Crop Farmers' Willingness to Use Manure

Replaced with revised version of paper 07/30/04.Crop Production/Industries,

IMPACT OF OFF-FARM INCOME ON ADOPTION OF CONSERVATION PRACTICES

Off-farm income has recently been incorporated into the analysis of technology adoption, due to its increasing share in total farm household income in the U.S. Previous studies, however, found inconsistent results with respect to the impact of off-farm income on adoption of conservation practices. The contribution of the current study is to provide a conceptual model which shows that off-farm work has positive impact on adoption of capital incentive practices and negative impact on adoption labor intensive technologies. The results of multivariate probit regression confirms that adoption of injecting manure into the soil, which is a capital intensive practice, is positively and significantly impacted by off-farm work, and adoption of record keeping, which is a labor intensive practice, is negatively and significantly impacted by off-farm work.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Disadoption of Agricultural Practices by Livestock Farmers

To be effective, policies that encourage farmers to use new technologies or practices need farmers both adopt and also keep using these technologies and practices. Adoption of new technologies has been widely analyzed in the literature. However, there is little known about the factors that cause farmers to keep using new technologies or quit using them. Using hazard function estimation, the current study investigates disadoption of Roundup Ready soybeans, injecting manure into the soil, and soil testing. The results of the current study show that over time farmers observe the true benefits and costs of these practices and they become more likely to disadopt these practices.Disadoption, New Technology, Hazard Function, Learning, Uncertainty, Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy,

ESTIMATING DETERMINANTS OF STUDENT EVALUATION SCORES TO IMPROVE TEACHING

Student evaluations are used for both formative and summative assessment of teachers. This paper provides a method to make more effective use of these student evaluations by individual teachers. Data on three years of evaluations in two courses were used to develop regression models to explain overall effectiveness of teaching. The relative importance of explanatory variables changed with the course taught.Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FARMER AND AGENCY ATTITUDES REGARDING POLICIES TO REDUCE PHOSPHORUS POLLUTION IN THE MINNESOTA RIVER BASIN

Environmental Economics and Policy,

ESTIMATING TRANSACTION COSTS OF ALTERNATIVE POLICIES TO REDUCE PHOSPHOROUS POLLUTION IN THE MINNESOTA RIVER

As point sources of pollution reduce their emissions due to water quality control efforts, nonpoint sources have become relatively more important. In the case of agricultural nonpoint source pollution, the policy instruments recommended by economists are not observed in practice. This study was designed to measure the magnitude of transaction costs associated with policies to reduce agricultural nonpoint source pollution and to determine whether transaction costs help explain the prevalence of the policies actually observed. Interviews with staff from governmental agencies were conducted to estimate transaction costs associated with four policies to reduce agricultural phosphorous pollution in the Minnesota River. The tax on phosphate fertilizers had the lowest transaction costs (U.S. $0.94 million), followed by educational programs on best management practices ($3.11 million), the requirement for conservation tillage on all cropped land ($7.85 million), and expansion of a permanent conservation easement program ($9.37 million). Taxes thus may have advantages with respect to transaction costs as well as abatement costs.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Adoption of Phytase by Livestock Farmers

Phytase represents a potential win/win management practice for non-ruminant producers since it can reduce the need for phosphorous supplementation and also result in lower phosphorous runoff. Cost of phytase has decreased and cost of phosphorous has increased. The reported adoption rate for phytase for non-ruminants was 17.2 percent, however it is currently added to virtually all swine and poultry premixes by feed manufacturers due to the cost savings. People were more likely to say they use phytase if they think it is profitable, not time intensive, and improves water quality.manure, phytase, phosphorous, adoption, Environmental Economics and Policy, Livestock Production/Industries,

Off-Farm Employment Effects on Adoption of Nutrient Management Practices

Off-farm income as a share of total farm household income has been increasing. Previous studies found inconsistent results regarding the impact of off-farm income on adoption of conservation practices. We test the hypothesis that off-farm employment has a positive impact on adoption of capital incentive practices and a negative impact on adoption of labor-intensive practices. The results confirm that adoption of injecting manure into the soil, a capital intensive practice, is positively and significantly impacted by off-farm employment of the operator. However, off-farm employment variables had no effect on adoption of record keeping.adoption, nutrient management, off-farm income, Environmental Economics and Policy, Livestock Production/Industries,

Book reviews

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Book reviews

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,