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Biblioteca Agribusiness concentration, intellectual property, and the prospects for rural economic benefits from the emerging biofuel economy

Agribusiness concentration, intellectual property, and the prospects for rural economic benefits from the emerging biofuel economy

Agribusiness concentration, intellectual property, and the prospects for rural economic benefits from the emerging biofuel economy

Resource information

Date of publication
Dezembro 2009
Resource Language
ISBN / Resource ID
AGRIS:US201301824285
Pages
111-129

United States policy makers are promoting bio-fuels as an economic development opportunity, especially for rural America. A USDA study claims that developments in energy production from biomass could increase profits for agricultural commodity producers. However, as William Heffernan and his colleagues have demonstrated, concentration in the agrifood sector limits the economic benefits going to the commodity producers. Relying on Heffernan’s framework, we compare the distribution of intellectual property of corn and other genetically modified crops with that of the emerging biomass technologies. We find that patent ownership in the emerging biofuel sector is not yet as concentrated as in the agricultural biotechnology sector. However, theories of private ordering predict concentration and our data indicate that concentration is occurring. The results suggest that rural biomass producers are unlikely to gain broad economic benefits from the biofuel economy.

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Authors and Publishers

Author(s), editor(s), contributor(s)

Glenna, Leland L.
Cahoy, Daniel R.

Data Provider
Geographical focus