Spatial Analyses of the Meat Marketing Sector in 1955 and 1960

The livestock products sector is a complex composed of the activities of production, farm marketing, slaughtering, distribution and consumption. The level of each of these activities varies spatially and thus regional imbalances are generated which make necessary product flows between the geographical areas. Within this setting this study is concerned with an interregional analysis of the livestock meat sector of the U. S. economy. Thus, spatial slaughter-consumption relations will be basic observations for this analysis. In this study regional demands are reflected by price dependent demand relations or specific estimates of consumption. Regional supplies are dressed carcass weights of livestock slaughter within the regions. In particular for the beef, pork, veal, and lamb and mutton sectors for the years 1955 and 1960 answers will be sought to the following questions: 1. What are the levels of regional demand for each of these meat products? 2. What are the levels of regional supply for each of these products? 3. What is the aggregate interregional trade for each meat product for each year? 4. For each commodity and for each year, what regions import, export or do neither? 5. What are the levels of regional exports and imports for each region, commodity and year? 6. What is the optimum volume and direction of trade between all possible pairs of regions for each commodity and each year? 7. What are the optimum price differentials between regions for each commodity and year? 8. What is the total transport cost for the aggregate trade of each commodity and year? 9. What is the impact of alternative ways of estimating regional meat consumption on the interregional flows and price differentials? In the following pages the results that are generated by these questions will be given and the implications and uses of the results will be discussed