This study examines Chinese consumers’ preferences for organic and non-GM (genetically modified) attributes of soybeans used in soymilk. An enumerated consumer survey was conducted in three types of grocery outlets in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. We found that respondents were willing to pay a premium for organic and non-GM attributes as well as for information on where soybeans were produced. The organic attribute certified by U.S. agencies was valued more than that certified by Chinese agencies, but the converse was true for the non-GM attribute. Preferences were heterogeneous, particularly toward U.S.-certified organic and soybeans of Chinese origin. [JEL Classifications: Q13, Q17]

Using nonlinear time series models, the authors explore the effects of an industry-led initiative to have firms voluntarily restrict television advertising of carbonated soft drinks to children. They find that the market leader reduces its advertising to both adults and children and the second largest firm reduces advertising to adults. Advertising by a nonparticipating firm, however, increased for adults following the ban. The results emphasize the potential benefits and difficulty of coordinating cooperative behavior in this type of industry. Such policy strategies may be more effective directed at industries and not at individual firms.

This study examines the impact of different food scare events on marketing margins in the U.S. beef and pork industries. The authors analyze how market stresses induced by the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) recalls and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) outbreaks affect price spreads and the extent of price transmission at the slaughter-to-wholesale and wholesale-to-retail levels. They use monthly national data for the period 1986–2008, which includes records of FSIS recalls of varying severity and BSE events in the United States and Canada. The authors account for immediate and delayed effects of food scares and for potential cross effects across industries and countries. The results indicate that beef and food recalls do not affect their corresponding price margins and overall food safety incidents have minor cross-industry and cross-country effects. However, BSE discoveries in the United States considerably affect marketing margins in the beef industry, particularly at the wholesale-to-retail level. Interestingly, subsequent discoveries had smaller impacts on price margins. Bovine spongiform encephalopathy outbreaks also appear to affect the extent of price transmission between wholesalers and retailers.

This study analyzes the strategy of one firm offering a new product with willingness to pay (WTP) for the usual and new products elicited in the lab. By using WTP from an experiment, surpluses for consumers choosing between the usual and new products are inferred and lead to an estimated demand for the new product. From this demand, the author shows how to estimate the ex ante price of the new product along with the ex ante level of advertising selected by one firm for informing consumers. The socially optimal level of advertising maximizing the welfare is also determined. The previous methodology is applied to two experiments with food. For a same-advertising formula regarding information diffusion to consumers, the estimated levels of advertising highly differ between these two experiments because of different WTP variations linked to the new product. [JEL classifications: L15, C91].

The authors identified three breaks in the relationship between corn and oil prices. The first break coincides with the second oil crisis. The second break marks the end of the agricultural export subsidy war between the European Union and the United States in the second half of 1980s; the third one occurred at the beginning of the ethanol boom at the very end of the 1990s. The relationship between corn and oil prices tends to be stronger when oil prices are highly volatile and when agricultural policies create less distortion. The ethanol boom strengthened the relation between corn and oil prices, which are cointegrated only in the fourth and last regime. Impulse response functions confirm that corn prices systematically respond to oil price shocks, but the converse is not observed. [EconLit Classifications: C32; Q11; Q40]

With the persistent changes in technology and increased competition in food manufacturing, it is important to reassess the effects of agglomeration economies and market access on the performance of firms. Using survey data from New York food processors, an ordered logit analysis reveals that firm growth is related to important upstream and downstream market condiations. The clustering of similar manufacturers was found to have important effects on firm revenue growth, with the benefits of firm clustering increasing significantly with the level of local urbanization. For these reasons, policies that promote intra-industry or cross-industry collaboration would likely benefit food manufacturers, but these benefits would not be limited to firms in close geographic proximity to one another. Moreover, in rural areas especially, manufacturing firms and community planners need to be aware of possible negative effects of competition from growing concentrations of firms so that these issues can be addressed before local business growth is adversely affected.

