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Determinants of microregional agricultural labour productivity - Evidence from Czechia
... The fragmentation of cultivated land is not conducive to agricultural production and equipment use and reduces the likelihood that farmers will practice ecological farming. This finding is consistent with other studies [63,64]. ...
A deeper understanding of the factors that influence the ecological farming adoption strategies of farmers can help in developing effective adaptation measures to mitigate the degradation of cultivated land quality and ecological degradation. This study used a stratified random sampling technique to select 1488 households in Jiangxi Province, while the double-hurdle model was used to analyze the influence of labor endowments (LEs) and cultivated land fragmentation (CLF) on ecological farming decision-making. The results indicate that LEs and CLF play important roles in farmers’ decision-making with regard to ecological farming. To be more specific, the total household population and CLF have negative effects on adoption willingness, while the number of laborers has a positive effect. For the degree of adoption, the total household population has a negative effect, while the number of laborers and part-time employment have positive effects. In addition, farmers’ ecological farming behavior is also influenced by factors such as education, agricultural income, cooperatives, and agricultural subsidies. Overall, farmers have a high willingness to adopt ecological farming, but the degree of actual adoption is low. This is not conducive to the promotion of ecological farming techniques and the sustainable development of agriculture in China. The study proposes that the government should further improve financial investment and provide relevant technical services. In addition, a temporary work platform should be set up for farmers to encourage them to find other work during the agricultural low season.
... If in 2010 the profitability of crop production sales was 16.5%, then in recent years -42.5% (2015) and higher. Also, stabilization of the proportions of interbranch exchange is observed, as evidenced by the data in Table 2. Disturbed during the years of transition to market relations, price equivalence between the agribusiness and industry has stabilized in recent years [19][20][21]. The beginning of market transformations was characterized by explosive growth in prices for industrial products. ...
The article discusses the situation with the restoration of the machine and tractor fleet of agricultural enterprises in the Samara region and determines the role of individual elements of the economic mechanism. In modern conditions, the main guarantee of the success of agricultural production is the maximum mechanization of production processes. Replacement of manual labor by machine allows reducing the cost of production, increasing its output, implementing modern industrial technologies, reducing the dependence of the result on the human factor. The purpose of this study is to determine the capabilities of agricultural enterprises in the Samara region to modernize the composition of the equipment used. The number of almost all types of energy and agricultural machinery compared with the 1995 level has decreased significantly. At the same time, energy supply per 100 hectares of arable land has stabilized, which is explained by the choice of powerful, productive equipment. The situation can be corrected by increasing the profitability of crop production and correcting the situation with price disparity. Direct government funding for acquisitions has declined. Among the instruments of state support, along with interest rate subsidies, subsidization of expenses for the purchase of cars has been widely used. The amount of subsidies reaches 492.2 million rubles (2013). The applied measures of state support in the conditions of the Samara region are complex and, with prolonged use, can solve the problem of updating equipment.
... In this context, (1) physical injuries are defined based on the estimated population by building (Chen et al., 2016;Kubal et al., 2009;Scheuer et al., 2011;van Westen et al., 2014) and road traffic, (2) functional impacts are defined based on the economic function of each building and the road and lifeline type, and (3) structural impacts are defined by both the type and number of floors of each building and by the number of lanes (road, highway, etc.). Moreover, agricultural and natural areas are not taken into account at this analysis scale, because the scale cannot consider the site specificity, such as biodiversity, economic gain or loss or productivity by plot (Ernoul et al., 2018;Ženka, Slach, Krtička, & Žufan, 2016). ...
In risk analyses, two components are taken into account: (1) hazard analysis, including susceptibility and temporal occurrence, and (2) consequence analysis, including characterization of elements at risk (EaRs) and their vulnerability. This study focused on characterization of EaRs, in which items are spatially displayed and impacted by natural events. Several methods can assess these EaRs through expert or engineering approaches. Among the expert approaches, the multicriteria method is more flexible and allows integration of a wide range of information in order to characterize and discretize different EaRs. Traditionally, the mapping and criteria accuracy of EaRs is the same at all spatial analysis scales, while the hazard accuracy changes according to the spatial scales. Therefore, we propose an approach based on the selection of different information/criteria among several private or open access multiple geographical databases to adapt the mapping and criteria accuracy of each EaR according to the hazard analysis spatial scale. After harmonizing the different databases and merging them under GIS, a single database per work scale is created through a specific procedure with interoperability of results between scales. Thus, the number of criteria used to describe these EaRs will depend on the scale of work and the spatial scale of the analysis. To develop and test the transposability of this method, three experimental coastal study sites subject to several hazards (multirisk) have been selected in Normandy (France) with error estimations ranging between 10% and 20%. Subsequently, these data can be integrated into risk and multirisk analyses.
... AD plants have become a significant alternative income for farmers in times when their revenues from traditional agricultural activities are declining. Despite original policy ambitions, it is less clear to what extent AD plants have been an effective tool for limiting the impacts of climate change or for local development support (Doležalová et al., 2009, 2014a, 2014b, Ženka et al., 2016or Duzi et al., 2017. It is therefore important to research also the attitudes and views of farmers on this significant change in the use of agricultural land (Frantál and Prousek 2016, Silva and Delicado, 2017). ...
Facilities for generating renewable energy form important elements in the rural landscape of the Czech Republic. The distribution of these facilities is highly uneven due to various natural and socioeconomic factors. In our paper, we are focusing our attention on one of the important facilities for the generation of renewable energy in the Czech Republic; anaerobic digestion (AD) plants. In 2016, more than five hundred AD plants could be found in the country with a total installed capacity of 360 MW. By means of analyses of data on location of individual AD plants, quality of soils, size of agricultural farms (in which majority of AD plants is incorporated) we found that agricultural AD plants in the Czech Republic tend to concentrate in areas with larger agricultural farms and also in areas with average and slightly below average conditions for agricultural activities. Core areas where agricultural AD plants are the most densely located were also identified. In these areas, large farms with AD plants tend to crowd out smaller farms. Pressure to grow maize for ADs significantly competes here with growing of other agricultural crops for food. This finding is in strong contradiction with the official national agricultural policy where support for small farms is systematically emphasized. Core areas with AD plants make a belt that mostly covers sub-mountainous central parts of the Czech Republic where traditional agricultural plants are now significantly being displaced by maize to feed AD plants.
