WELFARE IMPLICATIONS OF INCREASED US BEEF PROMOTION

Demand estimates from a Rotterdam model are combined with a Muth-type equilibrium-displacement model of the US meat sector to isolate the im pacts of increased beef advertising on quasi-rents at the farm gate. R esults suggest beef and pork producers gained at the expense of poultr y producers. The negative externalities generated in the poultry secto r are of sufficient magnitude to suggest that under certain conditions the beef advertising programme may be welfare-decreasing for meat pro ducers as a group. The broader social welfare implications of increase d beef advertising in terms of its impacts on the environment, heart d isease, celebrity and consultant income, Madison-Avenue profits, or th e quality of television programming are not considered in this researc h.