MARKET POWER IN BEEF PACKING: FEEDLOT "CAPTURE" AND ITS CAUSES

Concentration in the beef packing industry has been rising for the past 25 years. Many studies of market power in beef packing are based on the conjectural variations framework, which depends on accurate estimates of packer input and processing costs. We propose an alternative measure of packer behavior which does not rely on estimates of packer costs. We also suggest how this measure could be used to draw tentative conclusions regarding packer behavior