... However, in loose housing farms within the largest herd size, category production was estimated as 130 kg/MPh, which can be attributed to the use of the milking systems used at its capacity. Additionally, Zenka et al. (2016) did not found a positive correlation between productivity and farm size in Czech dairy farms, while they attributed the low productivity of the farms that participated in the study in factors related to the lack of the use of mechanisation and management practices. Moreover, as mentioned by Dannenberg and Kuemmerle (2010), small farms have the ability to find alternative sources to maintain their income as a balance for their inability to compete with scale economies. ...
The aim of the present study was to (1) estimate the labour input on loose and tie stall housing dairy farms in South Tyrol; (2) to develop a tool for the extension service available to propose strategies for improving labour productivity. The study performed on 102 dairy farms, half of them with tie and half with loose housing. Daily and non-daily working activities surveyed with a questionnaire. Nine tie stall and 10 loose housing farms were selected for on-site measurements to determine the working time of each activity and validate questionnaire data. Average herd size was 16.3 and 23.2 cows for tie stall and loose housing farms, respectively. Effects of housing type and herd size category on total and single working time were examined. In tie stalls and herd size <10 total working time was estimated as 270 manpower hours (MPh) per cow per year while loose housing and herd size >21 cows required 82 MPh/cow/year. Labour costs were estimated as 34.9 and 19.2 Euro cents per kg of milk for tie and loose housing, while milk production per working hour determined as 56.9 and 86.7 kg/MPh, respectively. The required MPh/cow/year decreased as the herd size increased. Efficient organisation of working time with an increase in herd size might improve production efficiency and sustainability of mountain dairy farming. However, it has to be taken into consideration that because of limited space and the fact that most farmers are only working part time on farm, the improvement of labour management is of higher importance.
... The existing literature reveals an abundance of empirical studies on the effects of land use transfer. These show that expanding the area of farmland is an effective way of improving rural labor productivity [6][7][8], especially in the current context of China's agricultural development. Furthermore, studies have indicated that land use transfer is the best option for expanding the scale of farming [9]. ...
In order to improve the rural labor productivity and farmers' income, land use transfer was launched and encouraged in recent years, especially the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan (2016-2020). This study aims to shed light on the impact of land use rights transfer on household labor productivity, based on a case study of Chongqing in China. Studies have revealed that land use transfer entails a process of self-selection and does not occur in a random manner. The study, therefore, addressed the issue of sample selection by applying propensity score matching. The study results suggested significant differences in the effects of land use transfer on household labor productivity. Specifically, renting land from other households had a positive effect on total labor productivity (TLP) and agricultural labor productivity (ALP). Moreover, TLP and ALP were found to be higher for households that rented more land or that were located in plain areas. Renting out land had a robust and positive effect on the TLP and non-agricultural labor productivity (NALP). TLP and NALP were also higher for households that rented out more land or that were located in plain areas. These findings suggest that land use transfer should be actively encouraged in plain areas. However, in mountainous areas, there is a need to pay more attention to expanding agriculture to benefit poor and marginalized populations in these areas.
Farmland fragmentation can be influenced by factors that operate at different scales. It is not only a spatial boundary pattern of farmland use and management rights shaped by macro policies but also a self–organisation process that determines the utilisation and management of farmland units. Farmland fragmentation is generally considered ineffective for improving agricultural production efficiency, whilst its positive effects are ignored by policymakers because the forms, scenarios and causes of farmland fragmentation are not clearly defined. The historical process and various heterogeneous conditions in the Qilu Lake watershed, Yunnan Province, China make the area an interesting case to investigate the relationship between farmland fragmentation and agricultural production efficiency. Using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images and a field survey, we (i) determined forms, scenarios and the causes of existing farmland fragmentation; (ii) measured the level of farmland fragmentation and agricultural production efficiency; and (iii) analysed the impact of farmland fragmentation on agricultural production efficiency by using the Tobit regression model. The results indicate that the forms of farmland fragmentation include physical (internal, use and location) and tenure (ownership/usership) fragmentation in the Qilu Lake watershed. The average plot size, the number of plots and the distance amongst plots all indicate that the physical and tenure fragmentation is serious and heterogeneous. Farmland fragmentation in the Qilu Lake watershed is the result of self–organisation and appropriate scale management adaptation. The distribution of farmland ownership and usership as a response to regional characteristics of topography, natural disasters and dense population in a farmland scare area leads to the initial stage of location fragmentation. Internal and use fragmentation caused by planting multiple crops can adapt to the local heterogeneous ecological conditions, high population density, imperfect markets and market–oriented agricultural systems. The resilient practice is considered to be an effective risk management strategy that can promote agricultural production. Land transfer related to usership fragmentation has no effect on agricultural productivity in the Qilu Lake watershed. In addition, the social attributes of households also impact agricultural production efficiency. Our findings have two key policy implications, namely, (i) expanding the semantics of farmland fragmentation helps design policies for environment–friendly farmland utilisation and promote sustainable watershed development, and (ii) environmental and agricultural macro policies should give equal consideration to the negative and positive effects of farmland fragmentation as resilient solutions of appropriate scale management.
Cílem této knihy je poskytnout analytický podklad pro formulaci politik a zpracování strategických dokumentů rozvoje českého venkova. Publikace přímo navazuje na Atlas rozvoje venkova: atlasvenkova.osu.cz, pro který představuje textovou část. Zaměřuje- me se na identifikaci, konceptualizaci, analýzu a vyhodnocení nejvýznamnějších výzev a trendů, kterým české venkovské regiony v současné době čelí a s vysokou pravděpo- dobností jimi budou zásadně v pozitivním či negativním duchu ovlivňovány i v násle- dujícím desetiletí. Klíčovou roli v rozvoji venkovských obcí hrají města (centra nodál- ních regionů) a na vyšší úrovni zejména jádra metropolitních regionů. Soustředíme se tedy na venkovské regiony vymezené na úrovni správních obvodů obcí s rozšířenou pů- sobností, zahrnující i spádové centrum. Pokud to však charakter studovaného procesu a dostupná datová základna umožňuje, hodnotíme jevy až do úrovně venkovských obcí.
