Semester of Graduation
Spring 2018
Department
Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness
Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
Two alternative forage-based pasture systems in the United States Gulf Coast region were analyzed for maximizing profitability in grass-fed beef production over a two-year period from 2016 to 2017. The pasture systems varied upon forage types, forage combinations, and different degrees of management complexities used in grass-fed beef production. Forty-eight fall-weaned steers were assigned to eight groups of six steers each and randomly selected into different pasture systems. Two years of experimental data from the LSU AgCenter Iberia Research Station in Jeanerette, Louisiana, was reported to derive and compare cost and return estimates for each system. A representative farm approach was used to determine the most profitable pasture system, which results indicated that System 2, the most complex of the two pasture system approaches, was the most profitable forage-based pasture system for the May and September harvest dates of both experimental years. Furthermore, a simulation analysis and stochastic efficiency with respect to a function method was implemented to analyze profitability over a range of risk aversion preferences. The stochastic efficiency with respect to a function method verified that System 2 dominates System 1 across all levels of risk aversion coefficients. Results insinuated that producer’s decision making will not be interchangeable between the two systems at different levels of risk preferences due to the dominance System 2 places over System 1 across all levels of risk.
Date
3-30-2018
Recommended Citation
Turnage, Zachary, "Analysis of Alternative Forage-Based Pasture Systems for Maximizing Profitability in Grass-Fed Beef Production" (2018). LSU Master's Theses. 4644.
https://repository.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses/4644
Committee Chair
Deliberto, Michael
DOI
10.31390/gradschool_theses.4644