Trade In Grain Research Articles

Design of Resistive Grain Moisture On-line Detector

Grain moisture detection is of great significance to the acquisition, transportation, storage, processing and trade of grain. This paper designs and develops a resistive grain moisture on-line detector, which uses the least squares method for data calibration and stores the calibrated data in the STC15F2K08S2 microcontroller. The grain moisture content is obtained by processing the collected grain resistance and grain temperature. When the grain moisture content exceeds the set value of grain moisture detector, the microcontroller will automatically control the opening of grain drying equipment so as to prevent the grain moisture content from being too high and causing mildew. Through the experimental data analysis and operation test, the detector can accurately detect the moisture content of wheat, barley, rapeseed, rice and other grain and automatically control the drying equipment, and it has the advantages of fast response, high accuracy and strong practicality, so it can meet the national grain testing accuracy requirements and automatic drying requirements.

Population growth of the khapra beetle, Trogoderma granarium Everts (Coleoptera: Dermestidae) on different commodities

We evaluated the population growth of the khapra beetle, Trogoderma granarium Everts (Coleoptera: Dermestidae) on different grains, cracked wheat containment categories and amylaceous materials by conducting three series of laboratory bioassays. In the first series, peeled barley, whole (raw) barley, peeled oats, whole (raw) oats, peeled rice, rough rice, rye, triticale and hard wheat were tested. In the second series, six cracked wheat containment categories were tested: wheat containing intact kernels only (0% cracked kernels), wheat containing 5% cracked kernels and 95% intact kernels, wheat containing 10% cracked kernels and 90% intact kernels, wheat containing 25% cracked kernels and 75% intact kernels, wheat containing 50% cracked kernels and 50% intact kernels and wheat containing 100% cracked kernels. In the third series, the following amylaceous commodities were tested: hard wheat (intact kernels), whole oat flakes, maize flour, whole barley flour, pasta, white soft wheat flour, whole soft wheat flour, white hard wheat flour, whole hard wheat flour, whole rye flour and semolina. Significantly more dead adults were found on wheat than on peeled barley, maize, whole oats, rough rice and rye. Significantly more larvae alive were found on wheat and triticale, than on the other grains, with the exception of oats, both whole and peeled. The increase of the percentage of cracked wheat kernels increased population growth, except in the case of 10% cracked wheat kernels. In vials that contained 100% cracked wheat kernels, 584.1 individuals per vial were found, which was 3.7 times more than the respective number of larvae alive in vials with intact wheat kernels only. Significantly more dead adults were found on whole barley flour than on the other commodities. More than 1213 larvae per vial were recorded on whole barley flour, which was 1.3–15 times higher than the other commodities. The lowest number of larvae alive was found on pasta, followed by the white soft wheat flour. The findings of the present work show that some commodities are more prone to spread T. granarium than others, a fact which should be seriously taken into account in international trade of grains and related amylaceous products.

A body without a voice: A literary approach to Linguet's opposition to the physiocrats over the free trade in grain

Linguet was a critic of the physiocrats and of what he perceived as the disastrous consequences the liberalisation of the trade in grain on the people. Linguet's rhetorical use of the voice of the people is studied here through its rhetorical device and its fantasmatic and ideological echoes. With his dramatised and polyphonic style Linguet quotes many different protagonists, but he chooses to neuter the people's voice on the rare occasions when it is heard. Despite this rather conventional suppression of the people's voice, Linguet's claims to be a spokesman or advocate of the people are quite convincing. Through his detailed and hyperbolic depiction of the physical suffering of starving people, Linguet shines a light on one of the blind spots of the Physiocratic doctrine which sees no damage in economic prosperity.

Cross border trade in grain between Nigeria and neighbouring Niger: Risk management assessment along Sokoto Illela-Konni border land

AbstractGrain is an important marketable commodity that is hampered by risk of interrelated dimensions, particularly in borderlands of West Africa. Assessing the extent of risk in borderlands can be valuable for policy-makers and likely to contribute to increased regional trade through effective management. Risk management along the grain supply chain was investigated. The methodology was qualitative using desk review of literature and field survey and interviews. While the survey revealed evidence of substantial volume of grain exchange, most of the traders indicated transportation, high taxes and low production of grain as the most important risk factors limiting trade. Production was found to be limited by low access to agricultural insurance, fertilizer, irrigation and credit. Although farmers had access to production information, market information was inadequate. While public grain reserve exists to manage price risk; the capacity was insignificant compared to the magnitude of grain trade in the reg...

