Global Food Studies publications
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Item Metadata only A benefit/cost assessment in citrus IPM following the application of soil amendments(Horticulture Australia Ltd, 2013) Crisp, P.; Wheeler, S.; Baker, G.; Horticulture Australia, AustraliaItem Metadata only A century of intervention in a Ramsar wetland - the case of the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth(Taylor & Francis, 2017) Settre, C.; Wheeler, S.Coastal wetlands are among the more valuable ecosystems on the planet. Managing wetlands to maintain ecosystem function is physically and politically challenging, especially during drought. Management of the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth has been characterised by a sequence of active and reactive infrastructure interventions, first as active interventions to supply consumptive water demands and more recently as reactive emergency drought responses. However, infrastructure solutions are not necessarily synonymous with achieving sustainability. Infrastructure interventions have occurred at significant public expenditure and high opportunity cost. Greater attention to demand-based management strategies including time-limited environmental water acquisitions and state-based environmental water holdings provides an alternative to future infrastructure reliance. There is also considerable scope for greater provision of cultural flows and engagement with traditional owners to improve ecological condition.Item Metadata only A closer look at the rural-urban health disparities: insights from four major diseases in the Commonwealth of Virginia(Elsevier, 2015) Zeng, D.; You, W.; Mills, B.; Alwang, J.; Royster, M.; Anson-Dwamena, R.Abstract not availableItem Metadata only A tale of two water markets in Australia: lessons for understanding participation in formal water markets(Oxford University Press, 2020) Wheeler, S.A.; Garrick, D.E.Water markets are promoted as a demand-management strategy for addressing water scarcity. Although there is an increasing literature on the institutional preconditions required for successful formal water markets, there has been less focus on understanding what drives participation after establishment of the basic enabling conditions. Participation can be measured in terms of either trading activity (conducting either a permanent or temporary water trade) and/or trade volumes across time and market products. Australia’s water markets in the Southern and Northern Basins of the Murray-Darling Basin provide a notable example of a ‘tale of two water markets’, offering insights about the economic policy levers that can drive participation across different hydrological, irrigation, and socioeconomic contexts. Key lessons include: distribution of initial property rights in resource allocation; the need to prepare for and seize opportunities to strengthen property rights; and robust monitoring and compliance requirements—all of which will reduce transaction costs and increase participation.Item Metadata only Achieving environmental flows where buyback is constrained(Australian Agricultural Economics Society, 2018) Adamson, D.; Loch, A.Theory suggests that the development of common property increases national welfare, and consistent with this thinking Australia's Murray–Darling Basin (MDB) Plan uses a common property approach to recover environmental water rights in the national interest. Two water recovery instruments are used: purchasing water rights (buyback) from farmers, and saving water by subsidising irrigator adoption of technically efficient technology. A moratorium on buyback has focused environmental recovery on subsidised technically efficient technology adoption. Economists argue that national welfare is maximised via buyback and highlight the limitations of efficiency savings to recover sufficient environmental water. A risk is that water recovery targets may be reduced in future, limiting welfare gains from water reform. This article evaluates possible welfare trade-offs surrounding environmental water recovery outcomes where arbitrary limits on buyback are imposed. Results suggest that, on average, strategies which attempt to obtain >1500 gigalitres (GL) of water from on-farm efficiency investments will only provide sufficient resources to meet environmental objectives in very wet states of nature. We conclude that reliance on technically efficient irrigation infrastructure is less economically efficient relative to water buyback. Importantly, the transformation of MDB irrigation will significantly constrain irrigators' future capacity to adapt to climate changeItem Metadata only Achieving targeted environmental flows: alternative allocation and trading models under scarce supply-lessons from the Australian reform process(Pion, 2011) Loch, A.; Bjornlund, H.; McIver, R.The problem of water overallocation in many regions of the world involves how to include environmental flow provisions for long-term sustainability of river systems, especially under scarce supply conditions. Market mechanisms have provided pathways for returning water to rivers for environmental use. We argue that it is important to consider how both market mechanisms and initial water allocation models contribute to achieving satisfactory environmental flow outcomes. The Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) in Australia has had policy processes applied to it for almost twenty years to address these issues, and provides an excellent basis for case-study analysis. Two MDB case studies are used to consider differences in the interpretation and implementation of environmental flow requirements, and the potential for institutional inertia of the systems within which water markets operate. We identify two simplified models from these case studies—one prioritising environmental rights above consumptive extraction and the other prioritising consumptive and environmental rights equally. However, neither of these case-study models provides the full environmental flow spectrum of base in-stream flows to over-bank flush events. Our findings suggest that combining allocation and market-based rights (a third model) offers an effective means to deliver full-spectrum environmental flows. If governments provide prioritised environmental rights for base in-stream ecosystem benefits, together with targeted temporary and permanent water market acquisitions to meet environmental needs associated with over-bank floods and flushes, there will be lower potential for shortfalls relative to targeted environmental flow outcomes.Item Metadata only Acquiring water for the environment: lessons from natural resources management(Taylor & Francis, 2013) Lane-Miller, C.C.; Wheeler, S.; Bjornlund, H.; Connor, J.Over-allocation of water resources to irrigation, industry, and cities has severely impacted flow-dependent riverine ecosystems and led to growing interest in ways to restore water to the environment; one increasingly popular approach is water buybacks. This paper reviews US and Australian experiences in buying back water, focusing on the conditions which enable and inhibit environmental water acquisitions in each country. We also compare experiences with buyback efforts in fisheries, another natural resource sector. Lessons from these experiences provide important insights into how future water buyback programmes to acquire environmental water could be operated more effectively. The review suggests that the overall success of an environmental water buyback is likely to be enhanced by (1) legal and institutional settings which clearly define water rights and lower administrative and other barriers to water transfers, (2) non-governmental organizations and community groups which play a complementary role to government, (3) creation of a system that will fairly distribute future risk of water availability and provide choices for a variety of ways of obtaining water, and (4) efforts that minimize negative community impacts, thus helping to maximize irrigator participation.Item Metadata only Adaptation responses to increasing drought frequency(Australian Agricultural Economics Society, 2017) Adamson, D.; loch, A.; Schwabe, K.Using state contingent analysis, we discuss how and why irrigators adapt to alternative water supply signals. Focusing on the timing of water allocations, we explore inherent differences in the demand for water by two key irrigation sectors: annual and perennial producers. The analysis explores the reliability of alternative water property right bundles and how reduced allocations across time influence alternative responses by producers. Our findings are then extended to explore how management strategies could adapt to two possible future drier state types: (i) where an average reduction in water supply is experienced; and (ii) where drought becomes more frequent. The combination of these findings is subsequently used to discuss the role water reform policy plays in dealing with current and future climate scenarios.Item Open Access Addressing groundwater declines with precision agriculture: an economic comparison of monitoring methods for variable-rate irrigation(MDPI, 2017) West, M.; Kovacs, K.Irrigated row-crop agriculture is contributing to declining groundwater in areas such as the Mississippi Delta region of eastern Arkansas. There is a need to move toward sustainable levels of groundwater withdrawal. Recent improvements in remote monitoring technologies such as wireless soil moisture sensors and unmanned aerial vehicles offer the potential for farmers to effectively practice site-specific variable-rate irrigation management for the purpose of applying water more efficiently, reducing pumping costs, and retaining groundwater. Soil moisture sensors and unmanned aerial vehicles are compared here in terms of their net returns per acre-foot and cost-effectiveness of aquifer retention. Soil moisture sensors ($9.09 per acre-foot) offer slightly more net returns to producers than unmanned aerial vehicles ($7.69 per acre-foot), though costs associated with unmanned aerial vehicles continue to drop as more manufacturers enter the market and regulations become clear.Item Open Access Adherence to the Australian dietary guidelines during pregnancy: evidence from a national study(Cambridge University Press, 2016) Malek, L.; Umberger, W.; Makrides, M.; Zhou, S.OBJECTIVE: To assess dietary intake of pregnant women against the Australian Dietary Guidelines with respect to the Five Food Group recommendations and determine predictors of adherence to the recommendations. DESIGN: Cross-sectional web-based survey. