Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton, Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Alan Ker, Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Guelph

In this podcast Alan Ker discusses a special issue of the Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics. The issue is titled, “COVID-19 and the Canadian Agriculture and Food Sectors: Thoughts from the Pandemic Onset”. Alan provides an overview of the articles published in the special issue and his own assessment of Canada’s food system during the onset of the pandemic. Alan brings a unique perspective to this discussion because he is the managing editor of the journal and a co-editor of the special issue.

Link to special issue being discussed: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17447976/0/ja

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton and students from his Land Economics course at the University of Guelph.

Interviewee: Kenneth Poon is Director of Analytics at Blackstone Energy.

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk & Kyle Ritchie, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph.

In this podcast, Kenneth Poon discusses a pressing policy issue with broad-reaching implications: how Canada puts a price on carbon. He outlines the current regulatory environment, industry and consumer impacts, the benefits and drawbacks of taxation vs. cap-and-trade, and Canada’s leadership role in global strategies for emissions reductions.

Description

Host: Brady J. Deaton, Tasmia Kabir, Jamie Naylor, Amanda Norris, Elsie Richmond. Faculty and students from the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph.and students from his Land Economics course at the University of Guelph.

Interviewee: Dwight Newman is a Professor of Law and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Rights in Constitutional and International Law at the University of Saskatchewan.

Produced by: Bethany Lipka, Research Associate and Project Coordinator in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph.

In this podcast Dwight Newman discusses one of the more important legal issues of our time: the Canadian Government’s "Duty to Consult" Indigenous People. The meaning and history of duty to consult is discussed in detail. We begin our discussion with an assessment of this quote: "To be blunt, anyone who perpetuates misunderstandings about the duty to consult is standing in the way of Canada’s future."¹

Dwight Newman has written many articles on this topic and his book, "Revisiting the Duty to Consult Aboriginal Peoples" is both engaging and insightful! His book can be found here: https://www.ubcpress.ca/revisiting-the-duty-to-consult-aboriginal-peoples.

If some listeners want a book that brings the duty to consult (and other Aboriginal rights issues) into interaction with various parts of a specific resource development context, see: https://store.lexisnexis.ca/en/categories/shop-by-jurisdiction/federal-13/mining-law-of-canada-skusku-cad-6680/details.

¹Newman, D. (2014). The Rule and Role of Law: The Duty to Consult, Aboriginal Communities, and the Canadian Natural Resources Sector. A Macdonald-Laurier Institute Publication. https://www.macdonaldlaurier.ca/files/pdf/DutyToConsult-Final.pdf.

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton and students from his Land Economics course at the University of Guelph.

Interviewee: Dr. Richard Vyn is Associate Professor of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph.

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph.

In this podcast, Professor Richard Vyn discusses his recently published article: "Property Value Impacts of Wind Turbines and the Influence of Attitudes Toward Wind Energy”.

His research examines the impact of wind turbines on property values in municipalities that oppose wind energy development and those that have not expressed opposition. His results indicate that wind turbines have negatively impacted property values in “unwilling host” municipalities, while no statistically significant impacts are found in unopposed municipalities.

The article was published in the journal Land Economics in November, 2018. A link to the article is here: http://le.uwpress.org/content/94/4/496.abstract?etoc.

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton,
Professor and McCain Family Chair in Food Security of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Patrick Westhoff is Professor of Agricultural and Applied Economics and Director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri.

In this podcast, Dr. Pat Westhoff and I discuss his recent article "Four indicators that explain world grain and oilseed market developments" written with his colleague Dr. Wyatt Thompson. Our discussion focuses on their empirical examination of four key indicators: crop yields, population, Chinese demand, and biofuel production. We discuss trends in these indicators over the last 35 years in order to develop expectations for the next 35 years with respect to a range of issues including Food Security from a global perspective. We discuss a number of specific issues including their observation that, "Chinese demand and biofuel production account for the entire net increase in world per-capita grain and oilseed consumption since 1980."

Westhoff, P. and T. Wyatt, (2017). "Four indicators that explain world grain and oilseed market developments." Agribusiness, 00,1-5. DOI:10.1002/agr.21502

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton,
Professor and McCain Family Chair in Food Security of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Chad Lawley, Department of Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics at the University of Manitoba

In this podcast Prof. Chad Lawley - Department of Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics at the University of Manitoba--and I discuss his recent paper examining the consequences of the 2003 Farmland Security Act Amendment in Saskatchewan. He finds evidence that the amendment favourably increased farmland prices. Hence, previous restrictions disallowing a non-Saskatchewan resident from pursuing farmland depressed farmland values. However, as we discuss, it remains unclear whether lower farmland prices achieved some of the goals of the 1974 Farmland Security Act: e.g., maintaining rural populations and supporting young farmers. His article can be found here.

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton,
Professor and McCain Family Chair in Food Security of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Jayson Lusk is Distinguished Professor and Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics at Purdue University.

In this podcast Dr. Jayson Lusk and I discuss his George Morris AgriFood Policy Lecture: "The Future of Food."

Jayson points out that since the writings of Malthus, the food sector has been characterized by increases in productivity. He notes that this increase in productivity has allowed us to escape the Malthusian trap. Despite this success, or because of it, a modern food movement has emerged with a set of concerns that doesn’t always recognize the trade-off between their desired production practices and productivity. Jayson points out that desires for how food should be produced varies across income levels. The future of food depends, in part, on how these competing interests get worked out in agricultural policy.

Dr. Lusk latest popular book is Unnaturally Delicious: How Science and Technology are Serving up Super foods to Save the World. His earlier book – The Food Police – is the subject of an earlier podcast on FareTalk. A link to his blog is as follows: Jayson Lusk's Blog.

