March 13, 2020 — John Bovay, assistant professor of agricultural and applied economics, is one of a number of new faculty members recently hired in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences this academic year. New positions were identified to bring talent to the college’s focus areas, including food, health, the environment, and the economy. The new faculty members are distributed across teaching, research, and extension.
Bovay’s research centers on the economics of regulation and its effect on farmers, consumers, and society as a whole. He investigates topics from food safety regulations to food labeling issues to food waste. Results of Bovay’s research have informed producers and consumers about public perception of genetically engineered food and the corresponding costs of organic versus bioengineered food, as well as provided insight into how agricultural products and their regulations impact the environment and human health.
Bovay received a bachelor’s in mathematics and politics from Washington and Lee University and a doctorate in agricultural and resource economics from the University of California at Davis.