The authors examine the differences in the behavior of the innovation between the Spanish agrifood and manufacturing firms using firm-level data from 1990–2008 to analyze the persistence in innovation and to explore the explanatory determinants of the probability of being product and process innovator. Survival functions, transition probability matrices, and dynamic discrete choice panel data models are combined to measure persistence. The results suggest that in the food industry the persistence of process innovation is higher than in product innovation. Environmental and market determinants such as market changes or appropriability are more decisive to explain innovation in food industry. By contrast, several determinant variables for innovation activities in the manufacturing sector seem not to be linked with the innovation in food firms. That is the case of the outsourcing ratio and the positive evolution of market share of the individual firm.

In this article, the author's set out Jordà's (2005) method of local projections by which nonlinear/ asymmetric impulse responses can be computed without the need to specify and estimate the underlying nonlinear/asymmetric dynamic system. The method is used to compute price-reaction functions that show how the prices of the different stages in a food supply chain dynamically respond to each other and whether or not these responses reveal any asymmetric patterns. Empirical applications for the U.S. pork-meat and broiler-composite chains illustrate the convenience of the method and reveal that in the pork chain asymmetric price transmission enables retailers (wholesalers) to increase their marketing margin vis-à-vis the wholesalers (farmers), whereas in the broiler sector the retailers face both temporary decreases and increases in their marketing margin as a consequence of asymmetric wholesale-retail price transmission.

Farmers and consumers suspect that processing firms abuse their power in the milk marketing chain by engaging in price fixing behavior. The author employs threshold autoregressive and moment threshold autoregressive tests, and contrary to expectations, finds evidence for a downward trend in wholesale milk price without a corresponding decline in farm-gate prices. The downward trend coincides with increased competition in the dairy industry and with the growing market share of the formal sector at the expense of the informal sector. Major dairy processing firms expand their market share and yet continue to enjoy healthy profits thanks to increasing returns due to economies of scale in their processing and distribution operations in a growing market.

Brands have largely been absent for fresh produce products; however, apples are one of a few exceptions whereby varieties partially take the place of brands. Studying the role of brands in this market is particularly interesting given the introduction of several patented or so-called managed apple varieties. We run an experiment to measure consumer response to a suite of apple varieties; treatments employ different branding strategies using different names for a new managed variety included in the experiment. Results suggest that the name does influence consumer valuation of the new variety and existing managed varieties, but has little impact on the willingness to pay for traditional apple varieties.

Agricultural production has considerable potential in Turkey. Different regions of the country are able to supply a variety of agricultural products due to the wide-range of climate conditions and high land quality. Also, the majority of the water resources in the region are located within the country. Hence, with the implementation of the effective agricultural policies, agricultural products can be significantly increased in terms of quality and quantity. In this context, this study investigates findings from an explanatory study of dried fruit production and exports to improve SMEs’ competitiveness in the agriproduct export business. Turkey reported a trade deficit equivalent to USD 7533 million in November of 2011, and this shortfall is becoming more threatening day by day. Because Turkey has a comparative advantage in the dried food industry, it would be valuable to conduct a study to present a management decision tool to determine which factors are more important and to identify the weights that are most significant for dried fruit exporters. The analytical network process (ANP) method was selected to solve the problem because it has been successfully used to evaluate the factors when interdependency exists in between the decision criteria. The contributions of the study could be extended to other sectors and problem areas of business management because the approach, model, and methodology can be easily adopted by practitioners.

This study focusses on whether the geographical separation of markets constitutes a factor that helps explain the dynamics of agricultural prices. To do this, the authors employ a highly disaggregated dataset for Colombia that consists of weekly observations on wholesale prices for 18 agricultural products traded in markets scattered around the country. The sample period spans almost a decade. According to their results, which are based on generalized impulse response functions, distance (and thus transportation costs) is a factor that helps explain the speed at which prices adjust to shocks in other locations, thus confirming that price adjustments take longer for markets farther apart. [JEL Classifications: O18, Q13, R12].