Ke knize vznikl i online Atlas rozvoje venkova, který je dostupný zde: https://atlasvenkova.osu.cz
Corn is the potential commodity in Grobogan Regency. Considering that potential, Bank Indonesia, in cooperation with the Government of Grobogan, creates the development program of corn cluster. The selected area was Gapoktan Sido Murni in Tambakselo Village. However, there was an area with the same potential that doesn’t have a cluster development program, which is Gapoktan Sido Manunggal in Dokoro Village. Therefore this research aims compare the income, profit, and feasibility of corn farming. The number of respondents was 20 farmers in each village and was determined by a non-random sampling. The data obtained were analyzed descriptively. The results showed that farmers of Gapoktan Sido Murni earned an average income of IDR 11,724,722 and a profit of IDR 7,917,851. Meanwhile, farmers in Gapoktan Sido Manunggal earned an average income of IDR 9,740,915 and a profit of IDR 5,991,161. The R/C in Gapoktan Sido Murni was 1.9 while Gapoktan Sido Manunggal had 1.6, land productivity in Gapoktan Sido Murni was IDR 9,928,684/Ha/season and Gapoktan Sido Manunggal was IDR 7,991,161/Ha/season, and capital productivity in Gapoktan Sido Murni 148% and Dokoro 104%. Based on the feasibility analyses, Gapoktan Sido Murni had a higher feasibility value than Gapoktan Sido Manunggal; thus, the corn cluster program is worth developing.
This study proposes an assessment of the regional agricultural efficiency convergence potential across the Romanian development regions during a period of sixteen years (from 2001 to 2017). Using the Cobb-Douglas function and the cluster analysis, it investigates the agricultural development and efficiency in the development regions of Romania, based on the available official datasets. The main aim of the research is to appraise the potential of these seven development regions (Bucharest – Ilfov Region was excluded), and to understand the differences between them, from the perspective of agriculture’ future, and the impact agriculture can have on the sustainable development of each region, through a new domestic agricultural paradigm. The results suggest that agriculture has a major impact on the development of a region as a whole, and that, in the absence of future reform measures in agriculture, the regions will be highly affected by their agricultural underperformance.
Agricultural productivity varies greatly among agricultural systems and among regions in Europe. A multilevel logistic regression model was applied to investigate the labour productivity of the six main agricultural systems across European NUTS2 regions. K-means and two-step clustering methods were used to classify European regions based on the agricultural systems’ standard output per annual work unit. We analysed the effect of environmental (soil erosion, rainfed yield potential), structural (farm education, age, pluriactivity, diversification, rented agricultural land), technical (yield ratio) and contextual (gross domestic product per capita, population density) factors on labor productivity. Significant differences were revealed between northern-central regions and the continental peripheries (Mediterranean, Eastern). Soil erosion negatively affects agricultural labour productivity; for each one ton/ha increase in the modelled annual soil erosion rate the odds of regions to attain high labour productivity decreased by 28%. The importance of technical efficiency in crop production was also identified. Observed low wheat yields, relative to modelled potential yields, in the southern, eastern and northern European regions indicate a large unexploited gap. The positive effect of the regional gross domestic product per capita and the low population density confirmed the importance of contextual factors on labour productivity. A second analysis of a composite indicator of the labour productivity of the European agricultural systems, which accounted for the productivity of each system without considering its size, revealed the positive effect of farm education and the negative effect of pluriactivity on agricultural labour productivity. The analyses indicate the importance of compensatory allowances for areas facing natural constraints, while investing in farm training schemes and advisory services could increase the adoption of new technologies and improve the performance of farmers in both economic and environmental terms. Finally, the significance of contextual factors indicates the importance of a better harmonisation of rural development policy with regional policy.
A high level of fragmentation of farmland ownership is an important underlying cause of land degradation and, at the same time, an obstacle to sustainable land management. This study makes the first-ever analysis of long-term trends in the rate of fragmentation. Our study covers the period from the earliest stages of the current form of ownership patterns at the end of the 18th century until the present day. On the basis of significant predictors that have been identified (initial fragmentation, population growth, historical development of inheritance laws and of the land market, natural soil fertility and landscape type), we go on to project probable developments for the period from 2016 - 2045. A total of 102,984 land parcels in 56 cadastral units in the territory of Czechia have been analysed on the basis of data from four years (1785, 1840, 1950, 2015). Our study considers the development of two basic indicators of fragmentation – Mean Parcel Size and Number of Owners per 100 ha. The Mean Parcel Size has decreased over a period of 230 years from 1.08 ha to 0.64 ha, at a mean rate of -0.26 %.year–1. During the same period, the Number of Owners per 100 ha has risen from 17.50 to 79.66, at a mean rate of 0.61 %.year–1. A detailed analysis of the development trends confirms significant spatial variability and also time variability of the rates of the two indicators. The analysis also shows their mutual complementarity: growth in the rate of one of the indicators is usually accompanied by a drop in the other. The general trend that we project for the territory of Czechia in the upcoming 30 years is that there will be further diminution of the physical size of land parcels (continuing fragmentation of land parcels) accompanied by a reduction in the Number of Owners (defragmentation of land ownership).
Transformation of Czech agriculture led to significant changes, which were mirrored in the crystallisation of rather large territorial differences. Clear regional disproportions are a fundamental problem for the state as a whole, therefore, it is important to provide aid for the regions that lag behind in economic development by introducing sensible regional policies. This situation is still more complicated in agriculture, as this transformation to free market economy results in the unequal regional development in relation to natural environment, regional traditions and the level of rural settlement in addition to the phenomena such as price liberalisation and the flow of goods, capital and population, among other. At the moment, the principal aims of regional agricultural policies are the preservation of regional productivity, the settlement of problematic and endangered regions and the support of a balanced regional development. The primary goal of this article is to indicate some of the largest regional differentiations in the agriculture of the Czech Republic. The purpose is to give an increased consideration to the restructuring of agricultural production, the environment and the social and general economic milieu in which it is located
Drawing on empirical evidence from the Czech Republic, differences in agricultural labour productivity at the micro-regional level are examined. The role of geographical factors: natural conditions, landscape fragmentation, localisation and urbanization economies, are discussed. In addition, we also test the effects of farm size structure to capture the results of internal scale economies. The key importance of natural conditions is confirmed: they were significantly more important than farm characteristics such as size structure, ownership status and mode of production. Regional agricultural labour productivity was positively influenced by the nominal price of agricultural land and population density. Surprisingly, micro-regions dominated by large farms performed at lower productivity levels than micro-regions with fragmented farm size structure in the Czech Republic.
