Integration of agricultural and energy systems

Dec 2008

Massive production of energy, mainly liquid fuels, from agricultural resources will link agricultural and energy markets, tightly. The new market integration is perhaps the most fundamentally important change to occur in agriculture in decades. The link between energy and agricultural markets requires an integrated environment to study these markets and design policy alternatives to guide them towards designated goals. This group of articles develops an integrated partial equilibrium framework to analyze economic impacts of four alternative policies which can be implemented in promoting ethanol production. These policies are: a fixed subsidy per gallon of ethanol, no subsidy, a variable subsidy linked to the crude oil price, and a renewable fuel standard.
In this document are reported the proceedings of a conference held in Atlanta (Georgia) on 12–13 February 2008, sponsored by Farm Foundation, USDA Office of Energy Policy and New Uses, USDA Economic Research Service.

By: B. C. English, R. J. Menard, K. Jensen (The University of Tennessee)

 
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