Biomass-based agribusiness industries hold significant potential to contribute to environmentally beneficial renewable energy. The authors explore survey evidence on producer preferences for organizational types that will influence market development. Although there are many features of market development that are important, they focus on understanding their organizational choices, the services producers may be willing to provide, and the assets producers currently own. Results indicate mid-Missouri producers have higher preferences for spot markets compared to the southern Illinois producers; the southern Illinois producers prefer short-term and long-term contracts. [JEL Classifications: L220, Q130].

The author examines whether ownership and increased competitive pressure affect food retailers’ market power, analyzing whether all actors involved in the food supply chain deviate from the pricing behavior that exists under perfect competition. A method proposed by Roeger (1995) is used to estimate monopoly and monopsony market power, relaxing the assumptions of perfect competition and constant returns to scale, and avoiding any endogeneity issues. The results obtained indicate that foreign investments and consolidation have a positive and significant impact on food processors’ and retailers’ mark-ups. Food processors, agricultural producers, and wholesalers have lower price-cost margins than retailers, whereas retailers exert monopsonistic power in the upstream food market as well. The results are robust for various estimation techniques and specifications.

There has been a general consensus in recent literature that internationalization is a key success factor in the competitive business environment we now live in. Using a sample of Spanish agri-food companies, the main objective of this research is to determine the linkage of Management Control Systems (MCS), ISO certifications, internationalization and performance. The results obtained reveal, as expected, that internationalization has a direct and positive relationship with organizational performance. In addition, we find that both the use of MCS and the deployment of ISO certification positively influence companies' level of internationalization. Nevertheless, our findings clearly indicate that MCS and ISO do not influence performance directly.

The authors describe the goat markets in Afghanistan by analyzing goat producers’ price expectations and by identifying the factors that determine these price expectations. Data on expected prices for goats transacted were collected from 280 goat producers from Baghlan and Nangarhar provinces, along with information on factors anticipated to influence the price expectation from May 2008 to April 2009. A price expectation model was built and analyzed using a general linear model.

Results indicated that goat producers adjusted expected prices for marketing day (Saturday and Thursday), location of sales (district and provincial markets), live weight, and goat producers’ market network. However, goat producers did not expect a premium for goat attributes like breed and age. The implications of the study are that goat producers can expect more when they plan their goat sales based on live weight, market day, marketing place and sex of goat. [Econlit Citations: Q130; Q120, C100].

Consumers often favor locally over nonlocally produced foods in the belief they have higher quality and provide the quasipublic service of conserving local agriculture. The aim of the present study is to clarify these two motivations’ relative contributions to product demand by considering consumer reference points, that is preferences for remaining at present consumption and price levels. A stated-preference method is applied to the Japanese demand for bread from local wheat. We find that Japanese consumers pay a significant premium for local wheat bread and that more than half the observed demand variation is explained by a product's quasipublic nature. In contrast, reference-point effects suggest that those who frequently buy local food have a negative willingness-to-pay for imported or nonlocal-domestic breads. Appealing to local food-buyers’ preferences for a local source and for environmental quality thus appears to be the most effective way of promoting local wheat bread. [JEL classifications: Q13; D12; D03].

The authors estimate an Engel curve for cigarette consumption in Japanese single households and compare it to that of family households. The study utilizes quarterly panel data for six regions for the period January 2002 through June 2011. The objective of the study was to evaluate and determine the cigarette consumption responsiveness of these household groups to expenditure changes, tax reforms, and other factors. Taking into account the short-term adjustment processes and long-term equilibrium, the authors adopt an error correction model as the analytic framework, where they estimate long- and short-term expenditure elasticities, tax effects, regional effects, and demographic effects. The estimation results show cigarette demand to be highly inelastic to expenditure changes in both household groups, both in the long- and short-term, confirming the findings of previous research. Cigarette tax increases were found to have no significant effect in reducing consumption in single households both in the long and short term, a result different from that of family households in Japan. [EconLit classification: D100, D120, D190].

