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The article discusses the effects of decentralization in agricultural marketing at the time of publication. According to the author, there is a general trend taking place in which farm produce is ceasing to pass through central markets before reaching consumers and is beginning to move directly from farmers to retailers. The author notes that innovations in transportation were a major cause of this change. The advent and spread of high speed trucks and concrete highways are reducing the costs of transportation and enabling the short-haul of goods to markets.

The article discusses the role of a fresh fruit and vegetable market in Chicago, Illinois as a central market. According to the author, in order to determine the changing importance of the role of this market, a base or standard needs to be developed against which changes in the volume of produce being handled by the market can be measured. Also discussed are the roles that secondary and primary markets in the area, as well as the roles played by the increasing use of both trucks and trains as a means of transporting produce.

Determination of revenues adequate to provide proper service is the outstanding problem facing the nation's railroads today. Good service at reasonable cost can be supplied the shipping public only if the railroads have sufficient capital to maintain and improve their facilities. As long as the present system of private ownership and operation continues, the bulk of funds needed will probably come from private sources, thus sustained future earning power is necessary for the carriers to attract capital in competition with other forms of transportation and with other industries. Rising operational costs required increases in the rail freight level between 1946 and 1949, and rate advances on agricultural products averaged slightly less than the overall percentage increase on all commodities. In some cases, the advances were of a nature which created competitive disadvantages to the long-distance shipper, while in others an attempt was made to hold down competitive hardships. In spite of the difficulty in measuring demand elasticity for transportation service, it seems that a substantial volume of agricultural rail traffic has been diverted to common, contract, and private water and motor carriers to an extent which could prove serious to the railroads in the future unless railroad management gives more attention to the possibility of competitive rate scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information about the distribution of fresh fruits and vegetables in the United States. Details related to the first long-distance shipment of strawberries in ice-cooled chests are presented. A discussion is presented about innovations in refrigerated technology allowing for cooled train cars capable of keeping produce cool for long periods of time. Statistical information related to the volume of fresh produce transported in the United States is presented. The article also discusses methods of distribution, shipping logistics, auctions, and the differences between various types of merchants in the wholesale trade.

Abstract: Farmers in developing countries often encounter difficulties selling their products on local markets. Inadequate transport infrastructure in rural areas and large distances between areas of production and consumption mean that farmers find it costly to bring their produce to the market and this very often results in small net margins and poverty among farmers who are geographically isolated. Agriculture in developing countries is characterized by the presence of intermediaries that have a cost advantage over farmers. Because of their market power, these intermediaries are able to impose interlinked contracts and are free to choose the spatial pricing policy they use. In this paper, we develop a model of input–output interlinked contracts between an intermediary and geographically dispersed farmers. We establish when the intermediary uses either uniform or mill pricing policies, as opposed to spatial discriminatory pricing. For each pricing policy, we analyze what the welfare implications are in terms of an increase in farmers' income and a reduction in poverty in rural areas. We also establish how the choice of a spatial pricing policy impacts geographically isolated farmers and how it influences the participation by farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two proposed containers (50 kg-polypropylene sack and 50 kg-wooden crate) were compared with existing packaging containers (100 kg-polypropylene and jute sacks) to transport sweetpotato storage roots from major aggregation sites to distant urban market centers. The extent of breaks, bruises and the impacts, incurred by storage roots packaged in the different containers, were assessed. Additionally, at the urban market centers, the visual quality of the transported storage roots was evaluated by both aggregators and consumers. The benefit cost ratio (BCR) for each of packaging options was calculated to ascertain their profitability for sweetpotato roots transportation. The existing polypropylene/jute sacks resulted in significant major breakages in both years (p = 0.028, 0.016) after transportation for the Afram Plains-Accra route in truck. The donkey-driven carts or tricycles used for the Bawku-Bitou route did not show any significant (p > 0.05) influence on the storage roots contained in the existing polypropylene/jute sacks. The average impact recorded at both loading and offloading sites was significantly different (13.4 - 19.3 g vs. 0 - 30.0 g; p = 0.045) for all the containers. The proposed 50 kg-woodencrate had a significantly superior (mean rank of 127; p < 0.0001) visual quality compared with the other packages. All the packaging options showed profitability, because they had a BCR > 1.40, except for the 50 kg-wooden-crate. The 50 kg-polypropylene container delivered better quality roots to urban market centers than the existing packaging containers, and was more profitable than the 50 kg-wooden crates. The 50 kg-polypropylene container is recommended for the transport of sweetpotato storage roots in Ghana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ekonomika APK is the property