DAFRE.3 green  

Advancing Economics, Transforming Lives

  Fall 2013
In This Issue
From the Chairperson
MSU Professor Mali Recognition
Chinese Consumers and Food Safety Studied
Capitalizing on Social Capital
AFRE Alumni News
AFRE People News
Masthead
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Ag hall . small From the Chairperson

The lifetime achievements of our faculty continue to amaze me.

 

John Staatz was recently named "Officier de l'ordre national du Mali" or Officer of the National Order of Mali, by Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. He received a medal and presidential decree in honor of his longstanding contributions to the nation's food policy and development. The recognition and award received high profile national press in Mali. John "retired" in 2011, but he has continued to be active in our food security work in Mali and West Africa. Read more here. 

   

Steve Hanson

Department Chair

Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics  

MSU professor recognized for national contributions in Mali    

 

Michigan State University (MSU) Professor Emeritus John M. Staatz is something of a celebrity in Mali. But that was never his goal. His goal was to help make the world a better place. Some say he's succeeded in Mali. During his last visit to the African nation, Staatz was named "Officier de l'ordre national du Mali" (Officer of the National Order of Mali) by Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. Read more here.

Chinese consumers and food safety studied by AFRE assistant professor

 

 Troubled by a spate of recent food safety scares but buoyed by rising affluence, urban Chinese consumers appear willing to pay for a safer food supply, says David Ortega, an assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics (AFRE). For the past five years, Ortega has been designing surveys and traveling to China to study consumer food preferences.  Read more here. 

Capitalizing on social capital

 

We usually don't think of economics as a warm and fuzzy discipline dealing with human intangibles such as feelings and relationships. But after three decades of studying the production, distribution and consumption of wealth, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics (AFRE) professor Lindon Robison can state with confidence that our humanity - for better or worse - informs nearly every economic decision we make, whether it's selling a used car, getting a haircut or making a charitable donation.
Read more here.  

AFRE course project informs investment decisions

 

Financial management in ABM 435 covers balance sheets, income statements and capital budgets. But its culmination in a real-world scenario analysis can have six-figure impacts on Michigan agribusinesses. As juniors in 2012, Zack Snider and Caleb Herrygres were members of a four-person group that examined whether a front loader should be purchased for the Herrygres fruit farm. The group spent weeks analyzing things such as the farm's income statements, balance sheets and available capital, along with the price of the loader and maintenance costs. They ran various scenarios and concluded that ...  Read more here.  

AFRE Alumni News - Fall 2013  

 

2010s

 

Min Chen (Ph.D. 2013) began work as a senior risk modeler at the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) on Aug. 26.
 
Mariam (Sako) Thiam (M.S. 2013) took a position as consultant in financial analysis with J.P. Morgan Chase Bank in Columbus, Ohio in November 2012.
 
Dale Yi (Ph.D. 2013 expected) began work as a postdoctoral research fellow at University of Adelaide's program in Global Food Studies in Australia in September.

AFRE People News      

 

The section contains updates on faculty  promotions, transitions and awards as well as student awards and honors. Read more here.

Masthead      

   

Advancing Economics, Transforming Lives is the quarterly newsletter of the Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics at Michigan State University (http://www.afre.msu.edu). 

Editor:Scott M. Swinton
Writers:
Mark J. Meyer 
Christine Meyer 
Assistant Editor: Debbie Conway
Editing & Layout Assistance:ANR Communications