Background Publications

Introduction Title I: Commodities Title II: Conservation Title III: Trade Title IV: Nutrition Title V: Credit Title VI: Rural Development Title VII: Research Title VIII: Forestry Title IX: Energy Title X: Hort & Organic Ag Title XI: Livestock Title XII: Crop Insurance Title XIII: Commodity Futures Title XIV: Miscellaneous Title XV: Trade & Taxes Provisions for Traditionally Underserved Groups   ERS Resources User's Guide A-Z List of Provisions List of Provisions by Title Background Publications Farm Policy Glossary Previous Farm Bills Related Links Download the 2008 Farm Bill (1.65MB) USDA Farm Bill Site

General Information

• The 20th Century Transformation of U.S. Agriculture and Farm Policy, Economic Information Bulletin, June 2005

Farm-Sector Impacts

• Government Payments and the Farm Sector: Who Benefits and How Much, ERS Farm and Commodity Policy Briefing Room, updated periodically

• CCC Net Outlays by Commodity and Function, USDA Farm Services Agency, updated periodically

• Agricultural Income and Finance, Situation and Outlook Report, annual

• Cropland Concentrating Faster Where Payments Are Higher, Amber Waves, November 2007

• Effects of Reducing the Income Cap on Eligibility for Farm Program Payments, Economic Information Bulletin, September 2007

• The Importance of Farm Program Payments to Farm Households, Amber Waves, June 2007

• Structure and Finances of U.S. Farms: Family Farm Report, 2007 Edition, Economic Information Bulletin, June 2007

• Relaxing Fruit and Vegetable Planting Restrictions, Special Issue of Amber Waves, May 2007

• Commodity Backgrounders, Outlook Special Reports, various issues 2005-07

• Growing Farm Size and the Distribution of Farm Payments, Economic Brief, March 2006

• Economic Analysis of Base Acre and Payment Yield Designations Under the 2002 U.S. Farm Act, Economic Research Report, September 2005

• Counter-Cyclical Payments Under the 2002 Farm Act: Production Effects Likely to be Limited, Choices, 3rd Quarter 2005

• How Do Decoupled Payments Affect Resource Allocations Within the Farm Sector?, Amber Waves, November 2004

• Marketing Loan Rates and Acreage Responses, Choices, 4th Quarter 2003

• Report of the Commission on the Application of Payment Limitations for Agriculture, USDA Office of the Chief Economist, August 2003

• Farm Payments: Decoupled Payments Increase Households' Well-Being, Not Production, Amber Waves, February 2003

• Analysis of the U.S. Commodity Loan Program with Marketing Loan Provisions, Agricultural Economic Report, April 2001

• ERS Farm Typology for a Diverse Agricultural Sector, Agricultural Information Bulletin, September 2000

Conservation

• Integrating Conservation and Commodity Program Payments: A Look at the Tradeoffs, Amber Waves, November 2007

• Agricultural Policy Affects Land Use and the Environment, Amber Waves, September 2006

• Environmental Effects of Agricultural Land-Use Change: The Role of Economics and Policy, Economic Research Report, August 2006

• Agriculture and the Environment, Special Issue of Amber Waves, July 2006

• Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators (AREI), Economic Information Bulletin, July 2006

• Balancing the Multiple Objectives of Conservation Programs, Economic Research Report, May 2006

• Conservation Program Design, Economic Briefs, March 2006

• Greening Income Support and Supporting Green, Economic Bulletin, March 2006

• Conservation-Compatible Practices and Programs: Who Participates?, Economic Research Report, February 2006

• Managing Manure to Improve Air and Water Quality, Economic Research Report, September 2005

• Flexible Conservation Measures on Working Land, Economic Research Report, June 2005

• The Conservation Reserve Program: Economic Implications for Rural America, Agricultural Economic Report, September 2004

• Environmental Compliance in U.S. Agricultural Policy: Past Performance and Future Potential, Agricultural Economic Report, June 2004

• Farmland Protection: The Role of Public Preferences for Rural Amenities, Agricultural Economic Report, November 2002

• Confined Animal Production and Manure Nutrients, Agricultural Information Bulletin, June 2001

• Development at the Urban Fringe and Beyond: Impacts on Agriculture and Rural Land, Agricultural Economic Report, June 2001

• Agri-Environmental Policy at the Crossroads: Guideposts on a Changing Landscape, Agricultural Economic Report, January 2001

• Economic Valuation of Environmental Benefits and the Targeting of Conservation Programs: The Case of the CRP, Agricultural Economic Report, May 1999

• Wetlands and Agriculture: Private Interests and Public Benefits, Agricultural Economic Report, September 1998

Trade

• World Trade Organization and Globalization Help Facilitate Growth in Agricultural Trade, Amber Waves, June 2008

• NAFTA at 13: Implementation Nears Completion, International Agriculture and Trade Report, March 2007