of Economy of Argo-Industrial Complex and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Parameters of agricultural transport network are an important element that affects the operating costs of farms. The proper conditions of the road network, suitable density and the quality should provide a opportune and efficient transport between home farm and some of the parcels. The article presents an evaluation of the agricultural road network in the village of Jakubowice Koninskie in the Niemce commune. An inventory of the study area was conducted, and the road density index, road extension index, and technical parameters (the width of the roads and the type of their surface) were determined. When the area of the village of 638 hectares and a total length of roads 35.44 km the road density index was 55 m·ha-1. Due to the surface the largest share in the structure of length are dirt and concrete roads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economics of Agriculture / Ekonomika Poljoprivrede is the property of Institute of Agricultural Economics (IAE) / Belgrade and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Transporting fresh foods and raw agricultural produce have been widely acknowledged as a critical aspect of food chain. Raw fresh food must be conveyed at a low temperature conditions to preserve quality and prolong the shelf life of transported food. This paper takes an insight look at food transport system and proffers a sustainable ways of reducing energy consumption in diesel engine driven vapour compression system. Many studies have reported that 15% of world total energy is used in food preservation while some authors have predicted additional 2% annual increment of energy demand to sustain food chain. In the course of this study, the authors pragmatically identified sources of energy demand in food transport and maintained that the best approach to minimise energy consumption in refrigerated vehicles is to find a light weight and low thermal conductivity material as the external wall of refrigerated vehicles. This research is of high interest in view of continuous rise in earth temperature occasioned by emission of carbon monoxide from fossil fuel. The authors further showed that the usage of aluminium sheet as external wall of refrigerated vehicles reduces the longevity of insulation which increases heat infiltration into the cooling chamber thereby aggravating energy demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The physical condition of various rural roads used in transporting agricultural produce in Ijebu North Local Government Area is of great concern, vehicle used to transport agricultural produce along the routes linking the rural areas are rickety and unsuitable for such purpose. A well-designed questionnaire, personal observation and descriptive and inferential statistics were employed. The respondents consist of (378) of the total population, while simple random technique was used to select 113 (30%) farmers and 95 (25%) produce transporters were equally selected systematically, 170 (45%) produce traders were purposively selected to gather information on socio-economic, agricultural produce, transportation of produce and challenges of moving agricultural produce. The respondent use the following means of transportation in the study area i.e. walking, motor bike, bus, pick-up van and car. Roads in the study area are in a deplorable condition, the type of vehicle used by farmers and traders depend on the volume of the agricultural produce, while petrol, maintenances, ticketing and extortion are the operating cost of vehicle in the movement of produce by the transporters. The research recommends among others things the provision of good storage facility, massive road rehabilitation, provision of modern public transport, empowering agricultural agency to complement the existing effort and extension of rail services towards enhancing transportation of agricultural produce in Ijebu North Local Government area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Although anecdotal evidence suggests that co-location can bring about several benefits for co-located logistics companies, implying the need to incorporate such considerations in location decisions, these benefits have hardly been analysed empirically. This paper provides detailed insights for decision making by precisely analysing the synergies attained through the co-location of logistics firms in specialised and diverse logistics concentration areas. The paper analyses whether co-location in logistics concentration areas that specialise in fresh produce provides additional benefits over co-location in diverse logistics concentration areas that do not specialise in any particular type of products. A survey of managers of 127 logistics firms located in logistics concentration areas tested for differences in synergies through co-location in specialised versus diverse logistics concentration areas. Logistics firms co-located in fresh produce logistics parks share knowledge, combine transport and storage capacities, and trade products more than logistics firms co-located in diverse logistics concentration areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effects of water-misting sprays with forced ventilation on the occurrence of pale, soft, and exudative (PSE) meat in transported broilers during summer combined with the evaluation of the thermal microclimate. To evaluate the thermal microclimate within trucks, temperature (Te), ventilation (VT), and relative humidity (RH) were tracked at different locations using 36 data loggers. Three hundred broilers per load of 2,500 were individually monitored. Three transport test runs were divided into 3 treatment groups: 1) 45 min of transport without rest (T), 2) 45 min of transport with 1 h of rest (TR), and 3) 45 min of transport with 15 min of water-misting sprays with forced ventilation and 45 min of rest (TWFR). Birds were slaughtered in a commercial facility and the meat quality of the chilled carcasses was evaluated by determination of pH, color, drip loss, and cook loss of the pectoralis major (PM) muscle. The Te and enthalpy (H) of the T group at different regions in the vehicle were significantly different. The Te and H of the T group at different regions