The scientific contribution builds on the previous scientific studies analysing the determinants of productivity and economic efciency of the agricultural entities and extends the knowledge of the spatial econometrics area at the NUTS IV level (at the district level) for the reporting period. Th e paper aimed to assess the development of productivity and economic eiciency of the agricultural entities in the reporting period based on the synthetic evaluation of the selected economic indicators by the methods of cluster analysis, and so to create a spatial map according to the regional di erentiation at the NUTS IV level. On the basis of the completed analysis, we can conclude that the natural and climatic conditions have a dominant infl uence on the achievable productivity and economic efciency of the agricultural entities in ensuring the sustainability of the economic performance of agriculture in di erent regions of Slovakia. On the basis of conducting the analysis, there were clearly dened two relatively coherent areas in Slovakia (at the district level), which are characterized by dierences in the achieved production indicators and allow the regional di erentiation of Slovakia into districts with more and less prosperous agricultural enterprises.
The authors examine the patterns and determinants of spatial distribution of selected knowledge-intensive business services in Czechia, a small post-communist country whose capital city holds a strong position and where a significant share of manufacturing and business R&D employment is located in non-metropolitan regions. The central research question asks to what extent the localization of knowledge-intensive business services can be explained by the city size. Correspondingly, the authors analyse the role of local factors such as regional economic specialization, regional firm size distribution, or concentration of (high-tech) manufacturing or business R&D centres. The authors specifically concentrate on the role of large industrial centres in non-metropolitan regions and on the hypothesis of a spatial mismatch between knowledge-intensive business services and manufacturing, dispersed and overrepresented in smaller cities. Empirical results clearly confirmed the former hypothesis. Although the evidence on the latter hypothesis is more complex, it does not hold for the most of knowledge-intensive business services in Czechia.
The fragmentation of agricultural land is basically concerned with farms which are poorly organized in location and space. Attempts a literature review of the topic, and discusses the definitions given to land fragmentation and five methods for its quantitative measurement. The extent and causes of the processes on a global scale are reviewed. Highlights the disadvantages of fragmentation, especially the economic, social, and administrative aspects. A number of situations where the process is seen as an adaption to the local environment are given, as well as means of overcoming the process by intensive cultivation. Discusses whether or not consolidation is the best remedial option.-R.Land
The analysis of spatial concentrations of manufacturing industries and the development of cluster models is a major research area of Economic Geography. But up to now there are hardly any studies of the development of cluster-like structures of agriculture in rural areas. This article analyses to what extent cluster-like structures can be found in rural areas, which linkages are important elements of cluster formation and whether included firms have a better position in competition compared to other firms.
This review examines landscape indices and their usefulness in reflecting the
effects of ecosystem fragmentation. Rapid fragmentation of natural ecosystems
by anthropogenic activity spurred the development of landscape indices, which
occurred in three phases. In proliferation, indices were introduced to quantify
aspects of fragmentation, including composition, shape, and configuration. In
re-evaluation, several studies demonstrated that landscape indices vary with
varying landscape attributes, correlate highly with one another, and relate
differently to different processes. Finally, in re-direction, efforts shifted towards
developing new or modified indices motivated by ecological theory or
incorporating pattern directly into models of ecological process.
Overall, landscape indices do not serve as useful indicators of fragmentation
effects. While certain indices are useful in specific cases, most indices should
only be used to describe landscape pattern. Research should develop
knowledge and models of ecosystem processes that incorporate fragmentation
directly. Potential research areas include area requirements of different
processes, understanding when patterns of fragmentation are important and
when not, understanding which processes operate at which scales, determining
relationships between pattern and exotic species persistence, and evaluating
the effects of different levels of information on pattern and any follow-on
effects. Studying processes directly will provide the information required to
choose among various conservation options to maximize conservation gains.
In this short paper we introduce a proper method to perform Korcak-analysis and obtain the correct Korcak-exponent on a set of patches, embedded into two-dimensions. Both artificial and natural data sets are used for the demonstration. The independence of the Korcak-exponent from the classical (Hausdorff) fractal dimension is also demonstrated. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Examines how fragmentation is measured, how widespread it is, and what causes it. Following a consideration of its merits and disadvantages, the costs of consolidation are assessed. Criteria are proposed for determining when land should be consolidated and when the status quo should be maintained. -J.Sheail
This paper presents an empirical analysis of the role of land fragmentation, crop biodiversity and their interplay with farm profitability. Original primary data are drawn from a survey conducted in the Plodiv region of Bulgaria. The econometric results stress the ambiguous role of land fragmentation on farm profitability. On one hand, land fragmentation reduces farm profitability. On the other hand, land fragmentation fosters crop diversification. We also find that crop biodiversity plays a beneficial role in farm profitability. Policies that aim to increase land consolidation and reduce fragmentation may overlook the positive link between diversity and plot heterogeneity. Policies that encourage land consolidation should, therefore, consider the crucial role that this has on other variables such as farm biodiversity.
Although there have been numerous studies on regional convergence, agriculture has received far less attention. In this study, the intention is to augment the existing literature by testing for convergence in agricultural productivity among the EU-26 regions. A low rate of absolute convergence is estimated over the period 1995-2004 whilst evidence of club convergence is apparent.
The postsocialist transition resulted in widespread structural change in Polish agriculture, but fine-scale assessments of how these changes affected farming and rural landscapes are scarce. This article examines changes in farm sizes and land use patterns after the breakdown of socialism in Poland using micro-census data and satellite images. Our study area is Pyrzyce County. The analysis indicates a polarization of the farm size distribution (e.g., medium-sized farms disappeared) as well as marked changes in land use patterns (e.g., increasing field sizes and field aggregation). Interviews with farmers and stakeholders suggest that this shift can be explained by decreasing competitiveness of medium-sized farms in the emerging new agricultural value chain, which forced farmers to increase and intensify production or to downsize their farms, especially when the preference was for other occupations.
The paper analyzes the impact of land fragmentation and ownership of resources on productivity and technical efficiency in rice production in Bangladesh using farm level survey data. Results reveal that land fragmentation has a significant detrimental effect on productivity and efficiency as expected. The elasticity estimates of land fragmentation reveal that a 1% increase in land fragmentation reduces rice output by 0.05% and efficiency by 0.03%. On the other hand, ownership of key resources (land, family labour, and draft animals) significantly increases efficiency. The mean elasticity estimates reveal that a 1% increase in family labour and owned draft animal improve technical efficiency by 0.04% and 0.03%, respectively. Also, a 1% increase in the adoption of modern technology improves efficiency by 0.04%. The mean technical efficiency in rice production is estimated at 0.91 indicating little scope to improve rice production per se using existing varieties. Policy implications include addressing structural causes of land fragmentation (e.g., law of inheritance and political economy of agrarian structure), building of physical capital (e.g., land and livestock resources), improvements in extension services and adoption of modern rice technology.
