. Econometric Simulation Approach to Evaluating the Impact of a Technological Change

An econometric model of the processing tomato industry is formulated to simulate industry price, production, and employment levels with and without the adoption of the mechanical tomato harvester.. Alternative scenarios indicate that acreage increased by 30,000 to 85,000 acres and grower prices (deflated) declined by $6.84/ton to $19.51/ton with the adoption of the harvester. Displaced harvest labor employment was offset to a large degree by increases in assembly and cannery employment