News Update
December 3, 2013
Trade Economist Says China
Could Lose Its Competitive Edge
Due to Rising Worker Wages
With the Chinese Communist Party’s recent publication of its blueprint for reform, economists worldwide are focusing on a key question: Will the economy of the most populous country on Earth, which has seen a rise in workers’ wages by nearly 14% per year over the last decade, soon lose its competitive edge in the global economy?
Ian Sheldon, the Andersons Professor of International Trade at Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), addressed this question in a briefing Nov. 25 to Ohio policymakers.
“Despite the global recession, the value of China’s total trade accounted for 48% of the country’s GDP in 2011,” Sheldon said. “This expanded participation in international trade, a significant factor in China’s economic growth, has been driven by its transition to a market-oriented economy involving rural-urban migration of over 150 million workers, industry gaining access to foreign technologies, capital and intermediate inputs, entry of multinational firms, and accession to the World Trade Organization.”
Sheldon, who is also an Ohio State University Extension specialist, spoke Nov. 25 during CFAES’s kickoff of its 2013-2014 Agricultural Policy and Outlook series. The event initiates a series of county meetings to be hosted statewide through the end of 2013. Dates and times for the meetings can be found at http://go.osu.edu/2014outlook.
The event featured presentations from experts from the college’s Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics, who discussed issues the food and agricultural community should expect in 2014, including information on policy changes; key issues; and market behavior with respect to farm, food and energy resources, and the environment.
For more information, please view the full release here.
Rangeland Decision-Making Processes Influence Adoption of Conservation Programs
Rangeland conservation programs are growing. The number of acres of land in the Western United States enrolled in conservation easements has outpaced land development since 1997. Understanding why ranchers participate in conservation programs helps to create partnerships and strategies that can enhance rangeland sustainability and the ecosystem services they provide.
In the current issue of Rangeland Ecology & Management, the article “Conservation Program Participation and Adaptive Rangeland Decision-Making” examines ranchers’ involvement in a social–ecological context. Conservation programs are just one strategy ranchers might choose to manage their land in a manner that promotes productivity and health.
More than 500 California ranchers returned mailed surveys in this study. Ranchers were asked about their awareness of, participation in, and attitude toward various conservation programs using a range of behavioral responses. With this information, a multinomial logit model was used to estimate the importance of different variables on rancher involvement in conservation programs.
This study examined four key variables: operator and operation characteristics, including whether the land is privately owned or publicly leased, and the education and income of the operator; time horizon, meaning the number of family generations who have managed the land and whether an inheritance plan is in place; social-network connections, describing to what degree ranchers communicate and provide leadership and opinions in their communities; and social values, including views on property rights, the government’s role in protecting private property, and trust in government involvement in conservation.
Ranchers with larger amounts of land, who look toward the future, and who are opinion leaders with knowledge of conservation were found to be more likely to participate in conservation programs. Capitalizing on the decision strategies of ranchers by reaching out to well-connected opinion leaders, honoring the desires of many ranchers to maintain the family and historical legacies of their land, and establishing trust between ranchers and conservation organizations can help build collaborative conservation relationships.
Full text of the article “Conservation Program Participation and Adaptive Rangeland Decision-Making” in this issue of Rangeland Ecology & Management, Vol. 66, No. 6, Nov. 2013, is now available.
Show-Me-Select Bred Heifers Average $2,083 at Kingsville Sale
With a bright beef price outlook, bidding for bred replacement heifers was strong at the 15th Annual Show-Me-Select Sale at Kingsville Livestock Auction, Nov. 30.
The 291 heifers, sold in 97 lots, averaged $2,083 per head, according to David Hoffman, University of Missouri (MU) Extension livestock specialist, Harrisonville, Mo.
“Bidding was strong top to bottom,” Hoffman said.
The heifers from 18 consignors came from farm herds enrolled in the MU Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program. The educational program promotes proven genetics and heifer management. First emphasis is on calving-ease genetics from high-accuracy proven sires. The aim is to reduce death loss and reduce labor at calving time.
Top prices of $2,400 and higher went to 23 heifers in nine lots. Of those, 20 were bred by artificial insemination (AI) and three by natural service.
Only four heifers in two lots brought less than $1,800. Those were bred natural service.
Lane Donnohue, age 11, of Appleton City, received top price for a heifer at $2,650. He had come to the sale last year with his dad, Chris Donnohue. Then he decided to become a Show-Me-Select producer. His dad agreed — if he would do the work. He did.
Lane said he plans to raise three heifers next year.
Howard Early, Leeton, Mo., consignor and president of the Missouri Show-Me-Select state organization, said, “We like to see young producers get a good start.”
Last year the Kingsville sale averaged $1,953 for 287 head.
This year, 54 lots of heifers were bred AI, while 43 lots were bred natural service, Hoffman told bidders at start of the auction.
For more information, please view the full release here.
AgriLife Extension’s Swisher County Ag Day is Dec. 10 in Tulia
The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Swisher County Ag Committee will conduct the Swisher County Ag Day from 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Dec. 10 in Tulia, Texas.
The program will be in the Swisher County Memorial Building, 127 SW Second St.
“The Swisher County Ag Committee has identified issues relating to dryland farming techniques as hot-button topics for producers in this part of the Panhandle,” said John Villalba, AgriLife Extension agent in Swisher County. “The speakers for this program will all touch on a variety of factors that influence the decisions farmers are having to make, especially as they relate to drought and the decline in overall water availability.”
Individual registration is $10 due upon arrival, but those planning to attend are asked to RSVP to the AgriLife Extension office in Swisher County by Dec. 3 by calling 806-995-3721.
Five Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units, one laws and regulations, one integrated pest management and three general, will be available for those with a valid private pesticide applicators license. Six Certified Crop Advisor credit hours will also be available.
For more information, please visit the Angus Journal’s Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.
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