Returns to New Technologies in the Australian Beef Industry: On-farm Research versus Off-farm Research

Xueyan Zhao, Garry R. Griffith and John D. Mullen

No 123749, 2000 Conference (44th), January 23-25, 2000, Sydney, Australia from Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society

Abstract: A multi-sectoral and multi-market model of the Australian beef industry is specified using an equilibrium displacement modelling framework. The model is implemented using average price and quantity data for the period 1991-1997 and market parameter values taken from the literature, derived from theoretical restrictions or from the authors’ subjective judgement. Total returns and the distributions among various industry groups from alternate R&D and promotion investments, which result in 1% shifts in the relevant supply or demand curves, are examined. In this paper, the implications for farmers from various on-farm R&D investments (genetic research and nutrition research in backgrounding cattle for grain-finishing and in grass-finishing) and off-farm R&D investments (nutrition research for grain-finishing, research for meat processing, and research for domestic and export marketing activities) are compared and contrasted. The results indicate that in general, on-farm research produces a larger share of total benefits to farmers than off-farm research. Comparison of the actual monetary returns from the different investment scenarios depends on the relative costs of achieving the 1% supply shifts.

Keywords: Agribusiness; Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 21
Date: 2000
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:aare00:123749

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.123749

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