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression. SETTING: Pregnant women living in Australia. A national sample was recruited using an online panel provider and a South Australian sample was recruited through the antenatal clinic of a large public maternity hospital. SUBJECTS: A total of 857 pregnant women. RESULTS: Fifty-six per cent, 29 % and less than 10 % of women met the recommendations for the fruit, dairy and other core food groups, respectively. None of the women met the recommendations for all Five Food Groups. Women who were born overseas and who were less physically active pre-pregnancy were less likely to adhere to the fruit and dairy recommendations. Women who smoked during pregnancy, were overweight pre-pregnancy and had lower household incomes were also less likely to meet the fruit recommendations; and women living in metropolitan areas were less likely to meet the vegetable recommendations. Sixty-one per cent believed their diet during this pregnancy was healthy. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of pregnant women in Australia perceive their diets to be healthy yet they do not consume the recommended daily servings from the Five Food Groups. Intervention strategies are warranted, particularly those that increase women's ability to evaluate their diet and also encourage positive dietary changes. These strategies may increase adoption of dietary guidelines and optimise pregnancy and other long-term health outcomes.Item Open Access Adoption, yield and profitability of tomato grafting technique in Vietnam(AVRDC - The World Vegetable Centre, 2015) Genova, C.; Schreinemachers, P.; Afari-Sefa, V.; Regional Symposium on Familes, Farms, Food : Sustaining Small-Scale Vegetable Production and Marketing Systems for Food and Nutrition Security (SEAVEG) (25 Feb 2014 - 27 Feb 2014 : Bangkok, Thailand); Hughes, J.; Kasemsap, P.; Dasgupta, S.; Dutta, O.; Ketsa, S.; Chaikiattiyos, S.; Linwattana, G.; Kosiyachinda, S.; Chantrasmi, V.This paper assesses the impact of AVRDC’s tomato grafting approach on yield and farm profitability in Lam Dong province and Red River Delta, Vietnam. Tomato grafting is advantageous to farmers suffering from soil-borne disease and abiotic stresses. However, there is scanty information on the extent of knowledge on adoption studies of tomato grafting technology in Vietnam. Based on a farm household survey conducted in August 2012, this paper provides detailed assessment of the adoption and profitability of introducing tomato grafting in the two study areas. Results indicate a 100% (n=225) adoption in Lam Dong province, and a 48% (n=36) adoption in the Red River Delta. The use of rootstock varieties differs in both locations to address location-specific agronomic challenges: tomato variety ‘Vimina’ (or HW7996) to address bacterial wilt (BW) problem, and eggplant EG203 variety in the Red River Delta to address both BW and waterlogging problem. Estimates from a Cobb-Douglas production function show that tomato grafting increases yield by 30% based. Marketable yield of grafted tomato was significantly larger (71.3 t/ha in Lam Dong Province and 75.0 t/ha in Red River Delta) than nongrafted (48.0 t/ha in Red River Delta). The benefit-cost ratio of grafted tomato production was higher compared to non-grafted due to increased yield and higher premium price. Nonetheless, further validation studies are required, considering the relatively small sample size in the Red River Delta and the high variability of some parameters.Item Metadata only Agricultural markets and marketing policies(Wiley, 2016) Griffith, G.; Watson, A.; Alston, J.M.; Anderson, K.; Pardey, P.G.Agricultural markets and marketing policies in Australia have changed markedly in recent years. In part, this has occurred because of conscious deregulation of previous price support and stabilisation schemes. Occasionally, the changes occurred because of poor administration and spectacular default. Previous price and marketing policies schemes provided differential rates of assistance with adverse consequences for resource allocation. Pricing arrangements affected marketing institutions and marketing costs beyond the farm gate, domestically and internationally. The conceptual basis of agricultural marketing analysis was contested. Private and public roles were confused, including between Commonwealth and state governments. Key principles of agricultural marketing and policy development in Australia are illustrated in the paper by reference to commodities with different histories and economic characteristics: wool, wheat, dairying and meat. Special emphasis is given to market information and price discovery. In line with continuing urbanisation and modern logistics, retail marketing of agricultural products has also been transformed. This has become controversial as a policy issue. Competition issues, the economic behaviour and performance of supermarkets, and their effects on farmers and consumers are also introduced in the paper.Item Metadata only Agricultural professionals’ views of biotechnology: why do they differ?