Market-level assessment of the economic benefits of atrazine in the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Atrazine and other triazine herbicides are widely used in US maize and sorghum production, yet the most recent market-level assessment of the economic benefits of atrazine is for market conditions prevalent in the early 1990s, before commercialization of transgenic crops. Grain markets have changed substantially since that time; for example, the size of the US maize market increased by 170% from 1990-1992 to 2007-2009. This paper reports a current assessment of the economic benefits of atrazine.

Results

Yield increases and cost changes implied by triazine herbicides are projected to reduce maize prices by 7-8% and sorghum prices by 19-20%. Projected consumer benefits from lower prices range from $US 3.6 to 4.4 × 10(9) annually, with the net projected economic bene

SUBMITTER: Mitchell PD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4282455 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature