The Transformation of U.S. Livestock Agriculture: Scale, Efficiency, and Risks

James MacDonald and William McBride

No 58311, Economic Information Bulletin from United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service

Abstract: U.S. livestock production has shifted to much larger and more specialized farms, and the various stages of input provision, farm production, and processing are now much more tightly coordinated through formal contracts and shared ownership of assets. Important financial advantages have driven these structural changes, which in turn have boosted productivity growth in the livestock sector. But structural changes can also generate environmental and health risks for society, as industrialization concentrates animals and animal wastes in localized areas. This report relies on farm-level data to detail the nature, causes, and effects of structural changes in livestock production.

Keywords: Farm Management; Livestock Production/Industries (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 40
Date: 2009-01
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:uersib:58311

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.58311

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