Assessing the Benefits of Virginia Tech Agricultural Programs:  Studies in Feeder Cattle Certification and Small Grains Breeding

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dc.contributor.authorGarber, Benjamin Fredricken
dc.contributor.committeechairAlwang, Jeffrey R.en
dc.contributor.committeechairNorton, George W.en
dc.contributor.committeememberBovay, Johnen
dc.contributor.departmentAgricultural and Applied Economicsen
dc.date.accessioned2021-06-04T08:00:34Zen
dc.date.available2021-06-04T08:00:34Zen
dc.date.issued2021-06-03en
dc.description.abstractThis thesis consists of two research papers, each of which studies the benefits from a different College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) program. These analyses provide necessary information to allocate resources efficiently among programs. The first paper studies the Virginia Quality Assured feeder cattle certification program and its effects on feeder cattle prices and profitability. No significant effect on price from VQA certification is found. However, enterprise budgets indicate that VQA cattle allow higher farm profits due to their lower sale weight, which allows for faster turnover and lower prices. The second paper studies the benefits to producers from wheat and barley breeding conducted by Virginia Tech researchers. Variety trial data are combined with acreage estimates constructed from royalty data to estimate gains from replacement of old varieties with new ones. The study finds that the program generated benefits to producers of over $119 million between 2000 and 2018.en
dc.description.abstractgeneralThis thesis contains two papers that assessed the benefits of two agricultural research and extension programs at Virginia Tech. The first paper studies the Virginia Quality Assured certification program. This program certifies cattle that have been raised following practices that are designed to result in cattle that will grow faster and stay healthier in a feedlot. Statistical analysis of cattle sold through a Virginia telephone auction show that VQA certified cattle do not receive higher prices than uncertified cattle, but the analysis also finds that certified and uncertified cattle have important physical differences, including lighter weights for certified cattle. These lighter weights make it possible for farmers to sell more VQA cattle in a year because they spend less time gaining weight before being sold, giving producers of VQA cattle the opportunity for higher profits per year. The second paper studies the benefits to farmers from wheat and barley breeding by Virginia Tech researchers. Field trials are used to compare the yields of old and new varieties, and acreage estimates are used to show how newer varieties replace older ones in farmers' fields. The study finds that economic benefits to farmers from new varieties released by the program total $119 million from 2000 to 2018.en
dc.description.degreeMaster of Scienceen
dc.format.mediumETDen
dc.identifier.othervt_gsexam:31207en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/103597en
dc.publisherVirginia Techen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectimpact assessmenten
dc.subjectfeeder cattleen
dc.subjectcertificationen
dc.subjectplant breedingen
dc.subjectsmall grainsen
dc.titleAssessing the Benefits of Virginia Tech Agricultural Programs:  Studies in Feeder Cattle Certification and Small Grains Breedingen
dc.typeThesisen
thesis.degree.disciplineAgricultural and Applied Economicsen
thesis.degree.grantorVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State Universityen
thesis.degree.levelmastersen
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Scienceen

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