Choices
The Magazine of Food, Farm & Resource Issues
Visit Choices on-line at www.choicesmagazine.org.

A Message from the new Choices editorial team Oral Capps, Bruce McCarl, Rodolfo Nayga, Joe Outlaw and John Penson of Texas A&M University were named the new editorial team for Choices, with McCarl serving as the coordinating editor, at the recent AAEA annual meeting in Denver, Colorado. Here is a message from them. Due to the current vacancy in the editorship we have already begun activities. We will continue the AAEA intent for Choices to: Be a peer-reviewed magazine directed toward readers interested in the policy and management of agriculture, the food industry, natural resources, rural communities, and the environment. Cover topics that relate to the economic implications of food, farm, resource or rural community issues that are of interest to business or government decision-makers. Be first and foremost an outreach activity of the AAEA, directed toward outreach beyond economists. Economists, too, are an important part of our audience, but articles should be of interest and accessible to noneconomists. Be electronically published. In fulfilling these missions we will make some fundamental changes while maintaining some prior practices. The main points we want to bring to the attention of the AAEA membership involve content assembly, web presence and issue dissemination. Content Assembly We feel to satisfy the outreach intent toward readers interested in the policy and management of agriculture, the food industry, natural resources, rural communities, and the environment that it important to provide dependable, detailed treatments targeted toward these audiences. To better accomplish this we feel the need to shift Choices content from individual contributed papers to more topic oriented grouping of papers. As such Choices content will be refocused to exhibit Repeated coverage of topics involved with four themes covering policy and other issues associated with the topic. The themes will be: (1) Agriculture and Trade, (2) Resources and the Environment, (3) Consumers and Markets and (4) Agribusiness and Finance. In an issue one will find at least two of these themes covered by a coordinated set of papers dealing with an issue relevant to the theme. Coverage of each theme will appear in Choices 2-3 times per year. A Grab bag section of contributed papers much like the prior Choices content but we will limit space allocated to that section to be less than 25% of annual pages. A regular column called Washington Scene written by Washington policy makers and analysts that will overview items under current scrutiny in policy circles. To do this we are now soliciting (and in the short run developing) proposals for coordinated packages of papers relating to the themes numbered 1-4 in the first bullet above. Also we will continue to accept submissions of individual manuscripts for the smaller grab bag section. We are also working on assembling a group that will prepare the Washington Scene column. Just to elaborate on the new thematic related submissions opportunity, a submitted thematic proposal will need to (1) make the case as to why this is an outreach worthy topic, and (2) identify papers and authors to be in the package and the nature of the paper contribution to the theme. Proposers of topics would serve as a guest editor for that topic working with one of us. Proposals and papers will go through peer review. Maximum length per package is on the order of 40 pages with 3-5 papers of about 8 pages in length. Topics must showcase economic work, but non economic papers can be included when needed to assure effective outreach. Initially some of the topics may involve editorial team written components as we are starting up very quickly hoping to have an issue in a month or two. Choices Issue Release and Choices Marketing Currently a Choices issue release is heralded by an email. We think the distribution procedure needs to be strengthened. In this regard We will be implementing an improved email notification that indicates not only issue release, but also contents in a succinct manner with URLs like Nature and Science including an easy path to subscription options. We wish to solicit aid from the AAEA membership in expanding the breadth of our distribution by adding target audiences to the mailing list and in identifying outreach groups that might help in issue dissemination and might distribute issue or at least topic treatment announcements to their own target audiences. Enhanced Web Presence Choices now has a current issue and a recent paper archive on the web. We will strive to expand use of the capabilities available at the host University of Missouri site to improve the utility of the web site for reviewers and develop data on content demand. Contact Information Comments on our procedures and topic or individual paper submissions are welcome. For now we have a temporary email address which is choices@ag.tamu.edu. We are also joined in our editorial endeavors by an Associate Editor, Linda Crenwelge at Texas A&M and by the editorial staff in the Economics and Management of Agrobiotechnology Center at the University of Missouri. The latter group will be involved with technical editing and will lead the web hosting. Submissions can be received through http://www.choicesmagazine.org/ which will soon have instructions for topic submissions.

Contents of Choices First Quarter 2004

AgJOBS: New Solution or New Problem? By Philip Martin and Bert Mason New agricultural labor legislation; Good news or not so good? Full Text

Many Fewer Steps for Pickers -- A Leap for Harvestkind? Emerging Change in Strawberry Harvest Technology By Howard R. Rosenberg New strawberry harvesting technology still can't replace people. Full Text

Acrylamide: The Next Food Safety Issue? By Catherine Viator and Mary Muth Discovering new food components -- hazardous or just interesting? Full Text

Agricultural Patents: Are They Developing Bad Habits By David Schimmelpfinneg Revisiting the effects of patents in a high-tech world. Full Text

Live Cattle Exports from Mexico into the United States: Where Do the Cattle Come From and Where Do They Go? By Rhonda Skaggs, Rene Acuna, L. Allen Torell, and Leland Southard Where did all the cattle go? Full Text

The Dilemma of Safer and Freer Trade: The Case of the US Nursery Industry By Edward A. Evans and John J. VanSickle With freer trade comes potentially greater hazards. Full Text

King or Pawn: Consumer Preferences in International Trade By Suzanne Thornsbury and Gary Fairchild Consumers have their say about trade. Full Text

The Agricultural Establishment -- Giving Farmers Too Much of What They Want and Not Enough of What They Need By George R. McDowell Needs versus wants for information hungry farmers. Full Text

Health Concerns or Price: Which Takes Credit for Declining Cigarette Consumption in the U.S.? By Kitty Kay Chan and Tom Capehart Higher prices and better health discipline cigarette consumption. Full Text