in the vehicle were significantly different. Compared with PM meat from the T group at different regions of the vehicle, meat from the TWFR group at different regions of the vehicle was significantly different for pH, meat color lightness (L* value), and cook loss. Meat from the TWFR group at different regions of the vehicle was not significantly different for pH, meat color L* value, redness (a* value), yellowness (b* value), or drip loss. The results showed that broilers located at the rear of the vehicle experienced severe conditions of Te, VT, and RH, which resulted in the worst meat quality and the highest incidence of PSE meat. However, application of water-misting sprays with forced ventilation immediately after transport eliminated the effect of different microclimatic regions at different positions and created a relatively comfortable environment that might alleviate stress. Moreover, the water-misting sprays with forced ventilation after transport improved the meat quality and reduced the incidence of PSE meat. Although rest after transport also improved meat quality, the effect was not as significant as water-misting sprays with forced ventilation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We develop and implement a model for a profit maximizing firm that provides an intermediation service between commodity producers and commodity end-users. We are motivated by the grain intermediation business at Los Grobo-one of the largest commodity-trading firms in South America. Producers and end-users are distributed over a realistic spatial network, and trade with the firm through contracts for delivery of grain during the marketing season. The firm owns spatially distributed storage facilities, and begins the marketing season with a portfolio of prearranged purchase and sale contracts with upstream and downstream counterparts. The firm aims to maximize profits while satisfying all previous commitments, possibly through the execution of new transactions. Under realistic constraints for capacities, network structure and shipping costs, we identify the optimal trading, storing and shipping policy for the firm as the solution of a profit-maximizing optimization problem, encoded as a minimum cost flow problem in a time-expanded network that captures both geography and time. We perform extensive numerical examples and show significant efficiency gains derived from the joint planning of logistics and trading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The methodology of comparative evaluation of vehicles for transportation of sugar beet harvesters. Obosnovana method sravnytelnoy otsenki work transportnыh funds for Transit saharnoy from beet combine. The technique of a comparative assessment of works of transport facilities on conveyance of a sugar beet from combines is proved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The technique of harvesting-determination of the transport sector for sugar beetusing napivchovnykovoho vehicle traffic. Obosnovana method for determining composition uborochno transport complex for saharnoy beet with primeneniem poluchelnochnoho movement transportnыh funds. The technique of determination of composition of harvesting and transport complex for a sugar beet with application of semishuttle traffic of trasport facilities is proved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the article the technique, which in practice will solve the problem of vector optimization process of harvesting and transport complex in a limited number of statistics and to identify key relationships and regularities process for collecting and transporting the crop. In Article proposals technique kotoraja pozvolyt in practice Reshat task vektornoy process optimization work uborochno transport complex at ohranychennom Quantity statystycheskyh data, as well as vыyavyt Basic vzaymosvyazy and zakonomernosty tehnolohycheskoho process for Other cleaning and transportyrovke harvest. The paper proposes a method that allows in practice to solve the problem of vector optimization process work harvesting and transport complex with a limited amount of statistical data and to identify the basic relationships and patterns of the process for harvesting and transporting crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on a detailed case study of postharvest losses along a commercial small holder tomato supply chain in Fiji. It is the first systematic quantification of postharvest horticultural losses undertaken in Fiji. Postharvest loss was measured from harvest through to product arrival at the Suva municipal fruit and vegetable markets, with post-municipal market loss determined using simulated storage conditions. In this study, 32.9% of the harvested product was removed from the commercial supply chain due to rots (8.8%), failure to ripen (8.9%), insufficient volume fill a carton (7.8%), physical damage during transport (0.1%) and fruit being over-ripe (6.4%). Poor temperature management during on-farm product ripening and limited on-farm postharvest hygiene were key contributors to the observed loss. In trace-back studies to identify the end-use of all product removed from the commercial chain, of the 32.9% total commercial postharvest loss, 11.0% was consumed at home and/or traded within the village, 6.3% was fed to domestic livestock, and a further 14.7% ended up as on-farm waste or dumped at the municipal refuge. Based on simulated ambient storage condition, once the fruit arrived at the municipal markets, daily postharvest loss thereafter was between 8.3% and 13.4%. Overall accumulative postharvest losses based on three days post-market ambient storage was 60.8%. Postharvest ripening, storage and transport conditions along the supply chain are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the use of railroads as agricultural transportation in the U.S., including costs associated, consolidation among rail operators and the impact of the Staggers Rail Act of 1980. Topics discussed include the aim and drawbacks of the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 and solutions offered by the Staggers Rail Act, the merger and acquisition activity after the implementation of the Staggers Rail Act, and the state and challenges facing the railroad industry in the 21st century.