The effect of land fragmentation on agriculture has worried policymakers for a long time because it is expected to be a negative effect. Land consolidation policies are frequently implemented to soften the degree of land fragmentation. However, to the authors' knowledge, no study in the dairy sector has empirically analyzed the role of land fragmentation on farm productivity and profits. This study helps to fill this gap in the literature by evaluating the effect of land fragmentation on milk production. To accomplish this, a stochastic frontier production function was estimated. This empirical analysis uses information corresponding to a sample of Spanish dairy farms located in a region where dairy production is by far the most important agricultural product and land is highly fragmented. As policymakers in the region assume that land fragmentation has a negative influence on agricultural production, particularly in dairy production, a land consolidation process was developed. Thereafter, a simulation analysis was carried out to evaluate the increase in profits that could be obtained by reducing land fragmentation. The results show that dairy farms could increase their profits in a range between 9.4 and 14% by reducing the degree of land fragmentation in a proportion similar to that attained by the land consolidation process that is being carried out in the region.
This articlefocuses on the relative levels of farm sector productivity forthe United States and nine European countries for the period1973 to 1993. At the beginning of the period, Belgium had thehighest level of productivity relative to the United States at1.689. Ireland had the lowest relative productivity at 0.759.By 1993, the range of levels of productivity had narrowed significantly,from 0.709 for Ireland to 1.392 forthe Netherlands. Further evidence of convergence can be seenin the coefficient of variation, which fell steadily from 0.261in 1973 to 0.227 in 1993. Results based on regressionanalysis show a highly significant inverse relation between therate of productivity convergence and the initial level of productivity,consistent with the "catch-up"' hypothesis. The results generallysupport the existence of a positive interaction between capitalaccumulation and productivity growth, suggesting embodiment.
Rice farming is important for income generation in large parts of China and Asia. This paper uses detailed household, crop- and plot-level data to investigate the levels and determinants of rice producers’ technical efficiency for three villages with different characteristics in a major rice-growing area of South-East China, focusing in particular on the impact of land fragmentation. Empirical results obtained by applying a stochastic frontier model showed statistically significant differences in technology level among villages, with the remotest village having the lowest technology level. Within villages average technical efficiency was generally high, ranging from 0.80 to 0.91 for the three types of rice that are grown in the region. For late-rice producers, no statistically significant variation was found in their technical efficiencies. Land fragmentation was found to be an important determinant of technical efficiency in early-rice and one-season rice production. An increase in average plot size increased rice farmers’ technical efficiency. Given average plot size, an increase in the number of plots was found to increase technical efficiency, indicating the presence of variation effects. A larger distance between homesteads and plots contributed to technical inefficiency in early-rice production. The high levels of technical efficiency found in our study support the view that to raise rice productivity in the long run, new technologies need to be introduced.
This paper examines the spatial distribution of agricultural productivity in the European regions for the period 1990-2000, using a twofold descriptive and explanatory approach, which allows us to overcome the drawbacks of conventional convergence analysis. The spatial distribution of agricultural productivity is summarized in a regional typology that enables us to evaluate the different trends of the European regions. The various inequality indices and estimated density functions reveal a decrease in regional agricultural productivity disparities, while intra-distribution mobility is found to be relatively limited during the study period. Additionally, the results obtained from the regression analysis are in line with those obtained at the national level. Finally, our nonparametric approach allows us to assess the role of variables such as economic development, agricultural structure and productive specialization in the dynamics of the distribution under analysis.
This issue describes farming in both First and Third Worlds, highlighting both the social and environmental factors which influences world agriculture. The book is designed to provide a broad introduction to the economic, social and environmental context of farming, its technologies and methods and biogeography. Two main themes are examined in the issue: the prime causes of variation in agriculture; and the how agricultural diversity influences world development. The author provides a comprehensive introduction to agriculture in both the developed and developing economies, from both the human and environmental perspective. Addressing the physical environment, economic behaviour and demands, institutional, social and cultural influences, and the impact of farming upon the environment, the book explores the wide range of factors which influence how agriculture and agricultural practice differ from place to place. This edition includes updated and revised text, statistics, artwork, bibliography and two new chapters, not previously included in the book's first edition, published in 1984. -from Author
The traditional land tenure system in Nigeria coupled with increasing population encourages land fragmenta- tion with attendant consequences for agricultural productivity and commercialization. This study quantified the degree of land fragmentation and its consequences on arable food production. The study makes use of data from 125 farm households spread across the 12 communities in Umuahia-North Local Government Area (LGA) of Abia State, Nigeria. Using Janusezwski index, the study quantified the degree of land fragmentation. The Cobb-Douglas (CD) and the Generalized Linear Model (GLM) were used in exploring the impact of land fragmentation on arable crop productivity. The mean fragmentation index is 0.55 with a variance of 0.02. The average farm size cultivated is 2.68 hectares. Majority of the households (71 percent) clustered around the mean fragmentation index. The results of the CD and GLM show the negative impact of land fragmentation on agricultural productivity. Labour in the CD model remained the single most important factor of increasing productivity. The GLM show that cultivating farms further away from the homestead will lead to higher pro- ductivity. The study recommends cooperative farming to enable the farmers to adopt productivity improving farm tech- nologies.
KOFRON, J. (2012): Qualitative methods, is there something new to learn for Czech geography? Geografie, 117, No. 3, pp. 308-328. - This article aims to provide the first geographical account on case studies as a tool of nomothetic science in the Czech context. The first aim is to convince the reader that case studies can and should be used for nomothetic research. However, only those who subscribe under label of neopositivism or scientific (critical) realism will benefit from the outlined approach to case studies. Simply put, methodology tends to reflect our often unconscious epistemological positions. Second aim is to present several techniques of case selection which can help to generate and test theories. It is important to note, that the best research design rests on combination of quantitative and qualitative research, however, mastering of both techniques is a necessary precondition for such fruitful marriage of methods.
The EU agriculture, in spite of the market integration process, shows important differences in terms of productivity and efficiency. It is thus important to determine whether there is a convergence process in agricultural productivity and what factors would explain the observed disparities. To respond to these two questions, the dynamic of the agricultural labour productivity of 125 EU regions was analysed. The methodology was an estimation of the convergence equation with cross-section data for the period 1985-2004. The results showed that there is a very slow process of absolute convergence in productivity among the EU agricultures. Besides, productivity growth is related to agricultural out-migration and higher levels of physical capital. On the contrary, Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) support to the agricultural sector does not seem to have contributed to the productivity growth.