(Victoria Management School, Victoria University of Wellington, 2005) Wheeler, S.; Talking Biotechnology: Reflecting on Science and Society Conference (2005 : Wellington, New Zealand); Davenport, S.; Doolin, B.; Leitch, S.; Motion, J.; Daellenbach, U.; Lum, S.Item Metadata only Agricultural technology adoption and child nutrition enhancement: improved maize varieties in rural Ethiopia(Wiley, 2017) Zeng, D.; Alwang, J.; Norton, G.; Shiferaw, B.; Jaleta, M.; Yirga, C.Adoption of improved crop varieties can lead to multiple benefits to farm households, including increased productivity, incomes, and food consumption. However, possible impacts of adoption on child nutrition outcomes are rarely explored in the literature. This article helps bridge this gap through an impact assessment of the adoption of improved maize varieties (IMVs) on child nutrition outcomes using a recent household survey from rural Ethiopia. The conceptual linkage between IMV adoption and child nutrition is first established using an agricultural household model. Instrumental variable estimation suggests the overall impacts of adoption on child height-for-age and weight-for-age z-scores to be positive and significant. Quantile instrumental variable regressions further reveal that such impacts are largest among children with poorest nutrition outcomes. Finally, by combining a decomposition procedure with system of equations estimation, it is found that the increase in own-produced maize consumption is the major channel through which IMV adoption affects child nutrition.Item Metadata only Agronomic and sustainability outcomes from compost application in South Australian citrus orchards(International Society for Horticultural Science, 2014) Crisp, P.; Baker, G.; Wheeler, S.; 1st International Symposium on Organic Matter Management and Compost Use in Horticulture (4 Apr 2011 - 7 Apr 2011 : Adelaide, South Australia); Biala, J.; Prange, R.; Raviv, M.SARDI has undertaken trials with compost mulch, grape marc and animal manure at sites on three citrus orchards in South Australia for a number of years. The trials were established to evaluate the potential of soil amendments as part of an integrated management program for Kelly’s citrus thrips (KCT). Experimental sites were designed to obtain best possible data for pest management within budget limitations, subsequently, the agronomic and environmental data were in some cases restricted to one site and selected representative treatments. A range of data were collected, including fruit yields, and fruit, soil, leaf, and water quality measures and biological changes, and the potential for water savings assessed. The field trials involved application of various rates of compost to crops, ranging from 40-200 m3 ha-1 for compost mulch, 100-200 m3 ha-1 for grape marc, and 10-40 m3 ha-1 for animal manure. The recycled green waste and composted animal manure have provided significant pest management and agronomic benefits through suppression of KCT and improved yield and fruit size. There were considerable economic net benefits from every type of trial application to citrus at both sites over the four year period assessed. For example, for every dollar invested in an application of 40 m3 ha-1 compost mulch at Loxton North, a return of about $ 5 dollars was realised. Returns ranged from $ 1.91 to 4.96. There also is the benefit of improved water efficiency that could provide significant cost savings. The longevity of these benefits remains unknown and is currently being evaluated. Whilst the grape marc treatments improved yields, and are cheaper than the composted green waste, the level of suppression of KCT was not as good as that provided by the compost, and the increased acidity that resulted from the high phosphate levels associated with the grape marc treatments could result in reduced quality. It seems that higher levels of application for compost mulch create more overall benefits in terms of fruit quality and tree health.Item Metadata only Allocation trade in Australia: a qualitative understanding of irrigator motives and behaviour(Wiley, 2012) Loch, A.; Bjornlund, H.; Wheeler, S.; Connor, J.Governments in Australia are purchasing water entitlements to secure water for environmental benefit, but entitlements generate an allocation profile that does not correspond fully to environmental flow requirements. Therefore, how environmental managers will operate to deliver small and medium-sized inundation environmental flows remains uncertain. To assist environmental managers with the supply of inundation flows at variable times, it has been suggested that allocation trade be incorporated into efforts aimed at securing water. This paper provides some qualitative and quantitative perspective on what influences southern Murray-Darling Basin irrigators to trade allocation water at specific times across and within seasons using a market transaction framework. The results suggest that while