Contents Notes |
The role of economics in agricultural policy analysis -- Economic efficiency and equity in U.S. agriculture -- Government and the economy : private versus collective choice -- Public choice : the economics of the political process -- Implications of public-choice theory for agricultural policy -- The farm problem and economic justice -- The role of government in U.S. agriculture -- Price supports, parity, and cost of production -- History and overview of production controls and marketing quotas -- Production controls, price supports, and current farm programs -- Cooperatives and marketing orders -- Effects of agricultural commodity programs -- Subsidized food programs -- International trade and trade restrictions -- Crop insurance, market stabilization, and risk management -- Subsidized credit in U.S. agriculture -- Conservation and "protection" of natural resources -- Agricultural research and extension activities -- Taxation in agriculture -- The effects of government farm programs -- The farm security and rural investment act of 2002 : how it updated existing law. Agricultural subsidies in grains, cotton, milk, sugar, tobacco, honey, wool, and peanuts are analyzed in this examination of U.S. farm policy. Looking at such programs as food stamps, crop insurance, subsidized credit, trade credit, trade subsidies and import restrictions, conservation, agricultural research, and taxation, this historical perspective argues that these subsidies ultimately redistribute wealth to powerful agricultural interests who use their political clout to advance their economic interests at the expense of the general public. This analysis of government farm programs will appeal to professors and students who study agriculture; people affected by government farm policies; public officials, and businesses affected by agricultural policy such as those in food service, retail, and distribution. |