The knowledge of whether or not consumers are willing to pay a price premiums and the amount of the willingness to pay (WTP) when buying foods with more fiber, vitamins, protein, fat, and less saturated fat shapes food manufacturer and distributor marketing strategies and supports the development of public health programs. In this study we analyze survey data collected in Korea to identify consumer profiles associated with both the binary decision and the level of WTP for foods with nutritionally desired attributes. Results indicate the importance of socio-economic variables, location, variables representing the risk of health problems, implicit lifestyle differences and attributes related to food preparation. [EconLit Classification: Q130, Q180].

Today yogurt is produced and consumed worldwide, and its popularity has increased in recent years. In Italy, yogurt consumption grew by 43% in the period 2004–2008. This study is focused on the analysis of yogurt retail prices that show a great variability in the Italian market. In fact, our survey, carried out in a selected area of Italy during the last months of 2010, showed that yogurt retail prices range from 0.9 Euro/kg to 9.6 Euro/kg. We deemed the hedonic price model to be the most appropriate analytical tool for this investigation because it allows explaining how the price of yogurt varies depending on its main quality attributes. The study's results may be useful in better understanding the evolutionary dynamics of an important market, such as yogurt in Italy, and, second, in addressing the marketing strategies of yogurt manufacturers facing an expanding market that is also characterized by an increasing competitive pressure and a rapid change in consumer preferences. [EconLit Citations: Q110, D400, L660].

Cause-related marketing (CrM) campaigns are increasingly used by firms as a marketing tool to promote and differentiate their products from those of competitors. Nevertheless, little is known about consumers’ attitudes, knowledge, and perception regarding CrM campaigns and the communication channels they use to learn about CrM. In this article the authors focus on the role of these and other success factors such as cause–brand fit and product fit influencing German consumers’ willingness to buy a CrM promoted product. Results from a consumer study provide evidence that consumers in general hold positive attitudes towards CrM, but that these are not strongly reflected in intended or actual purchase behavior. Based on factor and cluster analyses the authors derive marketing recommendations for companies on how to effectively address different consumer segments regarding the CrM products. We identify four groups of consumers that differ in their attitudes towards CrM products. While some consumers appreciate CrM products, others are more critical towards the concept of CrM. [JEL Classifications: M310, Q13].

Since the 1980s, the composition of the fresh apple market has shifted from three fourths Red Delicious to about one third in 2012. Gala apples are one of the cultivars that have gained ground in popularity. In this article, the authors compare how internal fruit qualities affect consumers’ willingness to pay for apples and whether these effects differ across these two cultivars. Consumers are willing to pay more for firmness for both cultivars, with a larger effect for Red Delicious. Using consumer assessments of sweetness acceptability, consumers are willing to pay a positive amount for both cultivars, but the effect of sweetness is higher for Gala apples. The only significant ethnicity variable is being Hispanic, which is associated with lower willingness to pay for Gala and higher willingness to pay for Red Delicious. One possible explanation is that the Hispanic consumers may have stronger food traditions associated with Red Delicious. [EconLit Citations: Q13, L15].

This study borrows the theoretical framework developed by Lee and Habte-Giorgis (2004) to empirically assess the sequential relationships between firm strategic factors, foreign direct investment (FDI) activity, and financial performance for a sample of U.S.-based multinational agribusinesses. After using hierarchical regressions and path analysis, this study finds a positive direct effect of FDI on performance, a complementary effect between FDI and firm strategic factors (positive and significant interaction terms) on performance, and a positive effect of FDI on performance given a threshold for firm size. Specifically, it provides insights about the direct effect of FDI on performance, as well as about the joint effect of firm size and FDI, marketing intensity and FDI, and capital intensity and FDI on performance. These findings provide evidence that FDI activity is an important factor for U.S. agribusiness financial strength. [JEL classifications: F230, Q130, L250].