Development of exchange trade institutions in Ukraine

Effective activity of the modern market directly depends on environment in which it is. One of major factors that provide development of the market relations is development of institutes of exchange trade. The article is devoted to the history of the national exchange market creation. The exchange has been one of the world pillars on which the civilized market economy is based. In the West countries the exchange has a leading place among other economic institutions and has proved its public importance. In Ukraine, as well as in some other post-socialist countries, place of the exchange hasn’t been determined yet.Features of emergence of the exchanges in Ukraine related to the necessity of organizing economic life of the region. With the development of the exchanges activity Ukraine was incorporated into the system of international exchange trading, in particular the trade in grain, sugar, cattle and many other types of products.

Christian merchants in the Almohad cities

The presence of Christian merchants in cities under Almohad rule raises important questions about their policy towards non‐Muslims. A series of commercial agreements ensured that Christian merchants could travel safely to the Maghrib, although relations periodically disintegrated, amid accusations of piracy by the Pisans and Genoese. In addition to treaties in Arabic, Latin and Italian, surviving evidence reveals that relations between the Almohads and the Norman kings of Sicily were healed around 1180. At the heart of these relationships lay the trade in grain from Sicily and in leather and other primary goods from North Africa.

Climate and society in colonial Mexico: a study in vulnerability

List of Tables and Figures. Series Editors' Preface. Acknowledgements. 1 A Vulnerable Society. Introduction. Changing Vulnerabilities. Climate Change and the 'Double-Sided' Structure of Vulnerability 5 Exploring Climate and Society in Mexico. Climate History and Vulnerability in Mexico. Case Studies and Approach. 2 Climate, Culture and Conquest: North, South and Central Mexico in the Pre-European and Contact Period. Environmental Marginality and Society in the Conchos Basin, Chihuahua. Guanajuato and the Chichimec Territory. Power and Political Growth in the Central Valley of Oaxaca. 3 Exploring the Anatomy of Vulnerability in Colonial Mexico. Introduction. The Tools of Conquest and Colonization. The Emergence of Regional Colonial Political Economies. Climatic Variability and Vulnerability in Colonial Mexico: A Preview. 4 Responding to Crisis: Vulnerability and Adaptive Capacity in Colonial Mexico. Introduction. Moral Economic and Institutional Responses to Climate and Crisis in Colonial Mexico. Speculation and Scarcity: Capitalizing on Climate Knowledge. Trade in Grains: Providing for the 'Engines' of the Colonial Political Economy. Tribute, Food Aid and the Supernatural: Appealing to a Common Sense of Loss. 'Compadrazgo', Community Engagement and Public Works. 'Most sensitive and saddening events': Flood Risk and Social Capital Response in Colonial Guanajuato. 'Great floods' and 'Strong winds': Damaging Events, Adaptation and 'Non-Adaptation' in Colonial Oaxaca. Responding Strategically: Climate, Consciousness and Experimentation. 5 Dearth, Deluge and Disputes: Negotiating and Litigating Water and Climate in Colonial Mexico. Introduction. Water and Local 'Everyday Conflicts' in the Country and City. Regional Resistance: Drought, Disease and Rebellion in Northern Mexico. Vulnerability, Riots and Rebellions: Rare Events or 'Tipping Points'? 6 Illusory Prosperity: Economic Growth and Subsistence Crisis in the Disastrous Eighteenth Century. Introduction. Decline and Depression in Seventeenth-Century Mexico. Economic Boom and Bust: Absolutism and Globalization in Late Colonial Mexico. 'A time of calamity': A Synthesis of Climate and Crises in Late Colonial Mexico. From Crisis to Insurrection: Vulnerability and Popular Unrest in the Early Nineteenth Century. 7 Regional, National and Global Dimensions of Vulnerability and Crisis in Colonial Mexico. Introduction. Prolonged Drought and the Conditions of Crisis in Late Colonial Chihuahua. Drought, Risk and the Social Construction of Flooding in the Bajio. Resilience and the Rare Event: Climate, Society and Human Choice in the Indigenous South. Crises in Context and Historical 'Double Exposure'. Closing Comments. Notes. Bibliography. Index.

