Risk Factors for Pest Interceptions in Fruit and Vegetable Imports and the Value of Systematics in Facilitating International Trade 

Abstract

The expansion of international trade in commodities is beneficial in many ways, offering buyers a greater diversity of products and lowering purchase prices of familiar products. At the same time, the global movement of goods provides a pathway for the spread of non-indigenous species that cause economic and ecological harm. Systematics—the branch of biology that deals with the identification and classification of organisms and the description of their life histories—is essential for our ability to understand and manage the world’s genetic resources. This presentation will discuss recent research on the frequency of potential pest arrivals to the United States through trade in fruits and vegetables and related research on the economic value of systematics in facilitating international trade. The first uses comprehensive USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) inspection data to estimate measures of the frequency of potential pest arrivals and analyzes how these measures vary with characteristics of the imported commodities, including commodity type, origin and season. The second focuses on systematics knowledge embodied in scientists and physical reference collections housed in museums and research institutions and examines the economic value of this knowledge in reducing errors that can occur in screening imports for invasive pests.

Presenters

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Lars J. Olson

Visiting Scholar in Residence

Dr. Lars Olson is a Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Maryland. He is currently a University Honors Lead Faculty Fellow and is the founding faculty leader of Sustainability Analytics, a First-Year Innovation and Research Experience. Lars served as Chair of the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics and as the founding director of the interdisciplinary Global Poverty minor program, each for 6 years. His research examines the economics of managing natural and environmental resources over time and under uncertainty and has focused on the management...

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Lars J. Olson

Visiting Scholar in Residence

Dr. Lars Olson is a Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Maryland. He is currently a University Honors Lead Faculty Fellow and is the founding faculty leader of Sustainability Analytics, a First-Year Innovation and Research Experience. Lars served as Chair of the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics and as the founding director of the interdisciplinary Global Poverty minor program, each for 6 years. His research examines the economics of managing natural and environmental resources over time and under uncertainty and has focused on the management of invasive species, fisheries, and water resources. Lars received his PhD in Economics from Cornell University and a BA in economics and mathematics from Eckerd College. He publishes in leading economics journals including Journal of Economic Theory; Economic Theory; Journal of Environmental Economics and Management; Journal of Public Economics; and the American Journal of Agricultural Economics. Lars received the 2020 Dean Gordon Cairns Award for Distinguished Creative Work and Teaching in Agriculture, University of Maryland, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. He has engaged with SESYNC since 2012 in a variety of roles, including as an intern mentor, a participant in a few research working groups, and as a faculty sabbatical fellow.

External Links:
https://agnr.umd.edu/about/directory/lars-j-olson

Date
Time
11:00 a.m. ET
Location
SESYNC – 1 Park Place, Suite 300 Annapolis, MD 21401
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