• Global Agriculture and the Doha Round—Market Access is the Key, Amber Waves, September 2006

• The World Bids Farewell to the Multifiber Arrangement, Amber Waves, February 2006

• Recent Agricultural Policy Reforms in North America, International Agriculture and Trade Report, April 2005

• U.S. Agriculture and the Free Trade Area of the Americas, Agricultural Economic Report, March 2004

• Food Safety and International Trade—Research Briefs, Agriculture Information Bulletin, February 2004

• Regulatory Barriers in International Horticultural Markets, International Agriculture and Trade Report, January 2004

• U.S.-EU Food and Agriculture Comparisons, International Agriculture and Trade Report, January 2004

• Multilateralism and Regionalism: Dual Strategies for Trade Reform, Amber Waves, September 2003

• North American Agricultural Market Integration and Its Impact on the Food and Fiber System, Agriculture Information Bulletin, September 2003

• Commodity Policies of the U.S., EU, and Japan, Agricultural Outlook, December 2002

• Agricultural Policy Reform in the WTO—The Road Ahead, Agricultural Economic Report, June 2001

• An Economic Analysis of a Food Security Reserve: Commodity vs. Cash, American Agricultural Economics Association Selected Paper, August 1999

Nutrition Programs

• Food Assistance Landscape, Economic Information Bulletin, May 2008

• Food Stamps and Obesity: What Do We Know?, Economic Information Bulletin, March 2008

• The Costs of Benefit Delivery in the Food Stamp Program: Lessons From a Cross-Program Analysis, Contractor and Cooperator Report, March 2008

• Effect of State Food Stamp and TANF Policies on Food Stamp Program Participation, Contractor and Cooperator Report, January 2008

• Informing Food and Nutrition Assistance Policy: 10 Years of Research at ERS, Miscellaneous Publication, December 2007

• Household Food Security in the United States, 2006, Economic Research Report, November 2007

• Food and Nutrition Assistance Programs and Obesity: 1976-2002, Economic Research Report, September 2007

• Can Food Stamps Do More To Improve Food Choices? An Economic Perspective, Economic Information Bulletin, September 2007

• Could Behavioral Economics Help Improve Diet Quality for Nutrition Assistance Program Participants?, Economic Research Report, June 2007

• Food Assistance: How Strong Is the Safety Net?, Special Issue of Amber Waves, May 2007

• What Factors Account for State-to-State Differences in Food Insecurity?, Economic Information Bulletin, November 2006

• The MID-SIPP Model: A Simulation Approach for Projecting Impacts of Changes in the Food Stamp Program, Contractor and Cooperator Report, October 2006

• Income Volatility Complicates Food Assistance, Amber Waves, September 2006

• Food Stamp Program Costs and Error Rates, 1989-2001, Contractor and Cooperator Report, January 2006

• Evaluation of the USDA Elderly Nutrition Demonstrations: Volume I, Evaluation Findings, Contractor and Cooperator Report, July 2005

• Understanding Economic and Behavioral Influences on Fruit and Vegetable Choices, Amber Waves, April 2005

• Effects of Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs on Nutrition and Health: Volume 4, Executive Summary of the Literature Review, Food Assistance and Nutrition Research Report, December 2004

• Food Stamp Program Access Study: Final Report, E-FAN, November 2004

• Understanding the Food Stamp Benefit Formula: A Tool for Measuring the Component Effects, Food Assistance and Nutrition Research Report, April 2001

• The Changing Food Assistance Landscape: The Food Stamp Program in a Post-Welfare Reform Environment, Agricultural Economic Report, March 1999

Rural Development

• Defining the "Rural" in Rural America, Amber Waves, June 2008

• Education's Role in the Metro-Nonmetro Earnings Divide, Amber Waves, February 2008

• Policy Options for a Changing Rural America, Special Issue of Amber Waves, May 2007

• Population Dynamics Are Changing the Profile of Rural Areas, Amber Waves, April 2007

• The Creative Class: A Key to Rural Growth, Amber Waves, April 2007

• Rural America at a Glance, Economic Information Bulletins, various issues 2002-07

• Education as a Rural Development Strategy, Amber Waves, November 2005

• Rural Areas Benefit from Recreation and Tourism Development, Amber Waves, September 2005

• Farm Programs, Natural Amenities, and Rural Development, Amber Waves, February 2005

• Progress and Partnerships in a Dynamic Rural America, Amber Waves, February 2004

• Nonmetro Poverty: Assessing the Effect of the 1990s, Amber Waves, September 2003

Agricultural Research

• Economic Returns to Public Agricultural Research, Economic Brief, September 2007

• Program of Research on the Economics of Invasive Species Management, Fiscal 2003-06 Activities, Administrative Publication, July 2007

