Richard N. Weldon

Predicting Optimal Targeting Strategies in Multispecies Fisheries: A Portfolio Approach

When regulations are species specific but the species are part of a multispecies fishery, studies show that harvest rates are correlated such that net revenues attributed to each species are also correlated. This correlation suggests that portfolio theory is well suited for multispecies fisheries that exhibit joint productive characteristics. This paper uses a portfolio approach to model the behavior of fishermen faced with multiple targeting options in a randomharvest fishery. The approach draws from the expected utility hypothesis and financial portfolio theory to predict optimal targeting strategies. The methodology is applied to the pelagic longline fleet operating in the U.S. Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico. The model provides evidence that area closures aimed at reducing juvenile swordfish mortality will be more effective in certain regions. Efficient risk-return frontiers are also generated for use in predicting targeting behavior in lieu of a closure.

RISK ASSESSMENT OF A SHRIMP AQUACULTURE INVESTMENT IN FLORIDA

A stochastic simulation model was developed to examine the impact of risky economic variables on the profitability of a small-scale shrimp farm. Sources of risk included input and output prices, random-kill events, and hurricane damages. Success was measured using the probability distribution of the net present value (NPV). A baseline model that assumed capital costs of

Student Perceptions of Online Distance Education in Undergraduate Agricultural Economic Programs

493,993, a stocking density of 100 shrimp per m2, a harvest survival of 80%, and a discount rate of 8% failed to generate a positive NPV. Subsequently adding a

Practices Used by Dairy Farmers to Reduce Seasonal Production Variability

0.66 price premium also failed to establish a positive NPV. Further reducing initial capital costs by 50% resulted in a 2% probability of a positive NPV. Incrementally reducing the discount rate generated increasingly positive NPV probabilities ranging from a 9% probability of success (7% discount rate) to a 94% probability of success (3% discount rate). Additional analyses suggested that probabilities of financial success were also sensitive to random-kill and hurricane events.

Who Will Our Students Be? A Futuristic View

Undergraduate Food and Resource Economics majors and those with different majors were surveyed to determine the perceived advantages and disadvantages of distance and online education courses from a student perspective. Specific objectives included determining if students who have been exposed to more online courses are more likely to rate online education as positive or negative relative to the traditional classroom setting. In general, Food and Resource Economics majors tended to view distance and online education courses less favorably than did the others.

The impact of risk on the discount rate for different citrus varieties

The objective of this analysis was to identify the production practices used by farmers to change seasonal production. Production practices included milk production per cow, proportion of cows milking, number of first lactation animals entering the herd, number of cows leaving the herd, number of days to first breeding, and calves born. Farms that participated in a seasonal pricing plan during 1993, 1994, and 1995 decreased production practice seasonality in response to price premiums, which caused a decrease in production seasonality compared to nonparticipating farms. Participating farms showed a preference for adjusting entering first lactation animals and number of calves born, but did make adjustments in other practices as well.

Inventories, Financial Metrics, Profits, and Stock Returns in Supply Chain Management

Agricultural and applied economics departments must continue to develop and market programs that meet the educational needs of students. This article examines the current composite of students and degree programs. It then goes on to describe our future students and degree programs and examines distance education programs and delivery methods that will be used to reach these students. New degree programs will be offered in agribusiness and resource economics, mostly at the M.S. level. It is apparent that in the future, departments will teach increasing numbers of students at off-campus locations. The profession will experience major growth in distance education programs using a wide variety of delivery methods.

Effects of selenium levels in ewe diets on selenium in milk and the plasma and tissue selenium concentrations of lambs

The risk associated with citrus production has been especially evident in the past decade. During the 1980s, Florida citrus producers have seen major freezes and dramatic price variation. Because one way to account for risk in the investment decision is to adjust the discount rate, this study presents a systematic method for adjusting the discount rate. Further, this methodology is particularly adept for accounting for risk differences between varieties of citrus.

Tolerance of inorganic selenium by range-type ewes during gestation and lactation,,

This chapter studies the role of inventory in supply chain management and in its impact in the book value and market value of firms. We elaborate on the idea that inventory models can be useful for implementing inventory policies for the different stages of a supply chain. In section 2, the role of inventory in supply chain management is discussed. In section 3, we provide a discussion of existing inventory models that have been developed to model real systems.Many authors have proposed mathematical models that are easy to implement in practical situations. We provide a simple classification of these models based on stocking locations and type of demand. In section 4, we address the empirical question of whether inventory level decisions should be focused on efficiency (i.e., minimum inventory levels) or on responsiveness (i.e., maximum product availability). To answer this, we analyze the US agribusiness (food) sector during 35 years. This sector weights about 10% of the complete US market, and has been chosen by the authors for two reasons. Inventory levels in agribusinesses could be considered more critical due to the highly perishable nature of food products, and because the sample includes firms considered as mature (Jensen (1988)). Mature firms are expected to have already fine tuned their inventory level positions. Using regression analysis, empirical results show that both, the growth in inventories1 and capital expenditures in year t, negatively affect stock returns in t+1 at 1% level of significance. Further, while property, plant and equipment represents 70% of total invested capital compared to inventories representing 30%, a 1% change in inventories has an economic impact similar to a 1% investment in capital expenditures. This emphasizes the economic importance of managing inventories.