This paper explores the determinants of technical efficiency, and the relationship between farm size and efficiency. in the Center-West of Brazil. This is the region where agricultural production and total factor productivity have grown the fastest since 1970. It is also a region characterised by unusually large farms. Technical efficiency is studied with Data Envelopment Analysis and county level data disaggregated by farm size and type of land tenure. The efficiency measure is regressed on a set of explanatory variables which includes farm size, type of land tenure, composition of output, access to institutions and indicators of technology and input usage. The relationship between farm size and efficiency is found to be non-linear, with efficiency first falling and then rising with size. Type of land tenure, access to institutions and markets, and modern inputs are found to be important determinants of the differences in efficiency across farms.
The link between food and the environment constitutes a core issue from the consumer’s point of view andin the political debate. Geographical indication products, due to their association with specific territories and links to specific local resources, can improve economic, social and environmental sustainability.The present paper investigates the relationship between the legal protection of geographical indications and the environment, analyzing the Product Specifications of the 107 olive-oil geographical indications registered in the European Union. We performed the analysis using a set of indicators related to six thematic areas of potential environmental impact, including tree varieties, intensity of production, phytosanitary and fertilization methods, soil and water management, harvesting and post-harvestingtechniques, and environmental awareness. Results indicate that environmental concerns are not considered to a great extent in the Product Specifications; indeed, they result more from the need to attain specific product qualities than from any direct interest in the environment. In any case, some relevant differences do exist between all six thematic areas(rules on the use of specific rare varieties and on maximum production limits are the most widespread ones in this sense) and between European Union countries (France and Italy are characterized by thehighest levels of environmental care).We identified some cases in which producers recognize that territorial specificities are highly importantin shaping the quality of the product, and they consequently pay specific attention to positive environ-mental effects. Moreover, the data analysis shows a ‘greening’ of Product Specifications over time, which evidences a trend towards a more comprehensive conception of typical products and GIs, related notonly to organoleptic and hedonistic characteristics, but also to environmental and social ones. In conclusion, although protection of geographical indications cannot be considered to constitute an environmental tool per se, it can potentially play a positive role in environmental conservation, acting as a barrier to the increasing intensification of the olive-oil sector and thus preserving traditional farming systems. Indeed, geographical indications provide the opportunity for territorialisation of environmental-friendly production rules, taking into account local specificities. The paper also argues that public policies can play a significant role in supporting the producers’ initiatives towards “greener” geographical indications.
It has often been stated that land fragmentation and farm structures characterized by small agricultural holdings and farms divided in a large number of parcels have been the side-effect of land reform in Central and Eastern Europe. This article reports the findings of a study of land reform in 25 countries in the region from 1989 and onwards and provides an overview of applied land reform approaches. With a basis in theory on land fragmentation, the linkage between land reform approaches and land fragmentation is explored. It is discussed in which situations land fragmentation is a barrier for the development of the agricultural and rural sector. The main finding is that land fragmentation is often hampering agricultural and rural development when both land ownership and land use is highly fragmented.
During last two decades Czech agriculture has gone through significant changes: the transition of agriculture in the 1990s and the entrance of the Czech Republic into the EU and its commitment to the Common Agricultural Policy(CAP). Both of these changes contributed to the structural and regional differentiation of Czech agriculture and exposed it to competition with the whole of Europe. Furthermore, CAP exposed Czech agriculture to uneven conditions for farmers within the EU. The most significant results of these changes have been a decrease in the agricultural sector output, a reduction in farm animals bred, and shrinkage of arable land. On the other hand, many non-productive and non-agricultural activities in the rural areas are subsidised, which offers farmers new possibilities of development. The aim of this paper is to analyse the structural and spatial change in Czech agriculture between 2000 and 2010 on the basis of Agrocenzus data supplemented by opinions of farmers gained in a series of interviews.
The successive reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the enlargements of the European Union (EU) and the impacts of climate change have amplified the diversity of European agriculture. These rapid changes have resulted in the intensification of agricultural activities in some regions, while they have led to the marginalization of agriculture and its eventual abandonment in others. The objective of this paper is to investigate the factors that are behind the differential performance of agriculture across the EU-27 countries. Ward's, k-means and two-step clustering methods were used to classify European agriculture based on gross-value-added farm, land and labour productivity indicators. Significant differences were revealed between the Northern-Central counties and the continental peripheries (Mediterranean, Eastern, Northern Scandinavian). An exact logistic regression model was used to analyse the factors behind this differential performance. Agricultural sectors characterized by a young and better trained farm population are more likely to attain high economic performance. The odds to attain high economic performance are almost 9 times greater for countries with a highly trained farm population, namely, the Netherlands (72%) and Germany (69%), than for countries with poor farm training, while an ageing farm population such as in Portugal (72%) and Bulgaria (66%) is 92% less likely to be high performing. The importance of investments in agriculture was also identified. The significance of the wheat yield variable highlights the importance of both environmental conditions and technical efficiency on farm economic performance. Similarly, countries with a high share of utilized agricultural land in less favoured areas, such as in the Mediterranean, are 94% less likely to attain high economic performance. The redesign of CAP direct payments between old and new member states after 2013 combined with the impacts of agricultural trade liberalization and climate change are expected to deteriorate the position of low performing agricultural sectors further.
The relationship between technical efficiency and size might be affected by farm heterogeneity. We analyse this relationship conditional on a set of control variables. These control variables are chosen using a production model where technical efficiency is introduced as a parameter. As a result, technical efficiency affects both the input demand and the output supply of a profit maximising producer. The empirical application explores these issues using panel data of dairy farms in Spain.
The paper investigates the links between size, subsidies and performance for Slovenian farms. Slovenian farms have always been small and highly subsidized. A literature review is carried out for the period before accession to the European Union (EU), and new calculations with farm-level data are performed for 2004–2006, the period of adjustment to the EU's Common Agricultural Policy. Our analysis reveals that both pre- and post-accession farms’ performance measured in terms of technical efficiency is positively related to farm size in Slovenia. We find that small farms are less technically efficient but more allocatively efficient and profitable. The persistence of small farms in Slovenia may be associated with the provision of generous subsidies, which are negatively related to farms’ technical efficiency but positively related to their profitability. The decline in the number of medium-size farms which has been observed since the accession to the EU may be explained by the fact that medium farms cumulate all disadvantages in terms of performance: they are too small to be economically efficient, but they are too large to be profitable.
