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"The book takes on a systematic treatment of dynamic decision making and performance measurement. The analytical foundations of the dynamic production technology are introduced and developed in detail for several primal representations of the technology with an emphasis on dynamic directional distance functions. Dynamic cost minimization and dynamic profit maximization are developed for primal and dual representations of the dynamic technology. A dynamic production environment can be characterized as one where current production decisions impact future production possibilities. Consequently, the dynamic perspective of production relationships necessarily involves the close interplay between stock and flow elements in the transformation process, and how current decisions impact the changes in future stocks. Stock elements in the production transformation process can involve physical elements that can be effectively employed in the transformation process that can include the stock of technical knowledge and expertise available to the decision maker during the decision period. The dynamic generalization of concepts measuring the production structure (e.g., economies of scale, economies of scope, capacity utilization) and performance (e.g., allocative, scale and technical inefficiency, productivity) are developed from primal and dual perspectives"--

AbstractThis article develops a framework for assessing the implementation of standards in a context of multiple negative externalities resulting from meat production. The framework is applied to the introduction of the New Dutch Retail Standard in the Dutch broiler market, a standard on animal welfare initiated by the private sector with national coverage. The results show that this standard did not lower producer, retailer, and consumer welfare; rather, social welfare increased by approximately 300 million euros. The framework provides a sound scientific basis for an ex ante analysis on the market potential of multiple standards.JEL CLASSIFICATIOND62; Q13; Q18

Fusarium species infection in wheat can lead to Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) and contamination with mycotoxins. To fully exploit more recent insights into FHB and mycotoxin management, farmers might need to adapt their agronomic management, which can be stimulated through incentives. This study aimed to identify incentives to stimulate European farmers to adapt their agronomic management to reduce FHB and related mycotoxins in wheat. A questionnaire was distributed among 224 wheat farmers from Italy, the Netherlands, Serbia, and the United Kingdom. Using the respondents' data, Bayesian Network modelling was applied to estimate the probability that farmers would adapt their current agronomic management under eight different incentives given the conditions set by their farm and farmer characteristics. Results show that most farmers would adapt their current agronomic management under the incentives "paid extra when wheat contains low levels of mycotoxins" and "wheat is tested for the presence of mycotoxins for free". The most effective incentive depended on farm and farmer characteristics, such as country, crop type, size of arable land, soil type, education, and mycotoxin knowledge. Insights into the farmer characteristics related to incentives can help stakeholders in the wheat supply chain, such as farmer cooperatives and the government, to design tailor-made incentive plans.