The Transmission of Exchange Rate Changes to Agricultural Prices

Movements in countries’ exchange rates can substantially change the prices of goods faced by producers and consumers and thereby affect incentives to produce, consume, and trade goods. Exchange rate changes, however, might not be completely transmitted (passed through) to domestic prices. Empirical evidence shows that price and exchange rate transmission for agricultural products is low in most developing economies, partly because of trade policies but also because of inadequate infrastructure and other market deficiencies. During the last 20 years, developed and developing countries generally have moved away from support policies that impede price and exchange rate transmission toward trade policies that allow transmission, such as tariffs. The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture of 1994 strongly encouraged this development. Despite these policy changes, market deficiencies remain as a cause of incomplete transmission. Incomplete transmission weakens countries’ integration into world agricultural markets and thereby reduces agricultural trade potential. Low transmission in developing countries also decreases their own benefits from trade, including the gains they could realize if there is further global agricultural liberalization.Agricultural infrastructure, agricultural policy, agricultural trade, exchange rates, exchange rate transmission, imperfect markets, institutions, price transmission., Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Agricultural Finance, Financial Economics,

Biodiesel: Tomorrow\u27s Fuel, Today\u27s Solution

Study of physical and chemical properties of biodiesel fuels derived from poultry and plant fats

The Construction of an Essentialist ‘Mixed-Race’ Identity in the Anglophone Caribbean Novel 1914-1998

This thesis examines the portrayal of the 'mixed-race' person in twentieth-century Caribbean literature. The premise that their portrayal has been limited by essentialised racial stereotypes is investigated and the conclusion is reached that these stereotypes have been founded in nineteenth century theories of racial hybridity. The development of this racial theory is explored and reveals that the concept of hybridity was generated through imperialistic and colonial endeavours to support a policy of racial subjugation predicated by European economic desire to exploit non-white peoples. In the Caribbean this took the form of African slavery, and the need to keep the 'races' separate and unequal under this system led to the demonisation of 'mixed-race' people of African and European descent. Despite attempts to prevent the proliferation of a 'mixed-race' population, their increasing numbers led to further plantocratic strategies to divide the 'mixed-race' and black population in order to maintain white socio-economic supremacy. This thesis finds that the literary construction of 'mixed-race' identity has been grounded in a biologised fallacy of `hybridity'. Despite recent attempts to appropriate the term `hybridity' as a cultural metaphor, hybridity itself remains entrenched in nineteenth century notions of absolute racial difference. The biological concept of `mixed-race' degeneracy coupled with the white engineered racial divisions within Caribbean society has left the 'mixed-race' person in an ambivalent position. Although the Caribbean novel has spearheaded an awareness of European colonial oppression and has challenged racial stereotypes of black people, offering positive portrayals of Afro-Caribbean identity, the portrayal of the 'mixedrace' person remains limited. The development of indigenous and, subsequently, diasporic Caribbean literature has tended to perpetuate the stereotype of the deviant `mixed-race' person, previously popularised in the nineteenth century European novel on the Caribbean

In the margins: Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic women’s narratives of recovering from an eating disorder

Eating disorders are associated with white Euro/American women and were initially thought of as a ‘culture bound’ condition; that is specific to a particular culture. However, research and clinical experience shows that Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) women in the United Kingdom and globally, experience the distress of disordered eating. There remains a debate about transferring diagnostic categories across cultures and how similar or different the experience of eating disorders is for BAME women compared with white women from the United Kingdom. This inquiry is a small scale qualitative inquiry asking questions of race and culture, of idioms of distress and intercultural meaning making explored through narratives of nine racially diverse women recovering from an eating disorder, drawing on a dialogical approach to narrative analysis. Recovering narratives are explored both to bring forth untold appreciative stories where personal stories of recovering is under researched, and to make transparent that research addressing BAME women and eating disorders is limited and where studies are undertaken, they remain invisible in mainstream clinical texts or journal articles. Individual/cultural and collective stories are identified through the analytic process drawing on creative non fiction writing techniques, weaving both traditional and dialogical methods of narrative analysis. The dialogical method centres on ‘voice, embodiment and emotional volitional tone’ of the storytellers, every voice contains multiple voices. The researcher is ready and attuned to listen to the emotional volitional tone, an active, embodied talk that invites reflexivity of the researcher who embodies and emotionally engages with the material creatively, contributing to the co construction of dialogical stories. In foregrounding storytellers’ strengths, capabilities and talking back to the orthodoxy of biomedical narratives is a position or resistance. Dominant discourses of eating disorders marginalise BAME women, and represent a challenge to clinicians and services. The lack of attention to diversity is shown to impede access to timely assessment and treatment. The ethnocentric narrative is further emboldened because racially diverse families are concerned about seeking help where services are seen as constructed for white persons leading to concerns about confidentiality and fear of stigma. Key findings are summarised below: The first two findings concur with current, though marginalised knowledge; the remainder of the findings are unique to this inquiry. • Eating disorders occur amongst BAME women and cause distress • Help seeking remains problematic; when help is sought there are access to treatment issues • Clinicians require training to challenge assumptions regarding BAME women and eating disorders • Eating disorder experiences may appear similar to white females though clinicians should not presume the pathway to the condition is the same • Migration, racism, colonisation, slavery, trauma, loss, bereavement, famine, war, starvation, the role of food, gender roles, family understanding of mental ill health and social change need to be taken into account in assessment and treatment • BAME women are positive about their recovering from eating disorders • BAME women co exist in individualistic and collectivist cultures and this may assist in recovering • Culturally informed practice/training guides are produced to support clinicians in identification, assessment, treatment and training. In concluding, this inquiry interrogates the dialectic between mainstream and subjugated narratives, contesting assumptions that it is only white women who experience eating disorders and brings forth marginalised narratives that resist, stand up and talk back to dominant narratives. BAME women experience the distress of eating disorders often without adequate support in our communities. As clinicians we are positioned now to consider our ethical responsibilities towards this visible/invisible heterogeneous group

