Livestock Economics, Marketing and Business Management

METHODS OF MEASURING THE ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF ANIMAL DISEASE CONTROL

• Main function of measuring benefits of animal disease control is on estimating benefits of action against disease rather than on economics.
• The simplest approach is to compare alternative control programme within farms.
• Ideally large number of farms should be included in such study to obtain estimates of variation in outcome between farms.
• In some cases, it may be necessary to conduct a comparison solely between farms because the farm is the smallest feasible unit.
• It requires large number of farms because of the extent of variation in controlled factors between farms.
• There are standard economic techniques which should be used to describe and summarize the outcome of economic studies.
• The most common ones are partial budgeting, cost-benefit analysis and decision analysis.
• The focus of economic studies must be on estimating the benefit of action against a disease rather than just on the economic impact of the presence of a disease.
• Although it is not possible to get all of the economic data using other analytical procedures of which computer modeling is among the most useful .
• There are standard economic procedures to include an evaluation of risk of each of alternative course of action.
• A rational approach to provision of health care requires that the product and welfare significance rather than pathological severity of the disease should be the measuring yardstick for livestock.
• In this way health and production issue can be brought together for the benefit of livestock producer and equally of the consumer.

Reference

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