For the agricultural-based countries, the requirement on transportation infrastructure should not only be limited to accommodate general traffic but also the transportation of crop and agricultural products during the harvest seasons. Most of the past researches focus on the development of truck trip estimation techniques for urban, statewide, or nationwide freight movement but neglect the importance of rural freight movement which contributes to pavement deterioration on rural roads especially during harvest seasons. Recently, the Thai Government initiated a plan to construct a network of reservoirs within the northeastern region, aiming at improving existing irrigation system particularly in the areas where a more effective irrigation system is needed. It is expected to bring in new opportunities on expanding the cultivation areas, increasing the economy of scale and enlarging the extent market of area. As a consequence, its effects on truck trip generation needed to be investigated to assure the service quality of related transportation infrastructure. This paper proposes a combinatory input-output commodity-based approach to estimate truck trips on rural highway infrastructure network. The large-scale irrigation project for the northeastern of Thailand is demonstrated as a case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The means of transport in agriculture are used to transport agricultural products into and out of agricultural farms, agricultural transport representing all work and operations that ensure flow of materials and products from field to farms, respectively from the farms to the various sectors of processing. In this work is carried out an analysis of braking dynamics on tractors with wheels and influence of the forces which appear when driving straight on a slope regarding braking efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural semi-tractor aggregate is mainly used to transport agricultural products to processing and storage places. Forces and moments acting on the tractor under full braking on slope depend on tractor mass and slope angle on which it moves. Those are influenced by the rolling track profile, its degree of irregularity, weight of the tractor or tractor-semitrailer, tire pressure and a lot of other factors that less or more influence the unit displacement, its braking stability and efficiency. This paper presents an analysis of the forces and reaction moments which act on the tractor aggregate running on slope and dynamics of tractor-semitrailer aggregate itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During transport, due to vibration fruits and vegetables could be damaged. The vibration levels that transfer to fruits and vegetables may depend not only on vehicle characteristics (speed and suspension) and the road characteristics but also on the position of boxes packed in truck bed. The purpose of this research was to determine and analyze the vibration that occurs during truck transport as a function of box position and fruit position within the truck bed. For this purpose, two commercial trucks were used (with leaf-spring suspension and air-ride suspension). Test controllable factors includes: height positions of the container column (Bottom, Middle and Up), position of the container along the truck-bed (front axle and rear axle) and depth of fruit inside the container (Down and Top). The obtained values of the power spectral density were used to survey the effect of container positions on fruit vibration. RMS values were also obtained for different positions. The results showed that the power spectral density (PSD) was dependent on the position along the floor of the trucks. Higher vibration levels were recorded for fruits on top of the column. As the fruit height within a box increased, the vibration levels increased. ANOVA test results indicated that the considered factors significantly affected PSD values (Average PSD in the range of 0.1–5 Hz and peak PSD) and root mean square of acceleration ( P < 0.05). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2005, Environmental Stewardship ( ES) has been the principal agri-environment scheme for England and is the key instrument for the delivery of increased environmental benefits from agricultural landscapes. The main objective of this study is to investigate the hypothesis that individuals have greater relative preferences for the environmental benefits associated with agri-environment schemes when they are delivered within those landscapes closest to where they live. A choice experiment approach based on a national survey provides the data and a mixed logit approach is used to model relative preferences for the environmental benefits of ES across five generic landscape types. Results show that most respondents have a preference for benefits delivered in those areas closest and most accessible to where they live. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 70's, there has been significant expansion of agricultural plantations on Mid-Western Brazil, most of them not yet used commercially by monocultural economy of maize and soya. Many truck drivers, thinking of carrying this agricultural production, then headed to this region. In view of this reality, this article analyzes the presence of truck drivers, especially those coming from the South of Brazil, in lands of western Brazil in that period, particularly focusing on the everyday work that these people found. