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This dissertation comprises three substantial chapters that analyse the impact of the U.S. ethanol market on other related markets, specifically the corn and oil markets. Chapter 3 models ethanol price asymmetry changes in demand and supply. We find that both demand and supply are relatively inelastic and both asymmetric and we discuss the policy implications of such results. Chapter 4 approaches the issue of connectedness among ethanol production, corn prices, and oil prices, together with the direct impact that ethanol production has on corn prices. We find in our connectedness analysis for the ethanol boom period that corn's position is improved as the ethanol market matures after the introduction of ethanol-blending mandates. Furthermore, ethanol production shows a dependent position that is due to the relatively small proportion it has on the fuel market. In contrast to apriori expectations, we do not find conclusive evidence to support the claims that ethanol production impacts corn prices. Chapter 5 continues to analyse the potential impact of ethanol prices by addressing the interrelation of price volatilities between corn, ethanol and oil prices in the U.S. ethanol market. We find that there are no statistical significant cross effects from ethanol prices to corn prices. For the pre-ethanol boom period, we find a double-directional significant cross-spillover effect from oil to ethanol which we expect for these two markets given their link through the blending mandates. In the ethanol boom period, however, we find that the own volatility effects are statistically significant only for oil, and a small significant cross-spillover effect from corn to oil, which suggests the position of corn as an energy crop is strengthening in the fuel market.

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This thesis investigates the contribution of interest groups to European governance. The central topic here is the question of if and how interest groups may contribute to the democratisation of the European polity, both through participation and expertise. Literature focusing on the European Union’s (EU) so-called “democratic deficit” has largely centred on issues of territorial representation and citizen’s rights while literature on EU interest group participation tends towards the descriptive. Consequently, there is a particular demand for research that addresses issues of legitimacy and procedural aspects of democracy linked to functional participation in policymaking. Rather than focusing on European interest intermediation in general, this study homes in on a particular institutionalised form of functional participation. The contribution that institutions of functional participation can make to rolling-back the democratic deficit by providing a potential additional source of legitimacy in a specific sector of the European polity, notably European agricultural policymaking is examined. The core argument is that for such institutionalised forms of functional participation to provide such an additional source of legitimacy and contribute to participatory democracy, they must themselves be considered legitimate. The thesis builds on previous studies related to the legitimacy of associative actors and their particular legitimacy and knowledge. It also seeks to understand the potential of this type of representation and its capacity to diminish, at least partially, the democratic deficit. The theoretical framework developed is institutional legitimacy. Five political principles are used to determine the AACs’ institutional legitimacy: representativeness, deliberative capacity, credibility and influence on decision-making and transparency. As an organizational framework, the thesis’s empirical investigation searched for indicators of limited legitimacy according to these principles. The indicators identified are classified as legal, cultural or resource-linked. The indicators revealed confirm the sub-hypotheses whereby: the AACs’ legitimacy is undermined by their lack of 1) representativeness, 2) deliberative capacity, 3) credibility and influence on CAP decision-making and 4) transparency. The substantiation of these subhypotheses answers the analysis’s research question and corroborates its core hypothesis, namely: legal, cultural and resource-linked indicators signal that the AACs are not entirely legitimate institutions.

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