The Industrial Organisation of the Australian Agricultural Economics Society

There has recently been much soul searching among US agricultural economists concerning future directions of the American Agricultural Economics Association. In Australia, however, little direct attention has been paid to the Australian Agricultural Economics Society. Utilising an industrial organisation framework, this paper seeks to investigate issues pertaining to the structure, conduct and performance of the Society. To that end, a survey of members was recently undertaken. This information, along with the views of Past Presidents of the Society, minutes of previous Annual General Meetings and student feedback on the future direction of the profession, is used as the main database for the analysis. The results suggest that, while demand for the product mix is generally strong, supply constraints are impinging on the performance of the Society. Alternative approaches to overcoming these constraints are explored