It's all for sale: the control of global resources

Five companies dominate the U.S. petroleum industry. Five control the worldwide trade in grain. Two have a corner on the private market for drinking water. In terms of actual dollars, trade in heroin, cocaine, and tobacco ranks alongside that in grain or metals. There are more slaves in the world today than ever before. Resource by resource, It’s All for Sale uncovers and discloses who owns, buys, and sells what. Some resources—such as fuel, metals, fertilizers, drugs, fibers, food, forests, and flowers—have, for better or worse, long been thought of as commodities. Others—including fresh water, human beings, the sky, the oceans, and life itself (in the form of genetic codes)—are more startling to think of as products with price tags, but, as James Ridgeway shows, they are treated as such on a massive scale in lucrative markets around the world. Revealing the surprisingly small number of companies that control many of the basic commodities we use in everyday life, It’s All for Sale confirms in specific detail that globalization has been accompanied by an extraordinary concentration of ownership. At the same time, it is about much more than what company has cornered the market in corn or diamonds. Corporations and captains of industry, wars and swindles, oppressors and the oppressed, empires and colonies, military might and commercial power, economic boom and bust—all these come alive in Ridgeway’s canny and arresting reporting about the global scramble for power and profit. It’s All for Sale is an invaluable source for researchers, activists, and all those concerned with globalization, corporate power, and the exploitation of individuals and the environment.

THE SECTORAL APPROACH TO TRADE LIBERALIZATION: Should We Try To Do Better?

This paper discusses partial approaches to trade liberalization, such as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group's Early Voluntary Sector Liberalization (EVSL) proposal and the "zero-for-zero" approach. Distortions to resource allocation and global markets that might result from partial liberalizations are discussed, and parallels drawn to the possible trade diversion impacts and welfare losses of regional liberalization and tariff escalation. A global Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model is used to provide some numerical illustrations of the issues with respect to international trade in grains, oilseeds, and related processed products.

Food inventory policies under liberalized trade

This paper evaluates the role of food inventories or buffer stocks in stabilizing prices of foodgrains in India when private external trade in grain is liberalized. The model adopts a multi-market equilibrium framework with the direction of trade determined endogenously. World prices are assumed to be sensitive to the amount traded by India (the ‘large country’ effect). The simulation results demonstrate that holding foodgrain inventories is an inefficient mechanism for stabilizing domestic prices under liberalized trade. Variable levies/ subsidies on trade appear to be more cost effective. Freeing of trade lowers domestic price variability even though world prices are more volatile.

Commerce at Ugarit

From the beginning of the excavations at Ugarit, it was apparent that, alongside agriculture and animal husbandry, commerce represented one of the foundations of this nation's economy and of its politics. Ugarit occupied a major position in the Levant. It was the natural crossroads for the commercial trade coming from Mesopotamia that crossed the Euphrates at Carchemish or at Emar. It was also the point of departure for the southward maritime route towards Cyprus then on to Minoan Greece, as well as a staging platform for caravan commerce to Egypt and Hatti. There was little trade in grain, which was essentially a local commodity. However, certain regional specialties became the object of regular commerce among the different capitals of Syria. This was the case, for example, with cheeses and dried fish, the latter a specialty of Tyre. Exports included the products of local craft industry, notably manufactured furniture often decorated with ivory inlay, textiles, olive oil and wine. Ugarit was also a place of transport for precious objects such as semi-precious gems, and metals, in particular copper from Cyprus and tin from Iran. Excavations of the palace have provided evidence of the existence of a merchant class that was dependent on it. Upon royal appointment, the merchant' received an endowment from the king or queen for the acquisition of goods and negotiations. The merchant was responsible for the sums that were entrusted to him, but he could nonetheless manage them as he wished for his personal affairs for the period he held his appointment. However, our knowledge of the relations between the political and commercial powers has been revised by the unearthing of some very important residences that were adjacent to the palace. Discovered in them were business papers of rich businessmen of Ugarit, which are all but unattested from the palace. In a vast residence called the South Palace, the first ocuments were unearthed that indicated an active participation on the part of the merchants in the administration of the kingdom and in the organization of foreign trade. The head of this office was undoubtedly an influential person, Yabninu, who occupied a prominent position in the kingdom and was entrusted with important judicial and diplomatic responsibilities But as with other businessmen, it is very difficult to distinguish between his own affairs and those of the palace economy. Several houses in the residential quarter have also yielded documentation that records commercial activities. Since 1973, the excavation of another building situated further south on the tell has offered new data on the organization of commerce in the last decades of Ugarit's existence. The house of Urtenu ppears to have been cosely tied to the political and economic powers in this last phase of the kingdom. With large areas for storage and warehousing and situated on an important thoroughfare near the gate opening to the south of the city, its commercial activity seems to have been quite intense. At present, the archives of this house are the most abundant ever to have been unearthed outside the palace. The handled there was the concern of important international commercial firms run by dignitaries. One of these great financiers was Shiptibaal, the queen's representative in several real estate transactions and the spouse of a royal princess Through deciphered documents, he can be seen visiting one of his offices located at Emar. He can

Untouchable Pasts: Religion, Identity, and Power among a Central Indian Community, 1780-1950

