Paul J. Thomassin

Willingness to Pay for Water Quality Improvements in the United States and Canada: Considering Possibilities for International Meta-Analysis and Benefit Transfer

This paper presents a multinational meta-analysis estimated to identify systematic components of willingness to pay for surface water quality improvements, developed to support benefit transfer for Canadian policy development. Metadata are drawn from stated preference studies that estimate WTP for water quality changes affecting aquatic life habitats—a type of study with few Canadian examples. The goals of this paper are to assess the properties of a multinational (United States/Canada) meta-analysis compared to a single-country (U.S.) analog; illustrate the potential information that may be derived as well as the analytical challenges; and assess the performance of resulting meta-functions for benefit transfer.

Informational Requirements and the Regulatory Process of Agricultural Biotechnology

This paper investigates the reinforcing and balancing regulatory pressures that are impinging on the performance of agricultural and food biotechnology-based activity in Canada. Regulatory agencies are in the process of adjusting their procedures to take into account disruptive innovations in biogenetics, proteomics, pharmacogenomics, and bioinformatics (Burrill and Company 2000; Christensen 1997; The Economist 2000).1 This adjustment has become necessary because governments need to balance emerging tensions between the informational needs of consumers and investors. Information requirements of the regulatory agencies are changing. Part ofthe outcome of the regulatory process is to satisfy the informational needs of consumers and investors concerning the technology. Regulators need information on health and safety of new biogenetics-based products (transgenic crops, feeds, and foods), consumers demand information about product characteristics, and investors are in need of information on intellectual property rights (lPR) and administrative process. The objective of this paper is to identify endogenous pressures, and their time delays, that are responsible for regulatory change in the plant agricultural biotechnologyarea. An influence diagram, the initial step ofthe system dynamics (SD) method, makes explicit the role of information flows as a limiting factor for use by the various parties, and as a means of controlling strategic transactions that influence efficiency and the distribution of wealth. This method is employed to clarify informational

A Syst-OMICS Approach to Ensuring Food Safety and Reducing the Economic Burden of Salmonellosis

The Salmonella Syst-OMICS consortium is sequencing 4,500 Salmonella genomes and building an analysis pipeline for the study of Salmonella genome evolution, antibiotic resistance and virulence genes. Metadata, including phenotypic as well as genomic data, for isolates of the collection are provided through the Salmonella Foodborne Syst-OMICS database (SalFoS), at https://salfos.ibis.ulaval.ca/. Here, we present our strategy and the analysis of the first 3,377 genomes. Our data will be used to draw potential links between strains found in fresh produce, humans, animals and the environment. The ultimate goals are to understand how Salmonella evolves over time, improve the accuracy of diagnostic methods, develop control methods in the field, and identify prognostic markers for evidence-based decisions in epidemiology and surveillance.

Closing the Canadian Input–Output Model: Homogeneous vs Non-homogeneous Household Sector Specifications

This paper addresses, on both theoretical and empirical fronts, the task of endogenizing the household sector in a rectangular input–output (IO) model. The formulation of Miyazawa (1976) for square models is extended to the development of an impact matrix for rectangular models. This allows for the numerous household revenue sources to be built into the model. A closed model with non-homogeneous households is developed where individuals are modelled individually and by industry. The perform ance of the non-homogeneous household sector model is compared with a model that has a homogeneous household sector. The model with the non-homogeneous household sector is more sensitive to changes in wages and salaries than to changes in final demand.

Economic impact of adopting a healthy diet in Canada

AimThe study estimates the macroeconomic impacts of recent healthy diet guidelines announced by the Health Canada.Subject and methodThe study used a modified input–output framework based on the Canadian input–output data for the year 2004 to capture the impact on the whole economy due to changes in food consumption. The input–output method is one of the most widely applied methods in economics. The input–output framework analyzes the interdependence of industries in an economy. The basic information from which this framework is developed is contained in an input–output table. The rows of such a table describe the distribution of a producers output throughout the economy. The columns of the table, on the other hand, describe the composition of inputs required by a particular industry to produce its output. Final demand indicates the sales by each sector to final markets for their production, such as household consumption purchases, sales to the government, and exports to the other countries. This method requires that a sector uses inputs in fixed proportions. The modified Input-Output table of Canada consists of a detailed agricultural sector provided by Agriculture and Agri-food Canada (AAFC). Several simulation exercises have been carried out combining different food consumption strategies.ResultsThe study reveals a gap between the actual and recommended consumption of a healthy diet in Canada for 2004. Canada’s Food Guide for a healthy diet includes four categories of food items: vegetables and fruits, grain products, milk and alternatives, and meat and alternatives. Results show that the Canadian diet has more meat and less vegetables, fruits, milk, and whole grains than recommended. Findings on the implications of a number of strategies combining different food consumptions reveal diverse results. An increase in GDP and employment can be expected if the Canadian diet is composed of more vegetables and fruits, while a reduction in employment and GDP may occur from more meat consumption. The combined strategy with four categories of food items would generate more jobs and GDP in Canada.ConclusionThe article suggests that a suitable portfolio of fiscal policies is needed to provide households with incentives to change their food consumption patterns towards a healthy diet.

Impact of Regional Economic Integration in East Asia

The current study evaluates the economy wide impact of trade liberalization in the ASEAN region along with China, Japan and Korea (ASEAN + 3) by the year 2020 using the GTAP framework. The study also assesses the environmental impact of the trade liberalization in the region focusing on the seven environmental indicators (CO2, CH4, N2O, BOD, COD, Suspended Solid and Industrial Waste). The result shows that the countries under agreement (ASEAN + 3) will benefit with increased output, expansion of trade and welfare due to trade reforms. Further, the integration will increase the global welfare, although the regions not under agreement in the world will show a decline in output growth. Vietnam will be gaining with the highest output growth among the ASEAN region; however, the impact on the environment would not be favourable. The environmental impact reveals a mixed outcome for participating countries under the agreement. The paper provides useful insight in pursuing greater trade liberalization among the countries under the study.

Economic and Environmental Viability of Substituting Lupins for Soybeans: The Case of Dairy Farming in Southwest Quebec

ABSTRACT The research investigates the potential for the inclusion of lupins (Lupinus spp.) in the crop mix of a typical dairy farmer in Southwestern Quebec. This crop is an alternative legume crop to soybean but it contributes to a greater reduction in soil loss and more nitrogen being fixed for future crops than soybean. Results of a linear programming approach to the problem indicate that the crop can be profitably included in the crop mix with environmental benefits.

An economic analysis of salmonella detection in fresh produce, poultry, and eggs using whole genome sequencing technology in Canada

The study estimates the annual costs of nontyphoidal Salmonellosis (referred to as Salmonellosis from hereon) from fresh produce, poultry and eggs in Canada. It also estimates the economic benefits from introduction of Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) in detection of Salmonellosis clusters and outbreaks. Monetary and non-monetary costs from Salmonellosis are estimated. Monetary costs are divided into direct healthcare, indirect, federal and producer costs. Probability models are used to account for uncertainty in the cost-of-illness estimates. Two types of non-monetary costs have been estimated: Disability-adjusted Live Years and Quality-adjusted Life Years. These estimates are then used to calculate the economic impact of WGS on detection of Salmonellosis. The estimated incidence of illnesses is 47,082 annually, which represents a cost of

ECONOMY WIDE IMPACT OF HEALTHY DIET AND NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENT IN MEXICO

287.78 million (total cases) and

Economy wide impacts of ethanol and biodiesel policy in Canada: An input–output analysis

166.28 million (reported cases) from the traditional technology. The total net benefit from introduction of WGS is estimated to range from