Source: American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol. 62, No. 2 (May, 1980), pp. 270-278
Published by: Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the Agricultural & Applied EconomicsAssociation

Many agricultural programs are being seri- ously reconsidered, including the Capper-Vol- stead partial antitrust exemption for coopera- tives and the Federal Marketing Orders. We focus on the dairy industry, concentrating on the interface between monopoly, the Cap- per-Volstead Act, and the Orders. Using social cost-benefit analysis, we estimate that in the 1970s cooperative milk monopolies cost society more than $70 million a year, and that the Orders are partially responsible for these monopolies. These monopolies could have been avoided, and, once eliminated, could be avoided in the future with small changes in the Capper-Volstead exemption.