American Agricultural Industry

By looking at the historical superiors and lows and the American rude vault of heaven, these constitute a success story. The early(a) 1900s power saw the luxurious age of agriculture with umpteen thriving advancelands across the united States. With many farms, competition heightened and together with an some other(prenominal) sparing factors resulted to the decline in the hoidenish orbit in the late 1920s up to the early 1930s resulting to the bankruptcy of many small farms. Abandoned lands became residential and mercantile aras art object the farms that remained became stupendous cultivated lands that grew beca use up of technological advancements.This trans gained the composition of the artless firmament from many small to medium farmlands to niches of bouffant farmlands driven by bounteous metropolis investments and technological development. Government policies conducive to the harvesting of the countrified sphere in addition contri preciselyed to the f urther development of the agrarian sector. Although many small farms closed, the long- grade impact of multifariousnesss in the plain sector is the decline in farm poverty because of higher(prenominal) productivity and lower bells from the abatement of competition to a certain extent.Although, contemporary pastoral sector has not re promoteed the position it reached during its golden age, growth is sustain fit. (Gardner 1-3) The present inelegant sector survived because of four factors. First is capital investments, in which the banking and financial sector played an important part. Second is uphold productivity ascribable to the development of technological tools and processes. Third is political sympathies hurt for inquiryes in the artless sector to support sound policymaking.Fourth are the hurt-support programs of the government for st baron that benefits farm owners by enabling them to gain sufficient kale to sustain continued return as rise as consumers by din t of lower prices so that victuals constitutes less than ten pct of the reckon of breathing in of American households. (Gardner 337) Methods of Production and Distribution Production and distribution in the American untaught varies between the massive and small farms.In the case of the large farms, the method of production targets the mass market and takes advantage of economies of scale and the style of distribution is by dint of mass- marketing outlets such as large supermarkets and other retail venues widely accessible to consumers. There are large farms that shoot been able to produce more than one rural product and these conduct products indoors economies of scope by bundling complementary goods. Large farms pass on economies of scale by using high-technology tools and processes and taking advantage of the abundance of workers in the grok market.Production in large farms use tractors to till land, small planes to open pesticides over vast tracts of land, regulate d water sprinklers, and other implements or crimson up biotechnology by using pest or weather repellant varieties of seeds, vaccines for live root, and weight control systems. Although these involve costs, it is only on a one-time tooshie with cost-savings accruing in the long-term, and technology supports mass production. Large farms also depend on contractual workers for the necessary manual work and the abundance of unskil conduct prod peculiarly coming from Mexico has allowed farms to cut back on cost.Due to cost-efficiency, large farms are able to cut-down on production costs and go steady high yields resulting to the ability to offer competitive market prices. As such, large farms are able to gain large supermarkets as distribution channels by religious offering a bigger mark-up price and gains for the retailers. (Paul and Nehring 526-528) In the case of the small, farms, production depends on its cost body structure, revenue generation, and market so that methods of p roduction implements basic technological tools and processes together with manual labor.The low scale of production of small farms led to niche marketing targeting only a limited market to ensure sales. Distribution channels are done on-site retail outlets, groceries, and military capability stores. (Paul and Nehring 526-528) Market Structure and Concentration Market structure of the American awkward industry experienced greater degrees of concentration. Technological developments carry segmented the American agricultural industry into two groups.One are the limited number of large farms that, in a way, can be considered as in operation(p) within an oligopoly or even nearing monopoly, except only for the government prerogatives to intervene to value public policy. The other is small farms operating in an atomistic structure so that these do not have any significant tack on prices. There is a wide gap between the large and small farms in ground of productivity and market impa ct, with the large firms operating with large capital and employing high technology processes term households usually run small farms with limited workers using technological tools that fit their expenditure range.This resulted to high barriers to incoming and exit. Contrary to estimates, the number of farms in the American agriculture sector experienced little change in the number of players since there are around 2. 1 million farms remaining with an average of . 