Briefly
Steven Zahniser is an Agricultural Economist in the International Trade and Development (ITD) Branch of the Economic Research Service (ERS) Market and Trade Economics Division (MTED). His current research focuses on agricultural trade among Canada, Mexico, and the United States, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the prospects for U.S.-Colombia agricultural trade, and hired farm labor in the United States and Mexico.
Background
Zahniser joined ERS in 1998, following a postdoctoral fellowship with the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) and time as an instructor at several colleges and universities.
Education
Ph.D. in economics, University of Colorado at Boulder, 1996; M.A. in Latin American studies and Master of public affairs, The University of Texas at Austin, 1990; B.A. in political science, Northwestern University, 1986.
Professional Affiliations
Zahniser is a member of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA), the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA), and the International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium (IATRC).
Selected Publications
Zahniser, S., Avendaño Ruíz, B., and Astill, G. 2023. How Mexico’s Horticultural Export Sector Responded to the Food Safety Modernization Act. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Economic Research Report No. ERR-319, August 17.
Zahniser, S., W. Johnson, and C. Valdes. 2023. Changes in U.S. Agricultural Imports from Latin America and the Caribbean, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Outlook for Agricultural Trade Report No. AES-124-01, July 20.
Williams, A., S. Zahniser, and J. Beckman. 2022. “Trade Highlight: U.S. Corn Exports to Mexico, the Largest Importer of U.S. Corn for 2021/22,” in U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Feed Outlook, Feed Situation and Outlook Report No. 22l, December 13.
Zahniser, S., M.I. Gomez, S. Puerto, and J. Li. 2022. “Examining Opportunities for US Agricultural Exports to Colombia,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, April 20.
Zahniser, S. 2022. COVID-19 Working Paper: U.S.-Mexico Agricultural Trade in 2020, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, No. AP-97, January 28.
Zeng, W., S. Zahniser, M. Ivanic, F. Dong, M. Husby, and X. Pham. 2022. “U.S. Agricultural Exports in 2020 Supported 1,133,200 Jobs and Generated $154.3 Billion in Additional Economic Activity,” in U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Outlook for Agricultural Trade Report No. AES-119, February 24.
M.I. Gómez, S. Puerto, S. Zahniser, J. Li. 2021. U.S. Agricultural Exports to Colombia: Rising Sales in Response to Trade Liberalization and Changing Consumer Trends, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Outlook for U.S. Agricultural Trade No. AES-118-01, December 14.
Capehart, T., S. Zahniser, N. López López, M. Motamed, Z. Silva Vargas. 2020. “U.S. corn exports to Mexico have increased with the transition to free trade under the North American Free Trade Agreement,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, August 3.
Zahniser, S. 2020. “United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Approaches the Starting Block, Offers Growth Opportunities for Agriculture,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, June 9.
Zahniser, S., N. López López, M. Motamed, Z. Silva Vargas, and T. Capehart. 2019. The growing corn economies of Mexico and the United States, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Feed Situation and Outlook Report No. FDS-19F-01, July 22.
Zahniser, S., J.E. Taylor, T Hertz, and D. Charlton. 2019. “Rising wages point to a tighter farm labor market in the United States,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, February 15.
Zahniser, S., J.E. Taylor, T. Hertz, and D. Charlton. 2018. Farm labor markets in the United States and Mexico pose challenges for U.S. agriculture, Economic Information Bulletin No. EIB-201, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, November 28.
Zahniser, S., J. Beckman, and K. Heerman. 2018. “World Agricultural Trade Experiences Sizable Growth but Still Faces Barriers,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, February 5.
Zahniser, S., T. Hertz, P. Dixon, and M. Rimmer. 2017. The Potential Effects of Increased Demand for U.S. Agricultural Exports on Metro and Nonmetro Employment, Economic Research Report No. ERR-227, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, April 7.
Zahniser, S., T. Hertz, P. Dixon, and M. Rimmer. 2017. “Increased Demand for U.S. Agricultural Exports Would Likely Lead to More U.S. Jobs,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, June 5.
