Meatpacking Competition and Pricing

American Meat Institute beef and pork beefpacking firms beefpacking plants boxed beef byproducts cattle feeders Chapter ConAgra concentration ratio days per week dominant firm dressed-weight dressing percentage dummy variable equation estimated average cost fabricated beef farm-to-carcass farm-to-wholesale fed cattle prices feedlots forward contracts four-firm concentration ratio geographic markets head buyer heifer slaughter hog slaughtering hourly capacity hundredweight industry structure input kinked demand larger firms larger plants largest beefpacker live weight livestock lowa market share market structure meatpacking firms meatpacking industry number of buyers oligopolistic OLIGOPSONY PRICING operating conditions output P&SA Packers percent perfect competition period plant closing plant sizes plants and firms pork porkpacking price differences price impacts price leadership price reporting price spreads pricing process procurement relationship relative sale lot sellers significant slaughter cost slaughtering plants steer and heifer structural changes supply and demand teleauction total factor productivity vertical integration wage rates Ward yield grade