Three Essays on Applied Economics: Analyses of Market Dynamics and Consumer Behavior in Food Industries

Abstract

This dissertation examines how food systems are shaped by market integration, price volatility transmission, and heterogeneous consumer adoption. The first essay analyzes volatility spillovers between capture fisheries and aquaculture products in Bangladesh, showing that the rapid expansion of aquaculture has important implications for captured fish markets and food-security outcomes. The second essay investigates animal protein price volatility in the European Union and finds that volatility is largely homegrown, transmitted through dense intra-EU trade linkages rather than external markets. The third essay develops a Hurdle Structure Latent Class Mixed Model to study household adoption of plant-based meat alternatives in the United States, identifying distinct consumer trajectories and the demographic and economic factors associated with sustained adoption. Together, these essays contribute new empirical evidence and methodological tools for understanding market dynamics and consumer behavior in modern food industries.