College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics

Fixed-term associate professor Laura Cheney joined the faculty in 1995 as a Livestock Industry Economist. In 2004, she decided to focus her energies on undergraduate teaching and became the Director of the Undergraduate Agribusiness Management Program with responsibilities in teaching and administration. She teaches the ABM/FIM 100 introductory course on the agri-food system and has also taught the ABM/FIM 422 course on coordination in the agri-food system.

A native of Southern California, Laura grew up in Orange County, between Los Angeles and San Diego. Today, she has firm roots in Michigan thanks to her husband, who is a fifth generation Michigan farmer, and three children.

Research and Outreach Interests

• Undergraduate education
• Vertical coordination and contracting in the poultry and livestock industries
• Market structure and industrial organization in agriculture
• Industrialization of agriculture
• Comparative and competitive advantages of Michigan’s livestock industries
• Environmental impacts of livestock enterprises
• Livestock economics

Teaching Experience

• ABM/FIM 100: Decision Making in the Agri‐Food System (200x to present/Fall Semesters)
• ABM/FIM 422: Vertical Coordination in the Agri‐Food System (200x to present/Fall Semesters)