World Perspectives

Transparency’s Cost to Innovation

There is widespread support in Europe for the new revisions to the General Food Law, but research may prove the risk that the critics have warned about. Under the new law, the European Food Safety Authority must be much more transparent about the information it uses to determine the safety of chemicals. Critics of the change warned that competitors would simply copy the propriety information, undermining the competitiveness of European chemical firms. Indeed, research (see NBER Working Paper No. 25401) by academics at four different institutions found that mandatory disclosure of chemicals allowed competitors to catch up with industry leaders. However, the result was not just greater competition but a large reduction in research at the ori...

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From WPI Consulting

Forecasting developments in production agriculture

On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.

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