摘要：We study the determinants of somatic cell count (SCC) for fluid milk among U.S. dairies. We synthesize much of the work that has been done to model SCC economically in order to identify the potential impacts of buyer-imposed penalties and incentives within the supply chain. Additionally we estimate quantile regression for count data to measure impacts specifically for those operations with the highest SCC and to account for the statistical properties of the data. Premiums in particular have the potential to reduce SCC considerably where it is currently the highest. We draw implications for profitability in relation to SCC reduction.
关键词：somatic cell counts;ARMS data;farm profitability;quantile regression;count data
