Abstract

The Resource and Environmental Policy (REP) Division of CARD needed accurate cost of production system (COPS) budgets to integrate into its existing environmental modeling system. Cost and Returns Estimator (CARE) crop budgets were reorganized and modified to create a unique COPS budget for each rotation, tillage, and irrigation combination in every Agricultural Sector Model (ASM) region in the 12-state area encompassing the Corn Belt, Lake States, and Northern Plains. These consistent budgets allow comparison across the study region and provide cost of production data for environmental and agricultural policy analysis.