relative to supply caused the upward trend in real prices. At the retail level, 

 the price elasticity of beef is 0.679% (U.S.D.A. unpublished data). 



The income elasticity of beef is 0.2655 (U.S.D.A. unpublished data) so 

 that a 1% increase in real consumer income results in an increase in consumer 

 demand by 0.2655%. This increase in demand coupled with the rise in popula- 

 tion has offset the effects of price elasticity on demand and total demand has 

 risen. 



Other Agricultural Products 



Northwest Florida is a major producer of many of the State's other field 

 crops and in one instance, practically the sole source. In 1978, peanuts 

 ranked sixth in cash value and had a current dollar sales of about $5,640,000 

 ($2,887,864 in real dollars; 1967 = 100). Total production in 1978 was about 

 264,000 lb, or 14.5% of the State's production, Santa Rosa County is the 

 major producer in Northwest Florida and the State's second largest producer. 

 Production has increased primarily because of an increase in productivity. 

 For example, the increase in yield per acre rose from about 1,300 lb in 1961 

 to 3,400 lb in 1978. In 1954-78, the real price of peanuts has remained rela- 

 tively stable because of a sufficient supply of peanuts. 



Wheat is another important crop in Northwest Florida. Sales of $1.1 mil- 

 lion in current 1978 dollars were about 54% of the State's total production. 

 Output declined 18.5% in 1961-78, and acreage declined 26%, which indicates 

 that the yield per acre has been increasing. The real price of wheat has been 

 relatively constant since 1954; apparently there is no scarcity of supply. 

 The decline in acres of wheat and cotton is attributed to an increased in the 

 value of soybeans as a cash crop. 



Cotton is produced primarily in Santa Rosa County. In 1978 Santa Rosa's 

 production of 3,197 bales of cotton accounted for 84% of the State's produc- 

 tion. Since 1961, total acreage has declined 55% and production fell 70%. 



Other agricultural commodities include milk, oats, hogs, and hay. 

 Detailed information on these crops is not available because they are rela- 

 tively unimportant. 



AGRICULTURAL PROBLEMS AND POLICIES 



Major problems in Northwest Florida are conflicts among land use, water 

 use, environmental protection, rising energy demands and costs, and competi- 

 tion for markets. 



LAND USE 



Most apparent to Florida's farmers is the "disappearance" of agricultural 

 lands. The Florida House of Representative's Committee on Agriculture has 

 prepared a report on this issue entitled "Agricultural Lands in Florida" 

 (1981a). That report begins with the observation that Florida's agricultural 

 (1981b) lands are slowly being converted to other land uses. Agricultural 



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