Increased emphasis on consumer markets in broiler profit-maximizing modeling generates results that differ from those by traditional profit-maximization models. This approach reveals that the adoption of step pricing and consideration of marketing options (examples of responsiveness to consumers) affect the optimal feed formulation levels and types of broiler production to generate maximum profitability. The adoption of step pricing attests that higher profits can be obtained for targeted weights only if premium prices for broiler products are contracted.
consumer preferences; processor decisions; marketing options; step pricing