25 percent decline come in. This is because the large firms have remained stable with expansion through the mergers or the acquisition of small farms. Movement occurs in the case of small firms through the entry of small farms specializing on certain agricultural products for niche markets to abide by in becoming part of the agricultural market.In addition, the difference in farmland also widened with the large farms producing on more than 1,000 nation of land while small farms only have less than 50 acres. (Ahearn, Y ee, Korb 1182) Due to the class of the American agricultural sector into a few large farms and many small farms, agricultural production is concent judged in the large firms bring two-thirds to the primary agricultural production in the united States of grains, fruits and vegetables, and line. The remaining troika recognizes from small farms. (Ahearn, Yee, Korb 1183)Degree of Foreign Competition The degree of foreign competition in agricultural trade wind has grown because of the rise in the importation of agricultural products by the United States. This means that foreign competition has escalated collectable to the entry of agricultural imports, especially from developing countries. Projections show that in the following historic period the balance of trade would tip in favor of agricultural imports. During the mid-eighties up to the early 1990s, the United States is a string player in the merchandiseing of agricultural products so that exports exceeded imports.By the mid-1990s, the surplus in agriculture trade has declined from $27. 3 billion to $10. 5 billion so that even if agricultural exports continue to increase, the hatful of imports is also doubling. This was receivable to the rise in agricultural export prices as the American economy experienced growth. stinting growth also fuelled agricultural imports since Americans had the income to purchase foreign products that flooded the market due to price differences. (Jerardo) Now, growth and patterns of consumption would further fuel the growth in the imports of agricultural products.Rise in consumption together with the growing exposure of American consumers to international cuisine would continue to favor the importation of agricultural products. The consumption of foreign agricultural products should increase from 13 percent in the next years. (Jerardo) The major competitors of the United States in agricultural trade are China, India, Indonesia, Mexico and other agriculture-based economi es in Latin America. These countries have large populations but these are also primarily agricultural economies owing to favorable climate conditions and low labor cost.Raw agricultural products come from Mexico and the Latin American countries because of geographic proximity while processed fodders, which comprise 62 percent of food consumption of Americans, come from China, India and Indonesia. (Jerardo) Industry Leaders The agricultural sector in the United States is a mix of sub-sectors such as livestock or fruits and vegetables, seeds or feeds, packing or processing, and research and development. The industry leaders have stakes in many or all of these sub-sectors to ensure their competitiveness, industry position, and market share.Leaders in the agricultural sector comprise not really of the owners of farmlands but the firms arbitrary the agricultural sectors encompassing production, harvesting, processing, packaging, transport, and export of agricultural products. Large fa rms and agricultural firms have created clusters to gain access to these different sub-sectors. The clustering is dynamic depending on the shifts brought slightly by mergers and acquisitions. Currently, there are three clusters comprising the leading agricultural sector players. (Helper 1288) Cargill/Monsanto.Cargill is a large firm engaged in the seed operations including research. It has a large capitalization and control over farmlands along the Ohio and Illinois River basin. Cargill purchased Continental grain to gain access to corn, wheat berry and soybeans production along the disseminated sclerosis River for export. Monsanto is widely engaged in biotechnology and it has acquired patent over inheritableal products that ensure better yields through more resistant agricultural produce. Cargill entered into a joint venture with Monsanto in 1998 to gain access to the patented genetic products by offering its large capitalization as incentive.Cargill/Monsanto focuses on the pr oduction, processing, packaging, marketing, and export of seeds as well as corn, wheat and soybean products. (Heffernan) ConAgra is engaged in various sub-sectors as a top-three flour miller, top-four corn miller, top-three live stock feed producer, top-two in cattle slaughtering, top-three pork processor, and top-five broiler producer and processor. United Agri Products, a subsidiary also engages in seeds, fertilizers, and other agricultural chemicals as well as biotechnology. It has its own packaging and processing plants as well as land and water transportation subsidiaries.It collaborated with ADM for the operation of a grain export facility. ConAgra also has a stake in production, processing, distribution and export of grains and livestock. (Heffernan) bowman Daniels Midland Company (ADM) constitutes the largest processor of agricultural products such as corn, soybeans, wheat and cocoa. It collaborates with farm cooperatives to obtain raw agricultural products for processing o r gained shares in firms engaged in agricultural production such as Growmark, Countrymark, United Grain, and Riceland.It has expanded into the other sub-sectors through a join venture with Novartis to gain access to seeds, biotechnology, and agricultural chemicals. It has also engaged in the raising, slaughtering and processing of livestock through joint ventures with Consolidated Nutrition and AGP. ADM has also been able to recruit in the major sub-sectors. (Heffernan) Thus, the agricultural sector in the United States operates through corporate farming. Scarcity of Land Scarcity of agricultural land the in the United States pertains to the land use conversion and humiliation of agricultural lands due to the use of chemicals.Land conversion decreases farm size while land degradation reduces productivity or causes shift in production from one agricultural product to another. This also pertains to the comparison of agricultural production with the consumption of agricultural produc ts. In the United States, agricultural lands constitutes 46 percent of the land base, which stiff a significant percentage share considering the massive industrialization of economic sectors. Of the 2. 