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The Economics of Cosmetic Pesticide Use
Author(s) -
Lichtenberg Erik
Publication year - 1997
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 - 10.2307/1243941
Subject(s) - grading (engineering) , pesticide , quality (philosophy) , pesticide residue , business , agricultural engineering , engineering , agronomy , biology , philosophy , civil engineering , epistemology
It has been argued that so‐called “cosmetic” standards for produce quality increase pesticide use on fruits and vegetables. This paper shows that stricter quality standards unambiguously increase farm‐level pesticide demand only when produce is sold in mixed lots with tolerances for characteristics determined by quality standards and there is no sampling error. Under more commonly encountered conditions, stricter quality standards may reduce pesticide demand. An empirical example of apple production suggests that grading standards have non‐negligible effects and that more stringent grading standards lead to reduced pesticide use under plausible conditions.