Determining the Community Prevalence of Acute Gastrointestinal Illness and Gaps in Surveillance of Acute Gastroenteritis and Foodborne Diseases in Guyana

Guyana is an English-speaking country in South America and, culturally, it is part of the Caribbean. Objective of this study was to determine the community prevalence and true burden and economic impact of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) and foodborne diseases (FBDs) in Guyana. A cross-sectional population-based survey was conducted in 7 of the 10 regions in Guyana during August and November 2009 to capture the high- and low-AGE season respectively. Overall, 1,254 individual surveys were administered at a response rate of 96.5%. The overall monthly prevalence of self-reported cases of AGE was 7.7% (97 cases) (95% CI 6.3-9.3), and the yearly incidence was 1.0 episodes per person-year. The highest monthly prevalence of AGE was observed in region 4 (8.9%) and in children aged 1-4 year(s) (12.7%). Of the 97 AGE cases, 23% sought medical care; 65% reported spending time at home due to their illness [range 1-20 day(s), mean 2.7 days], of whom 51% required other individuals to look after them while ill. The maximum number of stools per 24 hours ranged from 3 to 9 (mean 4.5), and number of days an individual suffered from AGE ranged from 1 to 21 day(s) (mean 2.7 days). The burden of syndromic AGE cases in the population for 2009 was estimated to be 131,012 cases compared to the reported 30,468 cases (76.7% underreporting), which implies that, for every syndromic case of AGE reported, there were additional 4.3 cases occurring in the community. For every laboratory-confirmed case of FBD/AGE pathogen reported, it was estimated that approximately 2,881 more cases were occurring in the population. Giardia was the most common foodborne pathogen isolated. The minimum estimated annual cost associated with the treatment for AGE was US$ 2,358,233.2, showing that AGE and FBD pose a huge economic burden on Guyana. Underreporting of AGE and foodborne pathogens, stool collection, and laboratory capacity were major gaps, affecting the surveillance of AGE in Guyana

U.S. Agricultural Exports Supported 1.2 Million Full-Time Jobs in 2017

U.S. agricultural exports support output, employment, income, and purchasing power in the overall domestic economy. ERS researchers estimate that agricultural exports support roughly 1.2 million full-time civilian jobs

The Transmission of Exchange Rate Changes to Agricultural Prices

Movements in countries’ exchange rates can substantially change the prices of goods faced by producers and consumers and thereby affect incentives to produce, consume, and trade goods. Exchange rate changes, however, might not be completely transmitted (passed through) to domestic prices. Empirical evidence shows that price and exchange rate transmission for agricultural products is low in most developing economies, partly because of trade policies but also because of inadequate infrastructure and other market deficiencies. During the last 20 years, developed and developing countries generally have moved away from support policies that impede price and exchange rate transmission toward trade policies that allow transmission, such as tariffs. The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture of 1994 strongly encouraged this development. Despite these policy changes, market deficiencies remain as a cause of incomplete transmission. Incomplete transmission weakens countries’ integration into world agricultural markets and thereby reduces agricultural trade potential. Low transmission in developing countries also decreases their own benefits from trade, including the gains they could realize if there is further global agricultural liberalization