Concentration in the Red Meat Packing Industry

Packers and Stockyards Programs, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

No 329335, USDA Miscellaneous from United States Department of Agriculture

Abstract: Organization of Report: This report summarizes the work of the contractors. Their objectives, research methods and procedures, data used, and results are presented for each project. Portions of the respective chapters draw liberally from the contractors' reports to GIPSA, with some language from the contractors' reports. Also included at the end of each chapter is a synopsis that includes GIPSA's assessment of the research findings. Chapter 1 -- examines regional cattle procurement markets. Market definitions are relevant for analyses of the effects of concentration on prices paid and for monitoring competitive behavior. GAO also recommended that GIPSA define relevant procurement markets. Chapter 2 -- examines procurement and pricing patterns of beef packers. Chapter 3 -- looks at the role of captive supplies in beef packing. Industry observers and participants frequently express concern about packers' use of captive supplies. This project assesses potential impacts. Chapter 4 -- analyzes the effects of concentration on prices paid for cattle. Concentration is generally thought to increase potential for firms to use market power. Chapter 5 -- addresses vertical coordination in hog production. Vertical coordination is increasing in hog production. Production contracts are growing rapidly in the Southeast and other areas, and marketing contracts are becoming more prevalent in the Midwest. This project looks at trends in vertical arrangements. Chapter 6 -- examines hog procurement in the eastern Corn Belt. The project examined procurement records of packers in the eastern Corn Belt to learn if prices are affected by distance from packing plants, the presence of competing packers, and other factors. Chapter 7 -- reports on the findings of the literature review. Chapter 8 -- summarizes the study. The appendices contain additional details about the data collection and a list of references reviewed in the literature review project.

Keywords: Agribusiness; Demand and Price Analysis; Farm Management; Industrial Organization; Livestock Production/Industries; Marketing; Research Methods/Statistical Methods (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 129
Date: 1996-02
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/329335/files/ConcentrationRedMeatPacking.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:usdami:329335

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.329335

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in USDA Miscellaneous from United States Department of Agriculture
Bibliographic data for series maintained by AgEcon Search ().