Untouchable Pasts: Religion, Identity, and Power among a Central Indian Community, 1780-1950

Regional trade and food security in SADC

A number of pertinent questions on regional trade and food security in southern Africa is addressed in this paper, namely: Should a country go it alone or should it belong to a regional trade bloc? Within the SADC region, should countries be content to be cereal importers? How can free trade be phased in? How can intra-SADC trade be expanded? Potentially sensitive agricultural products are listed and the sensitivity in grain milling and cereals is discussed in detail. The major conclusion is that trade in the region can contribute substantially to provide improved food security. There is also considerable scope for greater intra-regional trade in grain and other food products, and for greater cross-border investment in agriculture and agro-industry.

The Grain Trade in Contemporary Canada-U.S. Relations

Background Canada and the United States share the largest trading relationship between two sovereign nations that has ever existed. Much of current volume in trade has been the result of the tremendous growth subsequent to the 1989 Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA). Despite these very large commercial ties across many sectors, and the existence of NAFTA and World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements that outline rules for trade, trade in the grain sector has, nonetheless, been a frequent source of disputes. Increased grain exports from Western Canada into the U.S. have led to numerous disputes in which the U.S. government has legally challenged this Canadian access to its market. This paper analyzes the economic and legal factors that have contributed to these recent grain trade disputes and, further, it speculates as to whether these factors will continue to create pressure for grain disputes. To these ends, it will begin with a brief review of the recent changes in the legal framework for Canada-U.S. trade as a result of CUFTA, NAFTA, and WTO trade agreements, and a description of some of the visible changes in the marketplace, including changes in the grain trade flows that have occurred in the last decade through the merger of firms. This will be followed by an analysis of the economic forces that have affected the Canada-United States grain trade and a description of some of the concerns of the U.S. industry with respect to grain exports from Canada. The final section of the paper contains our assessment of the likelihood of future grain trade disputes. For many years there were significant barriers to trade in grains between Canada and the United States. Canada protected its domestic market for wheat, oats, and barley with the use of import licenses administered by the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB). This protection allowed the CWB to operate the two-price policy, where CWB sales to domestic processors were generally maintained well above world prices. Until 1989, the United States had an import tariff of $0.21 per bushel ($8/t) on grain and canola that had not obtained GRAS (generally regarded as safe for human food consumption) status from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (U.S. International Trade Commission). These measures virtually eliminated profitable arbitrage opportunities for Canada-U.S. grain trade. In January 1989, the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement made a new attempt to integrate the North American grain market. It contained a formula to allow for removal of the Canadian import licenses and the U.S. import tariff on grains, eliminated export subsidies between the two grain markets, reduced Canada's grain transportation subsidy to some U.S. destinations, and obliged the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) not to sell grain into the U.S. below cost. The most noteworthy aspect of CUFTA was that, for the first time, an international legal institution was created for the resolution of trade disputes between Canada and the U.S.: the Chapter 18 Binational Panel system. This new element of the legal trade framework was soon tested in the durum case we will turn to presently, but the system functioned effectively to bring a rules-based solution to a trade irritant. The application of the rule of law in an international setting, where power politics previously determined the outcome, was a welcome development for trade liberalization. Since the agreement came into force, the United States has imported significant amounts of bread wheat, durum wheat, feed wheat, barley, oats, canola, and flaxseed. As shown in Figure 1, Canadian grain exports to the United States have risen steadily to exceed four million tonnes in the 1996-97 crop year. What is most striking about the number is that both CWB grains (wheat and barley) and non-CWB grains (oats, canola, and flaxseed) have increased significantly since the CUFTA. The domestic sale of milling wheat, durum, and malting barley in Canada and the U. …

The potential for agricultural trade among Eastern and Southern African countries

This study investigates the potential for expanding trade in grains and cereals among the countries of Eastern and Southern Africa. In the absence of measures of comparative costs and disaggregated bilateral data, the method was to determine whether the consumption and production characteristics of the countries imply that trade is below its potential. The countries demonstrate characteristics consistent with greater trade in grains and cereals than occurs. The region is not a chronic importer of grains, except in years of severe drought. Greater intra-regional trade in grains is implied by the significantly different structures of consumption and production across countries. These differences suggest that greater grain self-sufficiency for each country taken separately might not be efficient, but it could be for the region as a whole. Along with the evidence for differences in consumption and production patterns goes statistical support for the likelihood that the countries could absorb each other's surpluses and fill each other's shortages over time.

