterns of olive oil have changed over recent years influencing the supply chain. The consumption has increased in countries where olive oil is not part of the traditional diet as for example Germany and the UK, where the average consumption grew by 11 and 13% respectively during the period 1995-2003. The opening of new non-traditional markets has shifted exports and re-structured the supply chain. Mediterranean countries have been the traditional suppliers of olive oil with the EU Mediterranean Member States being the main exporters and with the non-EU Mediterranean countries trying to gain market shares in the EU markets in an attempt to benefit from the preferential access due to the Barcelona Agreement. This paper tries to identify which factors influenced olive oil demand of non-traditional consumers using Germany and the UK as case studies with the help of a gravity model. The results of the random effects models corrected for serial correlation and heteroskedasticity indicate that the Barcelona Agreement has boosted the non-EU Mediterranean exports to Germany and the UK while olive oil exports are positively related to direct marketing strategies and tourism, implying that these factors have the largest impact on the olive oil exports from producing countries and consequently on the overall supply chain.Olive oil, gravity model, import demand, Germany, UK, Agricultural and Food Policy, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Analysing agricultural productivity growth in a framework of institutional quality

This paper addresses the question whether the institutional environment of transition countries in Eastern Europe affects productivity growth in the agricultural sector. Situated in a neoclassical growth framework, a dynamic panel model for the period 1996-2005 provides evidence that poor institutional quality leads to a slowdown in agricultural productivity growth. Productivity growth is limited by a high degree of corruption, which is of particular importance given that corruption has been proven to be most prevalent in Eastern European countries. Moreover, agricultural productivity in countries where privatisation and transferability of land is restricted is found to grow at a slower rate than countries supporting market-oriented land reforms. Interestingly, the results suggest that a high degree of openness leads to a loss in agricultural productivity, suggesting that timing and sequencing of trade reforms matter. An improvement of the poor institutional quality is thus of central importance to accelerate productivity growth in Eastern European countries. --Eastern Europe,Transition,Productivity growth

Exploratory applications of the Fr\"ohlich-Morchio-Strocchi mechanism in quantum gravity

A manifestly diffeomorphism-invariant approach to canonical quantum gravity requires to use composite operators. These can be considered to be bound states of matter and/or gravitons, intrinsically non-perturbative objects. An analytical approach to determine the properties of such bound states could be the Fr\"ohlich-Morchio-Strocchi mechanism. We explore the necessary technology by applying it to various $n$-point functions, including geon propagators and black-hole-particle vertices.Comment: 27 page

Reducing Lead Times in a two-process cell using lean and simulation.

An existing power system production process includes two operations and produces twelve different part types. The first operation fills WIP carts used by the second operation. A combined lean and discrete event simulation study supported by the analysis of order history information stored in a corporate information system is presented. The goal was to identify operations alternatives that could be used to reduce customer lead time from the current 3 to 3 days to 1 to 3 days. The application of lean methods included the examination of the order history data that showed that 80% of parts ship to a single primary customer and 20% to many secondary customers. The lean part of the study further concluded that the number of WIP carts should equal the number of different products, that each WIP cart should be associated with one and only one product and that each WIP cart should be should refilled daily after orders are processed. Using a discrete event simulation model, four order processing sequencing alternatives for improving on-time delivery were evaluated. The percent of orders delivered in 1 day was maximized, with the lowest variance, by sorting all orders for the primary customer first from smallest in size to largest. The orders for the same product from the remaining customers are processed immediately after the order for the same product from the primary customer. The value of the synergistic effect of combining lean tools with simulation supported by order data extracted from the corporate information system is demonstrated

Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik der EU

Die Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik gehört zu den Kernbereichen der europäischen Integration. Was waren ihre ursprünglichen Ziele und welche Auswirkungen hatte sie? Welche Reformmaßnahmen wurden durchgeführt? Wie ist die europäische Agrarpolitik innerhalb der WTO zu beurteilen? Welchen Herausforderungen muss sie sich in Zukunft stellen? --

Analysing agricultural productivity growth in a framework of institutional quality

This paper addresses the question whether the institutional environment of transition countries in Eastern Europe affects productivity growth in the agricultural sector. Situated in a neoclassical growth framework, a dynamic panel model for the period 1996-2005 provides evidence that poor institutional quality leads to a slowdown in agricultural productivity growth. Productivity growth is limited by a high degree of corruption, which is of particular importance given that corruption has been proven to be most prevalent in Eastern European countries. Moreover, agricultural productivity in countries where privatisation and transferability of land is restricted is found to grow at a slower rate than countries supporting market-oriented land reforms. Interestingly, the results suggest that a high degree of openness leads to a loss in agricultural productivity, suggesting that timing and sequencing of trade reforms matter. An improvement of the poor institutional quality is thus of central importance to accelerate productivity growth in Eastern European countries