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton,
Professor and McCain Family Chair in Food Security of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Bruno Larue is a professor in the department of Agricultural Economics and Consumer Sciences, Laval University.

Dr. Bruno Larue and I discuss his recent keynote presentation to the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society (CAES) titled, Economic Integration Reconsidered. Dr. Larue describes what is meant by economic integration and assesses changes in the perceived benefits of integration since the late 1980s. We discuss a variety of challenges to economic integration including politics and the fact that while integration benefits some, others are hurt. We also discuss specific policies such as supply management and the ongoing softwood lumber war with the United States.

Description

Host: Dr. Brady Deaton,
Professor and McCain Family Chair in Food Security of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Daowei Zhang, Alumni and George Peak Jr. Professor of Forest Economics and Policy at Auburn University School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, Auburn University

In this FareTalk, Dr. Daowei Zhang and I discuss his thoughts about the contemporary and historic trade dispute between Canada and the United States regarding softwood lumber: i.e., “The Softwood Lumber Wars.” The more than 30 year trade dispute continues and Dr. Zhang gives us historic, economic and political insight into the matter. A good portion of the podcast discusses his book, “The Softwood Lumber War: Politics, Economics, and the Long U.S.—Canadian Trade Dispute.” A link to the book is provided. In addition, Dr. Zhang refers to power point slides 7 & 8, which are the last two slides in the power-point slide deck made available below.

Dr. Zhang's book, "The Softwood Lumber War" is available here.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Emily Hamilton, Mercatus Center at George Mason University

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph

In this FareTalk podcast students from the University of Guelph and I discuss issues regarding land-use regulation and affordable housing with Emily Hamilton. Emily is a policy research manager at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Our discussion draws from a recent paper that she, and her co-author wrote titled, "How Land-Use Regulation Undermines Affordable Housing." The paper is available here.
A news report referenced in the podcast is available here.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Valerie Tarasuk, Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph

In this podcast Dr. Valerie Tarasuk and I discuss the meaning and measure of food insecurity in Canada and the United States. Our discussion orbits around two key publications that she has co-authored examining "Household Food Insecurity in Canada". One report examines data from 2012 and the other, most recent report, examines data from 2014. These publications are available (see reports tab) here. Dr. Tarasuk explains how food insecurity is measured and why the measure is important. We also discuss the impotance of measuring food insecurity. For example, most food insecure households are headed by wage earners and most do not use food banks. This has important implications for policies which seek to address the issue.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Cynthia Scott-Dupree, Bayer CropScience Chair in Sustainable Pest Management, School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Guelph

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph

In this podcast Dr. Cynthia Scott-Dupree and I discuss the science that informs understanding of the relationship between bees and neonics – a pesticide that has recently been made subject to new restrictive regulations in Ontario, Canada and elsewhere. In our discussion we address a number of questions including: What are neonics? What do we know about bees and recent bee population changes? Are neonics toxic to bees? Do neonics pose a risk? In our discussion we discuss the meaning, method, and evidence regarding toxicity and risk and explain the difference.

In our discussion we reference a recent PLOS-one publication that reviews the scientific findings behind bees and neonics. Cynthia Scott-Dupree's own research examining the relationships between neonics and honey bees can be found here.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Rene Van Acker, Professor and Associate Dean of the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) at the University of Guelph.

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph

In this podcast Dr. Rene Van Acker and I discuss GM crops. The podcast develops an understanding of contemporary and historic issues associated with the first “wave” of GM crops. We also discuss contemporary controversies and institutional issues associated with GM crops. Near the end of the podcast, we discuss the future of GM crops. In this portion of the podcast, Rene provides a number of insights that are useful for framing our understanding of potential benefits as well as ongoing concerns.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Richard Vyn, Assistant Professor in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus.

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Open Learning and Educational Support (OpenED), University of Guelph

In this podcast Dr. Richard Vyn and students at the University of Guelph in Dr. Brady Deaton's 4th year course in Land Economics, discuss Dr. Vyn's recent journal article, "The Effects of Wind Turbines on Property Values in Ontario: Does Public Perception Match Empirical Evidence?" which was published in the Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics. (The article was co-authored with Ryan McCullough.) Richard provides background for his study, overviews previous literature, discusses his empirical methods, findings, and future research goals. In addition to discussing his research, students share their own experiences regarding wind turbines in their own communities.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Dr. Thom Jayne, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics at Michigan State University.

In this podcast Thom Jayne and I discuss key ideas from a special issue that he and his colleagues edited for the journal Food Policy. The title of the special issue is "Boserup and Beyond: Mounting Land Pressures and Development Strategies in Africa."

Our conversation focuses on economic development strategies for Sub-Saharan Africa and contemporary issues regarding land use and land ownership in Africa.

Description

Host: Dr. B. James Deaton,
Dept. Of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (FARE), University of Guelph

Interviewee: Barry K. Goodwin is William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Economics and Agricultural & Resource Economics at North Carolina State University.  His work has been published in a number of professional journals and has won Outstanding Article awards from three journals, including the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and the Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics. Find out more about Barry here.

Produced by: Jakub Hyzyk, Centre for Open Learning and Educational Development (COLES), University of Guelph

In this podcast Barry Goodwin and I discuss his research on the effect of U.S. subsidies on U.S. farmland values and rental rates. We focus our discussion on the effect of U.S. agricultural subsidies on rental rates. Our discussion follows a paper he wrote with his colleagues, "The Buck Stops Where? The Distribution of Agricultural Subsidies." That paper can be found here.