Regional convergence is one of the major goals of the European Union. In this paper, the intention is to address the question of whether, during the period 1995–2004 the NUTS-2 regions of EU-27 exhibited a tendency to converge in terms of agricultural labour productivity. A low annual rate of absolute convergence is estimated for the NUTS-2 regions over the period 1995–2004. The rate of regional convergence exhibits a considerable variation across different territorial divisions of the European Union. The implications of these results are discussed in the context of the Common Agricultural Policy and respective recommendations are issued.
The objective of this study is to make a further contribution to the debate on the causes of economic growth in the European Continent. It explains why agricultural labour productivity differences did not converge between 1950 and 2005 in Europe. We propose an econometric model, one combining both proximate and fundamental causes of economic growth. The results show that the continuous exit of labour power from the sector, coupled with the increased use of productive factors originating in other sectors of the economy, caused the efficiency of agri-cultural workers to rise. However, we offer a complete explanation of the role played by institutions and geographical factors. Thus, we detect a direct and inverse relation between membership of the EU and the Communist bloc and the produc-tivity of agricultural labour. In addition, strong support for agriculture affected productivity negatively.
Outlined by the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), the rural development policy enables the application of the territorial dimension. The goal of this paper is the analysis and determination of the appropriateness of the CAP development policy tools specifically within the Czech Republic. Furthermore, there is emphasis on the compliancy with the EU territorial cohesion objectives. The analyses concentrate on the agro-environmental measures (AEM) and less-favoured areas (LFA) support. In addition, payments during the 2004–2006 periods are evaluated. Relevant statistical indicators that include geographical, demographical, and economical are designated. Testing and verification of the indicators undertakes comparative examination based on municipal size-categories. The results of this process indicate that AEM and LFA schemes do not benefit the underdeveloped municipalities as intended by the EU territorial cohesion objectives.
Agricultural land fragmentation is widespread around the world and may affect farmers’ decisions and therefore have an impact on the performance of farms, in either a negative or a positive way. We investigated this impact for the western region of Brittany, France in 2007. To do so, we regressed a set of performance indicators on a set of fragmentation descriptors. The performance indicators (production costs, yields, revenue, profitability, technical and scale efficiency) were calculated at the farm level, using Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) data. By contrast, due to limits in the available data, the fragmentation descriptors were calculated at the municipality level, using data from the cartographic field pattern registry (RPG). The various fragmentation descriptors enabled not only the traditional number and average size of plots, but also their scattering in the geographical space, to be taken into account. The analysis brought several findings. Firstly, it is relevant to consider the various dimensions of LF when studying its impact on farm performance, in particular shape and distance considerations. Secondly, in all cases but one, the effect of the various LF descriptors on performance indicators conform to expectations, that is to say LF increases production costs and decreases yields, revenue, profitability and efficiency. Thirdly, with a simple simulation we have shown that the benefits from reducing fragmentation may differ with respect to the improved LF dimension and the performance indicator considered. Hence, when setting up consolidation programs, it may be crucial for policy-makers to first decide which performance dimension they aim at favouring in order to choose the most efficient way to do so. Finally, from a methodological point of view, our results support the relevance of using descriptors of LF at the municipality level as a proxy when farm level LF descriptors are not available.
Extreme farmland ownership fragmentation is becoming a limiting factor for sustainable land management in some countries. Scattered, excessively small parcels cease to be viable for individual farming, and owners feel forced to rent these parcels to larger enterprises farming on adjacent land. Our study demonstrates a phenomenon that we call the Farmland Rental Paradox, where very small parcels tend to create large production blocks by being rented to larger farmers, and therefore to significantly homogenize the land-use pattern. The parcel size established as the threshold for this phenomenon is 1.07 ha. Below this threshold, the smaller the parcels were, the larger the blocks that they tended to create.
Using the example of the Czech Republic, a state with extremely high farmland ownership fragmentation, it is demonstrated that this phenomenon can currently determine the land use of up to 40% of the country’s farmland. Our study also points to other countries where this phenomenon may apply, especially the transitional countries of Central and Eastern Europe.
The study discusses the tempo of the fragmentation process, which accelerates exponentially in countries with the equal inheritance system. It goes on to discuss defragmentation, social impacts of the dominance of the land rental market, and environmental impacts of significant homogenization of the land-use pattern. The serious negative impacts of extreme land-ownership fragmentation show that this phenomenon can be considered as a significant form of land degradation.
In this article, we analyze the impact of land fragmentation, farm size, land ownership and crop diversity on farm profit and efficiency of 90 groundwater irrigated farms in the hard rock areas of South India. As we hypothesize that these variables may impact both, farm profit and efficiency in alternative ways, we develop four different stochastic frontier and inefficiency effect models by shifting some of these variables from the inefficiency model into the profit function. The underlining reason is to know the impact of different combination of these structural variables on farm profit and efficiency. Our analysis shows that there exist high levels of inefficiency among the sample farms. Among the variables influencing efficiency, the most pronounced effects are observed with land fragmentation, land ownership and crop diversity. Land fragmentation is positively and significantly associated with inefficiency, whereas land ownership and crop diversity is negatively and significantly associated with inefficiency. In addition land fragmentation can also have a significant negative effect on farm profit. We further find that smaller farms appear to have lower inefficiencies than larger farms due to the more efficient use of inputs by the former category. Importantly, when a farmer owns a failed well, this also contributes to the inefficiency, since well failure increases cost of irrigation. Further the average profit efficiencies are higher for unfragmented farms, large farms, owner operated farms and farms with a diversified cropping pattern as compared with their counterparts. Knowledge on the factors influencing farm profit and efficiency is crucial for policy makers and extension agents for improving efficiency levels of the groundwater irrigated farms especially in water scarce regions of the country.
There is a 34-fold difference in average farm size (land per farm) between rich and poor countries and striking differences in their size distributions. Since labor productivity is much higher in large relative to small farms, we study the determinants of farm-size differences across countries and their impact on agricultural and aggregate productivity. We develop a quantitative model of agriculture and non-agriculture that features a non-degenerate size distribution of farms. We find that measured aggregate factors such as capital, land, and economy-wide productivity cannot account for more than 1/4 of the observed differences in farm size and productivity. We argue that, among the possible explanations, farm-level policies that misallocate resources from large to small farms have the most potential to account for the remaining differences. Such farm-size distortions are prevalent in poor countries. We quantify the effects of two specific policies in developing countries: (a) a land reform that imposes a ceiling on farm size and (b) a progressive land tax. We find that each individual policy generates a reduction of 3 to 7% in average size and productivity.
