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Economic Efficiency, Structure and Scale Economies in the U.S. Dairy Sector

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  • Mosheim, Roberto
  • Lovell, C.A. Knox

Abstract

This study uses a new dataset based on the 2000 Agricultural Resource Management Survey, the most recent national survey of dairy producers in the United States. A shadow cost function is employed to decompose and analyze economic efficiency and scale economies. The study details the development of the data employed in the analysis and focuses on the estimation of scale relationships across farms in different regions and of different sizes. Preliminary results point to important scale economies and suggest that surviving small farms are on average more economically efficient but can exploit scale economies to a much lesser degree than larger farms. The preferred specification of the cost function does not show a region of decreasing returns to scale.

Suggested Citation

  • Mosheim, Roberto & Lovell, C.A. Knox, 2006. "Economic Efficiency, Structure and Scale Economies in the U.S. Dairy Sector," 2006 Annual meeting, July 23-26, Long Beach, CA 21440, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:aaea06:21440
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.21440
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Almuhanad Melhim & Erik J. O'Donoghue & C. Richard Shumway, 2009. "Do the Largest Firms Grow and Diversify the Fastest? The Case of U.S. Dairies," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 31(2), pages 284-302, June.
    2. Richard Nehring & Jeffrey Gillespie & Carmen Sandretto & Charlie Hallahan, 2009. "Small U.S. dairy farms: can they compete?," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 40(s1), pages 817-825, November.
    3. Nehring, Richard & Gillespie, Jeffrey & Erickson, Kenneth & Harris, J. Michael & Heutte, Silke & Sauer, Johannes, 2018. "Small U.S. Dairy Farms: Can They Compete? A Revisit," 2018 Annual Meeting, February 2-6, 2018, Jacksonville, Florida 266535, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    4. Snider, Lindsey & Langemeier, Michael R., 2009. "A Long-Term Analysis of Changes in Farm Size and Financial Performance," 2009 Annual Meeting, January 31-February 3, 2009, Atlanta, Georgia 45915, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    5. MacDonald, James M. & O'Donoghue, Erik J. & McBride, William D. & Nehring, Richard F. & Sandretto, Carmen L. & Mosheim, Roberto, 2007. "Profits, Costs, and the Changing Structure of Dairy Farming," Economic Research Report 6704, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    6. Hisham S. El-Osta, 2016. "Farmland Ownership and Its Impact on the Debt Servicing Capacity Among U.S. Married-Couple Farm Households," Applied Economics and Finance, Redfame publishing, vol. 3(4), pages 190-206, November.
    7. Mayen, Carlos D. & Balagtas, Joseph Valdes & Alexander, Corinne E., 2009. "Vertical Economies of Scope for Organic and Conventional Dairy Farms in the United States," 2009 Annual Meeting, July 26-28, 2009, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 49409, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

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