• Farmers Balance Off-Farm Work and Technology Adoption, Amber Waves, February 2007

• Knowledge Resources and Productivity, AREI Chapter 3, July 2006

• Public Information Creates Value, Amber Waves, April 2006

• The First Decade of Genetically Engineered Crops in the United States, Economic Information Bulletin, April 2006

• The Value of Plant Disease Early-Warning Systems: A Case Study of USDA's Soybean Rust Coordinated Framework, Economic Research Report, April 2006

• Government Patenting and Technology Transfer, Economic Research Report, March 2006

• Crop Genetic Resources: An Economic Appraisal, Economic Information Bulletin, May 2005

• Have Seed Industry Changes Affected Research Effort?, Amber Waves, February 2004

• Consumers and the Future of Biotech Foods in the United States, Amber Waves, November 2003

• Methyl Bromide Phaseout Proceeds: Users Request Exemptions, Amber Waves, April 2003

• Economic Issues in Agricultural Biotechnology, Agricultural Information Bulletin, March 2001

• Economic Implications of the Methyl Bromide Phaseout, Agricultural Information Bulletin, February 2000

• Agricultural Research and Development: Public and Private Investments Under Alternative Markets and Institutions, Agricultural Economic Report, May 1996

Energy

• U.S. Ethanol Expansion Driving Changes Throughout the Agricultural Sector, Amber Waves, September 2007

• Ethanol Reshapes the Corn Market, Special Issue of Amber Waves, May 2007

• Agriculture and Rural Communities Are Resilient to High Energy Costs, Amber Waves, April 2006

Horticulture and Organic Agriculture

• The U.S. Organic Handling Sector in 2004: Baseline Findings of the Nationwide Survey of Organic Manufacturers, Processors, and Distributors, Economic Information Bulletin, May 2008

• Data Track the Expansion of International and U.S. Organic Farming, Amber Waves, September 2007

• Relaxing Fruit and Vegetable Planting Restrictions, Special Issue of Amber Waves, May 2007

• Retail and Consumer Aspects of the Organic Milk Market, Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook special article, May 2007

• Organic Poultry and Eggs Capture High Price Premiums and Growing Share of Specialty Markets, Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook special article, December 2006

• Fruit and Vegetable Backgrounder, Vegetables and Melons Outlook special article, April 2006

• EU and U.S. Organic Markets Face Strong Demand Under Different Policies, Amber Waves, February 2006

• Price Premiums Hold on as U.S. Organic Produce Market Expands, Vegetables and Melons Outlook special article, May 2005

• Understanding Fruit and Vegetable Choices: Economic and Behavioral Influences, Agriculture Information Bulletin, October 2004

• Organic Produce, Price Premiums, and Eco-Labeling in U.S. Farmers' Markets, Vegetables and Melons Outlook special article, April 2004

• U.S. Organic Farming in 2000-2001: Adoption of Certified Systems, Agriculture Information Bulletin, April 2003

• Recent Growth Patterns in the U.S. Organic Foods Market, Agriculture Information Bulletin, September 2002

Livestock Competition

• Agricultural Contracting Update, 2005, Economic Information Bulletin, April 2008

• Technology, Larger Farm Size Increased Productivity on U.S. Hog Farms, Amber Waves, April 2008

• Low Costs Drive Production to Large Dairy Farms, Amber Waves, September 2007

• U.S. Consumers Had Short-Term Response to First BSE Announcements, Amber Waves, September 2007

• Agricultural Contracting Update: Contracts in 2003, Economic Information Bulletin, January 2006

• U.S. Dairy at a New Crossroads in a Global Setting, Amber Waves, November 2005

• Did the Mandatory Requirement Aid the Market? Impact of the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act, Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook special article, September 2005

• Structural Change in the Meat, Poultry, Dairy, and Grain Processing Industries, Economic Research Report, April 2005

• Contracts, Markets, and Prices: Organizing the Production and Use of Agricultural Commodities,  Agricultural Economic Report, November 2004

• Food Traceability: One Ingredient in a Safe and Efficient Food Supply, Amber Waves, April 2004

• Country-of-Origin Labeling: Theory and Observation, International Agriculture and Trade Report, January 2004

• Economics of Food Labeling, Agricultural Economic Report, January 2001

Risk Management

• Managing Risk With Revenue Insurance, Special Issue of Amber Waves, May 2007

• Whole-Farm Approaches to a Safety Net, Economic Information Bulletin, June 2006

• Agricultural Contracting: Trading Autonomy for Risk Reduction, Amber Waves, February 2006

• Why Hasn't Crop Insurance Eliminated Disaster Assistance?, Amber Waves, June 2005

• Contracts, Markets, and Prices: Organizing the Production and Use of Agricultural Commodities, Agricultural Economic Report, November 2004

• Risk, Government Programs, and the Environment, Technical Bulletin, March 2004

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