Environmental Impact, Export Intensity, and Productivity Interactions: An Empirical Index Analysis of the Agri-Food Industry in Spain

Recent studies have focused on how exports affect environmental performance or vice versa, while others have concentrated on the productivity of export-oriented firms. The objective of the present paper is to provide a simultaneous analysis on the aforementioned relationships. The approach followed is a composite equation model in which export performance and productivity components, including an environmental indicator, are endogenously determined, taking as reference exporting firms of the food industry in Southeast Spain, for the period 19942006. The results show positive interactions among export intensity, firm efficiency, and environmental productivity, also suggesting that the consideration of endogeneity may enhance the findings of analyses on these issues.