Government Intervention in Poultry Industries: A Cross-Country Comparison

Government intervention affects agricultural industries both in the prices received for products and the prices paid for inputs. This paper attempts to demonstrate that analysis of the impact of government intervention on these industries should consider both sets of distortions. The concept of effective protection is used to determine the net price distortion. The Canadian, German, and British poultry industries during 1975–77 are analyzed to show the value of such an approach. Results show that consumers have paid higher product prices in each country, but producers have not necessarily benefitted. Moreover, social costs of intervention have been high.