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Economic Impact of Public Pest Information: Soybean Insect Forecasts in Illinois
Author(s) -
Moffitt L. Joe,
Farnsworth Richard L.,
Zavaleta Luis R.,
Kogan Marcos
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
american journal of agricultural economics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.949
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1467-8276
pISSN - 0002-9092
DOI - 10.2307/1241428
Subject(s) - pest analysis , integrated pest management , insect pest , agriculture , business , pest control , agricultural economics , economics , ecology , marketing , agronomy , biology
Previous agricultural pest management information studies have focused on the consequences of providing pest information to farmers without access to other sources of pest information. In view of the proliferation of commercial scouting services, this paper uses a preposterior decision model of pest management to examine the outcomes likely to follow from introduction of public pest information into an area with an existing commercial pest information market. Empirical estimates of the impact of a soybean insect forecast system in Illinois demonstrate that although farmers can benefit from public pest information, the implications for pesticide use depend on the reliability of public forecasts.