This paper investigates the differences in technical efficiency and productivity change, and the technology gaps, between French and Hungarian farms in the dairy and cereal, oilseed and protein crops (COP) sectors during the period 2001-2007. The analyses were performed with national Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) data and the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach under each country's respective frontier and under a metafrontier. Results reveal that French COP farms were on average more efficient under their own technology than Hungarian farms under theirs, but there was no difference between the two countries for dairy farms. However, metatechnology ratios calculated with the construction of the metafrontier indicate that Hungarian technology was the more productive in both the dairy and the COP sectors, but more noticeably in COP production
Agricultural land is very fragmentated in the Central European countries. This situation hampers the emergence of a private commercial farming structure. Governments and non-governmental organisations debate on programs and instruments, but these far-reaching and costly options would be unnecessary if the situation were to improve through autonomous development. This article models the causal chain connected to land fragmentation, explores alternative development paths through various scenarios and tentatively points out which scenario is most likely.
a b s t r a c t The spatial variability of farmland prices is determined by factors reflecting agricultural use, and also by location-specific characteristics, which are crucial to the conversion of farmland to non-farming uses. In co-operation with experienced real-estate brokers, we collected data from 286 transactions carried out in 2008. We identified factors to be analyzed at the parcel scale and tested their effect on the variability of farmland prices in the Czech Republic using general linear modeling. Our results indicate that the most powerful factor in explaining the sale price per square metre was proximity to a settlement, and significantly higher prices were found close to existing built-up areas. The next most powerful factors were: municipality population, travel time to the capital city, accessibility of the parcel, and natural soil fertility. The results have been interpreted to determine the threshold values for significant factors that support future non-agricultural use of farmland and significantly raise current farmland prices. The values supporting non-agricultural use of farmland are proximity to a settlement (up to 100 m), proximity to a larger municipality (above 5000 inhabitants), short travel time to the capital city (up to 1 h) and accessibility to the parcel via the transportation network.
This article presents multi-output, multi-input total factor productivity (TFP) growth rates in agriculture for 88 countries over the 1970–2001 period, estimated with both stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and the more commonly employed data envelopment analysis (DEA). We find results with SFA to be more plausible than with DEA, and use them to analyze trends across countries and the determinants of TFP growth in developing countries. The central finding is that policy and institutional variables, including public agricultural expenditure and proagricultural price policy reforms, are significant correlates of TFP growth. The most significant geographic correlate of TFP growth is distance to the nearest OECD country.
Land fragmentation, in which a farm operates multiple, separate plots of land, is a common phenomenon in Japan and many other countries. Usually, land fragmentation is regarded as a harmful phenomenon as it increases production costs and reduces the advantages of scale economies. However, it is also known that fragmentation may have beneficial effects in reducing risk through spatial dispersion of plots. Thus, land fragmentation has both costs and benefits, and whether it is beneficial or harmful is determined by the magnitude of these costs and benefits. This article investigates the costs and benefits of land fragmentation empirically using panel data from Japanese rice farms. The empirical results reveal that fragmentation increases production costs and offsets economies of size, and these impacts strengthen as farm size increases. Moreover, although fragmentation does reduce production risk, its monetary value is far below the cost of land fragmentation. From these findings, we conclude that land fragmentation is an impediment to efficient rice production in Japan. Copyright 2010 The Author. AJARE 2010 Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Inc. and Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.
Abstract This article analyzes long-term agricultural Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth at regional level by testing its time-series properties and identifying factors associated with divergence as opposed to convergence. The empirical application concerns Italian regions over the 1951–2002 time period. TFP growth decomposition ultimately attributes the observed productivity growth performance to these contrasting (convergence vs. divergence) forces. We find that technological spillovers are the key convergence force regardless of how the spillover effects are computed. At the same time, forces favoring convergence are almost offset by divergence forces (mainly scale or learning effects). This decomposition may explain the persistence of TFP growth rate differences in Italian agriculture, and could be applicable elsewhere.
The relation between landscape structure and its drivers is a central issue in studies of landscape ecology. However, agricultural
land fragmentation is dealt with in only a few such studies. We have investigated the effects of ownership and soil quality
on agricultural land fragmentation in the highly fragmented ownership patterns that characterize some of the transition countries
of Central and Eastern Europe. Using patch-scale spatial data generated from GIS, Minimal Adequate Models, based on ANOVA,
were performed to test for the effects of ownership and soil quality patterns on arable land and grassland fragmentation across
483 study areas. The results show that there are important differences in the predictors of fragmentation between arable land
and grassland. Grassland fragmentation was found to be associated particularly with ownership fragmentation, whereas arable
land fragmentation tended to be driven mainly by soil conditions. A higher proportion of public ownership supports the more
frequent appearance of larger patches. We found a significantly positive relationship between natural soil fertility and arable
land fragmentation, while there was a strongly negative relationship between natural soil fertility and grassland fragmentation.
Soil quality diversity was observed to be the most important driver affecting arable land fragmentation, but only a non-significant
driver of grassland fragmentation. The study provides arguments for intervention aimed at reducing the huge differences between
the levels of land-ownership and the land-use fragmentation.
How can scholars select cases from a large universe for in-depth case study analysis? Random sampling is not typically a viable approach when the total number of cases to be selected is small. Hence attention to purposive modes of sampling is needed. Yet, while the existing qualitative literature on case selection offers a wide range of suggestions for case selection, most techniques discussed require in-depth familiarity of each case. Seven case selection procedures are considered, each of which facilitates a different strategy for within-case analysis. The case selection procedures considered focus on typical, diverse, extreme, deviant, influential, most similar, and most different cases. For each case selection procedure, quantitative approaches are discussed that meet the goals of the approach, while still requiring information that can reasonably be gathered for a large number of cases.
The inverse productivity–size relationship is one of the oldest puzzles in development economics. Two conventional explanations for the inverse relationship have emerged in the literature: (i) factor market imperfections that cause cross-sectional variation in household-specific shadow prices and (ii) the omission of soil quality measurements. This study employs precise soil quality measurements at the plot level with multiple plots per household so as to test both conventional explanations simultaneously. Empirical results show that only a small portion of the inverse productivity–size relationship is explained by market imperfections and none of it seems attributable to the omission of soil quality measurements.