Modeling the US Beef Industry’s Response to COVID-19

Authors

Owen Michael Fleming, University of Michigan - DearbornFollow

Abstract

To understand the beef industry’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, I proposed a three-sector model of the beef supply-chain and estimated it econometrically. Based on their definitions, it is found that panic, stay-at-home procedures, and expectations are not significant explanatory variables. However, there is strong evidence that COVID-19 spread in a set of counties with large meatpacking plants has the effect of increasing wholesale beef prices, while country-wide spread has the effect of reducing wholesale prices. The results further imply differences in competition across the market levels, with wholesalers responding as if they face less competition than retailers and farmers.

Recommended Citation

Fleming, Owen Michael (2020) "Modeling the US Beef Industry’s Response to COVID-19," Undergraduate Economic Review: Vol. 17: Iss. 1, Article 14.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/uer/vol17/iss1/14