Zahniser, S., A. Herrera Moreno, A. Calderón Ruanova, S. Angadjivand, J. Calderón Elizalde, L. Calvin, C. López Amador, N. López López, and J. Valdes Ramos. Opportunities for Making U.S.-Mexico Agricultural Trade More Agile, Economic Information Bulletin No. EIB-160, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, August 22.
Zahniser, S., A. Herrera Moreno, and A. Calderón Ruanova. 2016. “U.S.-Mexico Agricultural Trade: Opportunities for Making Free Trade Under NAFTA More Agile,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, August 22.
Zahniser, S., G. Nigatu, and M. McConnell. 2016. A New Outlook for the U.S.-Mexico Sugar and Sweetener Market, Outlook Report No. SSSM-335-01, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, August 11.
Zahniser, S., B. Cooke, J. Cessna, N. Childs, M. Haley, M. McConnell, and C Arnade. 2015. U.S.-Cuba Agricultural Trade: Past, Present, and Possible Future, Outlook Report No. AES-87, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, June 17.
Zahniser, S., and B. Cooke. 2015. “U.S.-Cuba Agricultural Trade: Past, Present, and Possible Future,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, August 3.
Zahniser, S., S. Angadjivand, and T. Hertz. 2015. NAFTA at 20: North America’s Free-Trade Area and Its Impact on Agriculture, Outlook Report No. WRS-15-01, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, February 2.
Zahniser, S., S. Angadjivand, and T. Hertz. 2015. “NAFTA at 20: With Regional Trade Liberalization Complete, Focus Shifts to Other Methods of Deepening Economic Integration,” Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, April 6.
Journal articles
Beckman, J., N. Nava, A. Williams, and S. Zahniser. 2024. “Land Competition and Welfare Effects from Mexico's Proposal to Ban Genetically Engineered Corn,” American Journal of Agricultural Economics.
Zahniser, S., C. Hitaj, B. Johnson, and T. Hertz. 2019. “The evolving role of labor availability in production decisions and food loss,” chapter in The Economics of Food Loss in the Produce Industry, 216-231.
Beckman, J. and S. Zahniser. 2018. “The effects on intraregional agricultural trade of ending NAFTA's market access provisions,” Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie 5.
Zahniser, S., A. Herrera Moreno, and A. Calderón Ruanova. 2016. “Oportunidades para hacer más ágil el comercio agropecuario México-Estados Unidos,” Carta Económica Regional 28(118):86-119.
Zahniser, S., T. Hertz, and M. Argoti. 2016. “Quantifying the Effects of Mexico’s Retaliatory Tariffs on Selected U.S. Agricultural Exports,” Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy 38(1):93-112.
Muhammad, A., S. Zahniser, and E. Fonsah. 2015. “A Dynamic Analysis of US Banana Demand by Source: A Focus on Latin American Suppliers,” International Journal of Trade and Global Markets 8(4):281-96.
Zahniser, S., and A. Herrera Moreno. 2014. “North American Agricultural Trade Policy: Are Super-Regionalism and Deeper Regional Integration the ‘Next Big Thing’ After NAFTA?” The Estey Centre Journal of International Law and Trade Policy 15(2):199-231.
Hertz, T., and S. Zahniser. 2013. “Is There a Farm Labor Shortage?” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 95(2):476-81.
Zahniser, S., T. Hertz, P. Dixon, and M. Rimmer. 2012. “Analyzing the Effects of Analyzing the Effects of Immigration Reforms on Agriculture,” Choices Magazine, 2nd Quarter.
Zahniser, S., T. Hertz, P. Dixon, and M. Rimmer. 2011. “Immigration Policy and Its Possible Effects on U.S. Agriculture and the Market for Hired Farm Labor: A Simulation Analysis,” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 94(2):477-82.
Zahniser, S. 2010. “EU Environmental Sustainability Criteria and Brazilian Biofuel Exports,” EuroChoices 9(2):28-34.
Meilke, K., J. Rude, and S. Zahniser. 2008. “Is NAFTA Plus an Option in the North American Agrifood Sector?” The World Economy 31(7):925-46.