THE PERSISTENCE OF PROFITABILITY IN THE FOOD AND AGRIBUSINESS SECTOR

We evaluate the persistence of incremental industry, firm-specific, and corporate-parent effects on firm profitability across the food and agribusiness sector and further analyze the persistence within four major sectors: processing, wholesale, retail, and restaurant. Results suggest that industry effects are more persistent than corporate effects across the food and agribusiness sector. Results also suggest the retail supermarket sector has had relatively stable profits due to both industry and firm effects during the time period under study. The results have implications with respect to research and extension programs targeted toward educating producers and management about producer-owned businesses.Agribusiness,

ECONOMIES OF SCALE IN THE GREENHOUSE FLORICULTURE INDUSTRY

Crop Production/Industries,

DIVERSIFICATION AND FIRM PERFORMANCE IN THE FOOD ECONOMY

The effects of diversification on firm value in the food economy are analyzed within four major sectors: processing, wholesale, retail, and restaurant. We find that diversification in the food economy contributes to positive excess firm value. Processing firms are most likely to diversify while restaurant firms have the largest positive diversification effect.Industrial Organization,

MEASURING INDUSTRY AND FIRM EFFECTS IN FOOD AND AGRIBUSINESS FIRMS

Managers craft strategies that, if successfully implemented, can improve profitability and financial performance over time. Can firms repeat their performance over time? If so, then a manager who crafted a successful strategy could expect her/his firm to achieve greater profitability relative to other firms within its industry. The objective of this study was to compare business performance (accounting profitability) for publicly traded and cooperatively-owned food and agribusiness firms. We used the Standard and Poors Compustat database using the methodology of McGahan and Porter's paper which used on 4,112 manufacturing firms. Return on investment for each SIC code in each year was calculated. A regression equation with return on investment as the dependent variable and the average returns on the right hand side were used in a weighted least squares regression. The data was broken out into processing, wholesaling, restaurants, and retail supermarkets. Industry effects are greatest across all business segments and the processing sector. The retail supermarket sector has had relatively stable profits due to both industry and firm effects over time. This would suggest that the retail industry structure is conducive to stable profits and that firms within the industry are able to differentiate themselves, which also contributes to permanence of profits. Our results suggest that industry structure does not contribute to stable profits in the wholesale and restaurant sector. Industry effects are more persistent than corporate effects. These implications are also of interest to land grant universities. Agribusiness economics research and extension programs exist at many land grant universities to educate producers and management about producer-owned businesses. Finally, persistence of profitability in certain firms has long been noted by economists. Further research is needed on identifying characteristics of those firms that contribute to their persistent profits.Agribusiness,

Quantum data processing and error correction

This paper investigates properties of noisy quantum information channels. We define a new quantity called {\em coherent information} which measures the amount of quantum information conveyed in the noisy channel. This quantity can never be increased by quantum information processing, and it yields a simple necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of perfect quantum error correction.Comment: LaTeX, 20 page

Asymmetry of temporal cross-correlations in turbulent shear flows

We investigate spatial and temporal cross-correlations between streamwise and normal velocity components in three shear flows: a low-dimensional model for vortex-streak interactions, direct numerical simulations for a nearly homogeneous shear flow and experimental data for a turbulent boundary layer. A driving of streamwise streaks by streamwise vortices gives rise to a temporal asymmetry in the short time correlation. Close to the wall or the bounding surface in the free-slip situations, this asymmetry is identified. Further away from the boundaries the asymmetry becomes weaker and changes character, indicating the prevalence of other processes. The systematic variation of the asymmetry measure may be used as a complementary indicator to separate different layers in turbulent shear flows. The location of the extrema at different streamwise displacements can be used to read off the mean advection speed; it differs from the mean streamwise velocity because of asymmetries in the normal extension of the structures.Comment: 10 pages, 7 Postscript figures (low quality due to downsizing

Existence and Uniqueness of Solutions to a Nonlocal Equation with Monostable Nonlinearity

Let $J \in C(\mathbb{R})$, $J\ge 0$, \int_{\tiny\mathbb{R}} J = 1 and consider the nonlocal diffusion operator $\mathcal{M}[u] = J \star u - u$. We study the equation $\mathcal{M} u + f(x,u) = 0$, $u \ge 0$, in $\mathbb{R}$, where $f$ is a KPP-type nonlinearity, periodic in $x$. We show that the principal eigenvalue of the linearization around zero is well defined and that a nontrivial solution of the nonlinear problem exists if and only if this eigenvalue is negative. We prove that if, additionally, $J$ is symmetric, then the nontrivial solution is unique

ECONOMIC THRESHOLDS: AN APPLICATION TO FLORICULTURE

This paper introduces conjunctive optimal pest management and production decision rules applied to the floriculture industry. A grower is faced with optimally controlling multiple pests and applying cultural controls to maximize the expected net present value of benefits within a discrete time framework, subject to biological and marketing constraints.Crop Production/Industries,