Consistent with prior expectations based on household production theory, household income, time value, size and composition, and the environment in which production and consumption occurred were all important determinants of total household expenditures on food‐away‐from‐home. However, the importance of these factors varied by type of food facility: conventional restaurants, fast‐food facilities, and other commercial establishments. Decomposition of the tobit elasticities indicated the differential importance of market participation effects of household size, income, and time value by level of the variable and by type of food facility.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to determine consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for organic versus conventionally produced cotton apparel, and to explore the role of purchase behaviors, apparel attributes and consumer beliefs about organics in purchase decisions. Design/methodology/approach -A 2nd priced auction was used to estimate WTP, along with a follow-up survey to collect information on participants' demographics, attitudes and behavior. Findings -On average, participants were willing to pay a 25 percent premium for an organic cotton t-shirt over the visibly similar t-shirt made from conventionally produced cotton. Participants who pay for their own clothing or make purchase decisions alone were not willing to pay a premium. Previous history of purchasing organic foods, perceived product quality, fit and the participant's race were also significant predictors of WTP. Research limitations/implications -A more representative sample and the inclusion of other product categories are necessary to generalize the relationships found in this study. Practical implications -This research helps to profile the organic cotton consumer. Findings suggest that retailers need to consider the income of target consumers when making decisions about carrying organic apparel products. Further, consumers with a history of purchasing organic products appear to carry that purchase behavior across product categories. When marketing organic apparel products, the perception of a higher quality product may yield a higher WTP. Originality/value -The paper is one of the first to use an experimental auction in estimating WTP for apparel. Relevant consumer beliefs about organics, purchase behaviors and apparel product attributes are also explored.

The Rosaceae crop family (including almond, apple, apricot, blackberry, peach, pear, plum, raspberry, rose, strawberry, sweet cherry, and sour cherry) provides vital contributions to human well-being and is economically significant across the U.S. In 2003, industry stakeholder initiatives prioritized the utilization of genomics, genetics, and breeding to develop new cultivars exhibiting both disease resistance and superior horticultural quality. However, rosaceous crop breeders lacked certain knowledge and tools to fully implement DNA-informed breeding—a “chasm” existed between existing genomics and genetic information and the application of this knowledge in breeding. The RosBREED project (“Ros” signifying a Rosaceae genomics, genetics, and breeding community initiative, and “BREED”, indicating the core focus on breeding programs), addressed this challenge through a comprehensive and coordinated 10-year effort funded by the USDA-NIFA Specialty Crop Research Initiative. RosBREED was designed to enable the routine application of modern genomics and genetics technologies in U.S. rosaceous crop breeding programs, thereby enhancing their efficiency and effectiveness in delivering cultivars with producer-required disease resistances and market-essential horticultural quality. This review presents a synopsis of the approach, deliverables, and impacts of RosBREED, highlighting synergistic global collaborations and future needs. Enabling technologies and tools developed are described, including genome-wide scanning platforms and DNA diagnostic tests. Examples of DNA-informed breeding use by project participants are presented for all breeding stages, including pre-breeding for disease resistance, parental and seedling selection, and elite selection advancement. The chasm is now bridged, accelerating rosaceous crop genetic improvement.

Prospects for canola (Brassica napus L.), as a rotational crop for agronomic and market diversification, have stimulated agronomic research to fit this crop into the unique environments and soils where wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production dominates. The objectives of the present study were to define N and water requirements of canola following wheat or fallow in a semi‐arid climate and to develop a predictive model for making N fertilizer recommendations. Field experiments were conducted at 12 site‐years with five N rates (0, 45, 90, 134, and 179 kg N ha−1). Pre‐plant soil and post‐harvest plant sampling provided an assessment of Mitscherlich‐modeled relationships among yield, soil N and water availability, economic optimal N supply, and fertilizer rates over the course of the study. Soil nitrogen supply (Ns) availability following wheat was lower than following fallow (77 vs. 205 kg Ns ha−1) leading to higher N fertilizer requirements (47 vs. 0 kg Nf ha−1) for canola following wheat, despite having lower water limited‐yield potentials. Unit nitrogen requirements (UNRs) at economic optimal yield levels ranged from 7 to 17 kg Ns (kg grain) −1 across site‐years. Overall, these UNRs are generally higher than other reported canola recommendations from similar production areas. We attribute this to our inclusion of greater residual soil N depths and N mineralization contributions to N supply estimates. The N requirements were found to be completely or largely satisfied by non‐fertilizer N sources in situations when non‐fertilizer N supplies are high and water availability limits canola yield potential.Core Ideas Available water influences canola yields and N responses. Fertilizer N responses obeyed the Law of Diminishing Returns. Unit N requirements decreased with increasing water‐driven yield potentials.

Over 60 rosaceous crop breeding programs exist in North America, but no information has been available on which traits are targeted for selection or how breeders make such decisions. We surveyed all active rosaceous fruit breeding programs in the United States and Canada to determine: 1) the relative importance of over 50 plant traits that breeders select for 2) the likelihood of selection for the most important traits; and 3) the factors influencing breeders’ decisions. A double-bounded Tobit model was used to investigate the effect of supply chain parties, technical and socioeconomic challenges, and crop characteristics on the likelihood of selection for trait clusters. We found that consumer-driven forces positively impact the likelihood of selection for traits more than producer forces and a breeder’s own experience. Technical factors are as important as socioeconomic factors but less important than market-related factors. Our findings provide the first ever evidence that a socioeconomic approach in specialty crop breeding programs can contribute to an improved understanding of the effects of different supply chain factors on breeding programs’ trait priority setting.