irrigators now have access to greater risk-management options, environmental managers should consider the possible impact of institutional change before intervening in traditional market activity. The findings may help improve the design of intervention strategies to minimise possible market intervention impacts and strategic behaviour. © 2011 The Authors. AJARE © 2011 Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Inc. and Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.Item Metadata only Allocative efficiency of agrifood traders: shrimp traders in Indonesia(Taylor & Francis Ltd, 2015) Yi, D.; Reardon, T.Shrimp is one of Indonesia's most important agricultural export commodities, with an annual export value exceeding $1 billion. If this high-value sector is to remain competitive and continue to grow, rural traders must be able to efficiently allocate scarce labour and factor inputs to trade shrimp. This study tests for factors leading to allocative inefficiency in the shrimp trade, by estimating a stochastic cost frontier on the basis of data from a survey of 200 shrimp traders in Central Java and South Sulawesi. Our results show that larger firms have a distinct cost advantage in trade and, owing in part to greater access to factor markets, are more efficient in allocating factors. Small firms can improve their allocative efficiency and become more competitive by specialising in trading one shrimp variety and by using output contracts to mitigate risk in the output market.Item Open Access An economic analysis of a contingency model utilising vaccination for the control of equine influenza in a non-endemic country(Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2019) Rosanowski, S.; Carpenter, T.; Adamson, D.C.; Rogers, C.; Pearce, P.; Burns, M.; Cogger, N.; Giangaspero, M.Background: Equine influenza (EI) is an infectious respiratory disease of horses that has never been reported in New Zealand (NZ). However, the 2007 EI outbreak in Australia, previously EI free, spurred the NZ government and stakeholders into evaluating alternative EI control strategies in order to economically justify any future decision to eradicate or manage EI. To build on the policy debate, this paper presents an epinomic (epidemiologic and economic) modelling approach to evaluate alternative control strategies. An epidemiologic model to determine how alternative EI control strategies influence the distribution of EI. Model results were then input into a cost-benefit analysis framework, to identify the return and feasibility of alternative EI eradication strategies in NZ. Methods: The article explores nine alternative eradication scenarios and two baseline strategies. The alternative scenarios consisted of three vaccination strategies (suppressive, protective or targeted) starting at three time points to reflect the commercial breeding-cycle. These alternatives were compared to two breeding-cycle adjusted baselines: movement restriction in the breeding season (August to January) or non-breeding season (February to July). The economic loss parameters were incursion response, impact to the commercial racing industry (breeding, sales and racing), horse morbidity and mortality, and compensation to industry participants. Results and conclusions: Results suggest that the economic viability of the EI eradication programme is dependent on when within the breeding-cycle the EI outbreak occurs. If an outbreak were to occur, the return on each dollar invested for protective or suppressive vaccination strategies would be between NZD$3.67 to NZD$4.89 and between NZD$3.08 to NZD$3.50 in the breeding and non-breeding seasons, respectively. Therefore, protective or suppressive vaccination strategies could be prioritised, regardless of season. As multiple industry stakeholders benefit from these strategies, the study will enable policy development and to better formulate a user-pays eradication programme.Item Restricted An overview of extension use in irrigated agriculture and case studies in south-eastern Africa(Taylor & Francis, 2017) Wheeler, S.; Zuo, A.; Bjornlund, H.; Mdemu, M.; van Rooyen, A.; Munguambe, P.This study provides an overview of extension influence on the adoption of irrigation innovations in developed and developing countries, and finds that extension plays a more significant positive role in influencing soft technology adoption in developing countries. Case studies on the nature, use and availability of extension advice in six irrigation schemes in Tanzania, Mozambique and Zimbabwe are presented. The use of government extension officers varied significantly, with extension use not linked to farm outcomes. The results suggest the need to support more diverse sources of advice and to promote institutional reform in south-eastern Africa.Item Metadata only Analysing the association between rural farm household health and economic shocks and food security in Bangladesh: a consolidated approach of measuring food security(2017) Rupa, J.; Ahmed, S.; Umberger, W.; Zeng, D.; Sim, N.; 61st Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society (AARES) Annual Conference (7 Feb 2017 - 10 Feb 2017 : Brisbane, Qld.)