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: At the same time as the Global Positioning System (GPS) has been applied to vehicle tracking and fleet management, other Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have also been proposed to improve supply chain efficiency. Among them, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), and more recently wireless sensors, both currently dominate the research literature. However, many of these proposals lack realistic architecture, system integration in the supply chain, flexibility and cost-efficiency. In addition, several important research gaps need to be filled, such as driver identification, automatic management of journey schedule and security issues involved in wireless communications while collecting data. This paper copes with these issues by: proposing a telematic platform of an integral nature, enhancing tracking and tracing capabilities for vehicles and goods, giving a secure solution to the problem of installing wireless processing units in truck trailers and cabs, identifying drivers and journey itineraries, and assuring freight environmental parameters during the journey. Hardware and software prototypes have been successfully developed and tested in real vehicle case studies, including the transportation of agricultural products in the southeast of Spain. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This article, based on a study carried out by CETRA, suggested by the Direction of Science and Technique of the Ministry of Transport, has as its main objective, to elaborate a proposal for updating the loading system of bulk sugar, taking into account the more integral logistic scheme between suppliers and haulers for vessels over 40 000 DWT. In order to achieve that, it was realized an analysis of four export ports (Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Guayabal y Carúpano), of the location scheme of 56 sugar mills and their links with the port terminals to which they supply, the transportation volume, the throughput and the mean distance by road transport, so as the necessary investments of every elements which are involved in that logistic chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article evaluates both the importance of railway freight in the transportation of agricultural products in Chile from 1930 to 1960 and the effect of railway fares on the organization of the agricultural market. The author attempts to estimate the volume of agricultural freight transported by trains in Chile during this time and notes that due to low fares and broad accessibility, trains served as the primary mode of transportation of agricultural product over maritime and road transportation. Railway fares became a political and economic issue that, over time, affected the structure of the agricultural market, as the government regulation of the agricultural industry in turn harmed the efficiency of the State Railway Company and caused a negative impact on the country's agriculture.

The context for the production of bananas for export is characterised by a wide range of transport-times between producer and importer countries, and by the use of a single cultivar of banana (Musa spp., AAA group, cv. Cavendish Grande Name). We investigated the green-life of pink banana (Musa spp., AAA group, Red sub-group, cv. Figue Rose Name) for the different physiological ages of banana fruit, measured in degree-days (°Cd). We measured the temperature threshold of pink banana (19.8°C) and showed that the green-life of pink banana decreased linearly with the physiological age of the fruit. Thus, we confirm the validity of the relationship between accumulated heat units during fruit growth and green-life that was previously established for Cavendish banana. We searched for the optimum physiological age (°Cd) for harvest, in order to ensure a green-life that fulfilled the requirements for transport and that maximised fruit weight. For Martinique, the optimum flowering-to-harvest interval was found to be 548°Cd, to ensure 25 d of green-life, as required for transport, and to maximise fruit size. We showed that fruit weight was not a good indicator on which to select bananas for harvest in order to ensure a particular green-life. This is the first time that guidance has been proposed for the transport and export of a non-Cavendish banana. These results may assist other producer countries that wish to diversify their banana exports by growing pink banana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of agricultural transport costs in core-periphery structures has habitually been ignored in New Economic Geography (NEG) models. This is due to the convention of treating the agricultural good as the numéraire, thus implying that agricultural transportation costs are assumed to be zero in these models. For more than three decades, this has been the standard setting in spatial equilibrium analysis. This paper examines the effects of agricultural transport costs on the spatial organisation of regional structures in Peru. In doing so, Krugman's formulation of iceberg transport costs is modified to introduce agricultural transport costs into the dynamic of the NEG models. We use exploratory spatial flow data analysis methods and non-spatial and spatial origin-destination flow models to explore how the regional spatial structure changes when real transportation data for agricultural goods are included into the iceberg transport costs formulation. We show that agricultural transport costs generate flows that are systematically associated with flows to or from nearby regions generating thus the emergence of spatial spillovers across Peruvian regions. The results of the paper support the contention that NEG models have overshadowed the role of agricultural transport costs in determining the spatial configuration of economic activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It was identified, by means of technological tools of real time (GPS), the production areas of each one of the farmers that you/they are unionized in the main municipalities producing of moorish of castilla (Rubus glaucus) in the south of the Department of the Huila. The above-mentioned, with the purpose of having detailed data