STUDY ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL LOAD PERTINENT TO AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS

This study presents an estimate of the trade balance of environmental load pertinent to the commercial production and trade of grains. The energy efficiency, i.e., the ratio of the caloric value of the produced grains to the inputted energy for their production is estimated with respect to soybean, wheat, rice and maize in Japan and the United States. The efficiency in Japan is always lower than that in the United States, reflecting Japan's “intensive” agricultural practices. As for Japanese rice, the ratio proves as small as between 1.01 and 1.64. Furthermore, the international flow of the nitrogen nutrient associated with the trade of agricultural products and fertilizers is estimated. It is found that Japan accumulated 480 thousands tons of nitrogen in 1994 as a result of her import of 600 thousands tons incorporated in agricultural products and her export of 180 thousands tons in fertilizers.

The Public Purchase of Grain on Independent Delos

Earlier work has tended to view Delos as an entrepôt for the larger Hellenistic grain trade, but during the years of independence (314-167 B.C.) the island relied on the import of grain to satisfy local demand, and this was certainly the more important aspect of the trade in grain, at least from the Delians' point of view. This study explores several issues connected with the local supply of grain. From prices for grain reported in inscriptions and estimates of the local population, the aggregate annual demand for grain is estimated, and the price structure of grain derived; the ratio of wheat and barley prices on Delos is found to differ considerably from that known from Athens and Roman Egypt. The shortage of 282 B.C., assumed by earlier scholars from prices recorded for that year, is shown instead to be a period of atypically low prices. The impact of the sailing season on shipments of grain is explored, and an annual rhythm in grain prices and availability linked to the closure of the sea and the agricultural year is revealed. The Delians tried to reduce the impact of these fluctuations by the public purchase of grain on an irregular basis in the late fourth and third century, as attested through public loans; by the last quarter of the third century they had established a regular sitōnia fund to buy grain for resale at reduced prices. Comparison of funds available, grain prices, and the estimated aggregate demand suggest that the Delian sitōnia was able to cover a significant fraction of local demand; this contrasts with evidence from other cities. Some of the implications of these results for our understanding of the Hellenistic economy are briefly explored.

Specific Factors, Capital Markets, Portfolio Diversification, and Free Trade: Domestic Determinants of the Repeal of the Corn Laws

Whereas the Ricardo-Viner specific factors model implies that owners of land and capital stood diametrically opposed to one another on the issue of free trade in nineteenth-century Britain, studies in the economic history literature posit that the economic interests of these two groups of factor owners were not mutually exclusive but rather overlapped as a result of rapid economic changes in the 1830s that intensified landowner diversification into nonagri-cultural ventures. Hence, the former views the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846 as capital gaining the political upper hand over the landed elite, whereas the latter implies that landowners with diversified portfolios stood to gain from, or simply became indifferent to, free trade in grain. This paper alters the specific factors model to include the concepts of diversification and investment capital flows. It then tests the political implications of diversification, hypothesizing a positive correlation between constituency diversification and parliamentary voting on repeal of the Corn Laws. Both individual and aggregate sets of data confirm that diversified interests contributed to the free-trade policy outcome.

Government transfers to north american grain producers: Levels and implications

The Uruguay round of GATT negotiations is working towards the reduction of agricultural subsidies. In addition, the United States and Canada have agreed to freer trade in grains if the respective subsidy levels become equalized in the two countries. This article quantifies the level of income transfers to United States and Canadian grain farmers over a 15 year period. It was found that government support to agriculture was no higher in the mid 1980s than it was in the early 1970s. Transfers have generally been lower for feed grains in the United States than they have been in Canada. The opposite is true for wheat. The equalization of annual subsidies will be difficult to bring about given the extreme differences which exist between the United States and Canadian farm programs.

International Trade in Grains: Domestic Policies and Trade Impacts

This paper contains a brief summary of the nature of domestic policies and international agreements in agriculture and an outline of a simple computable general equilibrium model of the grain market. Preliminary results presented here suggest that the gains from global liberalization in agriculture could exceed the gains from further liberalization on trade in manufactured goods by the developed world. I. Introduction This is a shortened version of a longer paper presented at the Bergen conference; see Trela et al. (1986). In this we raised some of the issues which will be encountered in addressing the current global situation in agricultural trade in the new negotiating round under the GATT. We summarized how agricultural policies work in the three major trading areas (the EEC, the U.S. and Japan), emphasizing their perverse effects on global agricultural trade. We also discussed how both previous and current international agricultural agreements do little to fundamentally liberalize agricultural trade. Finally, we reported some preliminary results from a modelling project designed to provide a quantitative evaluation of the potential gains from global trade liberalization in grains. In this paper, we describe the modelling work done thus far and present the same preliminary results as reported at Bergen.