3 billion acres of land comprising the United States, 442 million acres comprise croplands and more than 500 million acres of farmsteads, pastures and ranges.Conversion of agricultural lands is not significant so that in the past thirty years, only sise percent of agricultural lands have been converted for other purposes. In terms of land degradation, reports have not raised alarm on the rate of land degradation. In terms of food consumption, the increase in food imports is fuelled by change in consumption patterns and not the inability of agricultural lands to support the food unavoidably of Americans. Moreover, the U. S. remains a major food exported. Land scarcity does not constitute a major occupation in the American agricultural sector.(Brady) Impact of Ethanol Production on W heat Production and Cost to Consumers The government has implemented a located subsidy on ethyl alcohol at a floor rate of 40 cents for every gallon and a ceiling rate of 60 cents per gallon. The subsidy served as an incentive for production of ethanol as an selection source of fuel in the United States. Relative to price of jolting oil, ethanol is slightly cheaper depending on the volume of production. However, in the early 2000s, the price of crude oil skyrocketed to as much as $80 per barrel.The huge difference in price opened opportunities for the expansion of ethanol production because of the rigid subsidy together with the room for price increase that would tacit be below crude oil prices but constituting significantly higher prices than its previous market offering. This means that some farmers have shifted to the sowing of raw materials of ethanol leading to a decrease in the number of farmers and farmlands producing agricultural products. This in turn led to the rise in the prices of agricultural products such as wheat and even soybeans.In addition, other alternative sources of energy have gained impulse such as corn. Although corn receives lower subsidy compared to ethanol, the engagement of the agricultural sector in alternative sources of energy could significantly affect the volume of production of other agricultural products that would prove costly for consumers in the form of higher food prices. This effect has led to the emergence of the issue of food-fuel prioritization. (Tyner and Taheripour 1303) This is barely to be resolved and this would continue to bend an issue in the agricultural sector until the next decade.Conclusion Outlook for the American agricultural sector in the future points to a positive situation because the United States would continue to become a major player in agricultural exports while providing agricultural products to the domestic market. However, there are a number of policy issues that requires due consider ation. First, forecasts of balance of trade shows a further decline in agricultural trade surplus with some even suggesting the probability of trade deficit.This is because even if agricultural production experiences growth, the flood of imported food products could be greater, especially when these food products become cheaper as the price of domestically grown agricultural products increase. This will have a significant adverse impact on the American agricultural sector. Even if there is no food shortage, the inundate of cheaper agricultural products could contribute to the decline in the agricultural sector. The government needs to assess its import policies to balance consumer demand with the viability of the agricultural sector.Second, land use and agricultural production needs assessment, since this gleams within federal and reconcile regulation, especially in the context of the food-fuel debate. The rising prices of agricultural products could be relieved through the appl ication of a flexible instead of a fixed subsidy rate together with the continued investment in research and development to justify the continuation of subsidies for ethanol and even the focus on fuel from corn. It has been thirty years since the government started implementing subsidies on ethanol but ethanol as an alterative fuel has yet to become a commercial source of energy as intended.Thus, government policies on price support and agricultural research has played an important role in the growth of the American agricultural sector and this will not change in the future since the issues faced by the agricultural sector fall within the area of policymaking and subject to government regulation. Works Cited Ahearn, Mary Clare, spirt Yee, and Penni Korb. Effects of Differing Farm Policies on Farm Structure and Dynamics. American journal of Agricultural political economy 87. 5 (2007) 1182-1189. Brady, Michael. Land Use, Value and Management. 18 October 2005.USDA economic Research Service. 26 April 2008 Gardner, Bruce. American Agriculture in the Twentieth nose candy How it Flourished and What is Cost. Cambridge, MA Harvard University Press, 2002. Heffernan, William. Study on Concentration in U. S. Agriculture. 5 February 1999. contribute for Agriculture and Trade form _or_ system of government. 26 April 2008 Helper, Susan. Empirical Research in an increasingly Concentrated Industrial Environment Discussion. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 89. 5(2007) 12881289.Jerardo, Alberto. The U. S. Agricultural Trade Balance More than Just a Number. 1 February 2004. USDA Economic Research Service. 26 April 2008 Paul, Catherine, and Richard Nehring. Product Diversification, Production Systems, and Economic Performance in U. S. Agricultural Production. Journal of Econometrics 126. 2(2005) 525-548. Tyner, Wallance, and Farzad Taheripour. Renewable Energy Policy Alternatives for the Future. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 89. 5 (2007) 1303- 1310.