for the planeación of distribution routes, alternating routes, location of storing centers and other outstanding geographical points to define the logistics of transport. For the development of the proposed objectives it was identified, by means of the referentiation with GPS, the location of the production areas of Moorish and of the storing centers, the possible routes were analyzed for the mobilization of the product toward the market and of it defined the route with the smallest time of journey, as well as the determination of the best option in the benefit of the service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Garlic (Allium sativum L.) is an ancient and clonally propagated crop that has been under rather continuous selection since antiquity. In Japan, each garlic-growing region had its own local cultivars (clones) at one time. This is still the case in some regions, but with expanding transport networks and the requirements for high yield of commercial quality, only a few clones dominate the garlic production in the country. Here we describe the morphological characteristics of Japanese garlic clones. The review also focusses on the possible ancestry of Japanese garlics inferred from molecular genetic analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conventional approach towards agricultural transport in Sub-Saharan Africa focuses mostly on motorized transport. This approach is too narrow because it does not reflect the transport requirements and purchasing power of small-scale farmers. This paper explains why a broader approach that includes not only roads, but also paths and tracks; not only trucks but also intermediate means of transport such as donkeys, bicycles and animal carts can considerably improve agricultural transport. Even though the effects of an appropriate approach on agricultural production, marketing and income can be significant, it is more often rejected by decision-makers as primitive and backward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impact bruising during harvesting, manual and mechanical handling, and during transportation of agricultural perishables results in major crop loss and/or commodity quality loss. An instrumented pseudofruit has been developed which permits automatic measurement and recording of vector accelerations (impacts) along with the time of occurrence. This device will assist in identifying time and amplitude of damaging impacts. The features of this device are: (1) It is a miniaturized, totally integrated, portable digital system which is cast in a 15-cm rigid cube or 10-cm-diam sphere. (2) It is calibrated to provide an adequate degree of accuracy for the measurement of impact it will experience. (3) Serial communication is provided to permit program initialization and data transfer to an independent processing computer, where custom-developed routines convert the measured impacts into equivalent bruising and/or drop heights for the fruit of interest (e.g., apple). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proposes a simple model of pre-industrial urbanization, roughly from the Middle Ages until the contemporary period, with a focus on the European case. Labor specialization; Agricultural product transport costs; City size; Effects of urban domination, e.g. taxation of agriculture; Emergence of primate cities; Transition between early and modern urbanization.

A logit model is used to estimate the elasticities and cross elasticities for freight transport services. The model is applied to a sample of cherry and apple shipments. The performance of the model in explaining choice of transportation method is highly satisfactory. Estimated coefficients, with one exception, have expected signs and are statistically significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Storage planners in developing countries often exploit scale economies in grain facilities by building large units far from producers without accounting for the effect on transport costs. Capacitated networks with an approximate master program solve this plant size-location problem, offering computational efficiency, ease of use, and productive interaction with planners unfamiliar with programming techniques. Tests with transport costs in three Brazilian production areas recommend decentralization of storage--more smaller units closer to farmers, a conclusion supported by sensitivity analysis and recent experience of farmers, planners, and cooperative officials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An interactive optimization system for planning bulk deliveries was implemented by Suiker Unie, a farming cooperative that processes about 60 percent of the Dutch sugar beet crop. The bulk delivery problem differs in several aspects from the standard multi-depot vehicle-routing problem: trucks deliver full loads to each customer and can reload at any one of five factories. Loading the trucks is very time consuming, and at each factory trucks can only be loaded one at a time, so that the problem includes both scheduling and routing. Since September 1991, the planners of Suiker Unie use the system to interactively determine and adjust daily schedules. In addition to the improvement of the efficiency and quality of the planning process, the use of the system turned out to yield about seven percent savings in operating costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the data collected at California's border plant quarantine inspection stations through interviews with a sample of truck drivers hauling produce from the state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the economic considerations used in the makeup of rate rail structures for the movement of farm products. Cost of providing rail service; Definition of value of service; Factor influencing the level of particular rates above the floor.