Increasing aridity, more frequent and intense drought, and greater degrees of water scarcity create unique challenges for agriculture. In response to these challenges, which often manifest themselves as lower and more variable surface water supplies, as well as depleted and degraded ground water supplies, growers tend to seek opportunities to adapt. One option for growers to reduce their exposu…

When surface water and groundwater resources are hydraulically connected, groundwater pumping may reduce surface water flows. In recognition of hydraulic connectivity between surface and groundwater resources, many states in the western United States have begun to develop systems of conjunctive administration in which property rights for surface water and groundwater are jointly managed. Implem…

The prospects for plant variety protection to deliver improved varieties of self-pollinating crops is assessed using the experience of the Australian wheat breeding sector as a natural experiment. The analysis is based on detailed new data on the agronomic performance of all wheat varieties released by Australian breeders between 1976 and 2011. The results indicate that plant variety protection…

This work analyzes the research productivity of agricultural and life science faculty in U.S. Land Grant research universities from 1975 to 2005. Production function estimations that control for inputs and demographic characteristics reveal significant improvements after 1980 in faculty research productivity per unit time, especially in the non-top ten universities. Because, however, time avail…

Applicability of the induced innovation hypothesis�that a change in relative input prices induces innovation to economize use of the increasingly expensive input (Hicks 1932)�is examined for U.S. public agricultural research. A reduced-form test is developed using input prices from the agricultural production sector, expenditures from the public research sector aimed at developing new…

A general global precept is that agglomeration forces lead to migration from rural to urban areas. Yet for much of the time since the early 1970s, more people have moved from metro to nonmetro U.S. counties. The underlying causes of this pattern have changed over time with economic shocks and changing household preferences. For instance, the post 2000 period has seen a significant decline in do…

The share of agricultural workers who migrate within the United States has fallen by approximatelyn 60% since the late 1990s. To explain this decline in the migration rate, we estimate annual migration-choice models using data from the National Agricultural Workers Survey for 1989�2009. On average, over the last decade of the sample, one-third of the fall in the migration rate was due to c…

Throughout the past decade, the mountain pine beetle (MPB), a forest pest native to North America, has enjoyed a large increase in population and an expansion of its habitable zone. Certain species of pine trees throughout the Western United States are hosts for the MPB, where the beetle lays its eggs and feeds on the vascular tissue of the tree, often leading to tree mortality. Within a few we…

Organic Valley is the largest organic cooperative in North America, one of two national buyers of organic milk, and one of two national organic dairy manufacturers. The cooperative�s official name is Cooperative of Regional Organic Producers, and it is organized as a new generation cooperative, owned and controlled by patron-members who also transact with the business. Organic Valley has a…

Hoover Seeds is a fictional case study written to illustrate the challenges faced by food and agribusiness firms that are transitioning from small, entrepreneurial businesses to larger, more professionally managed enterprises. Though fictional, the competitive and financial situation of Hoover Seeds is based on realistic facts. The case introduces Dan Hoover, the Chief Executive Officer of Hoov…