scholarly journals What Drives Farm Structural Change? An Analysis of Economic, Demographic and Succession Factors

Agriculture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 438
Author(s):  
Alessandro Corsi ◽  
Vito Frontuto ◽  
Silvia Novelli
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Structural Change ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Demographic Variables ◽  
Agricultural Area ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Family Farms ◽  
Italian Region ◽  
Natural Land ◽  
Individual Farm

The evolution of farm size and land use are important determinants of the efficiency and profitability of agriculture and the configuration of the territory. In this paper, a conceptual framework of the evolution of the number of farms and land use is presented, arguing that a major determinant of the change in the number of farms is the presence or absence of successors to ageing farmers and that these socio-demographic variables shape the evolution of the sector in terms of farm size, while they do not significantly affect the changes in the farmed area. This hypothesis was empirically tested with data drawn from individual farm records of the Italian Agricultural Censuses of 2000 and 2010—aggregated at the municipality level for an Italian region—by estimating regressions on the decrease rates of the number of farms, the utilised agricultural area and the total agricultural area. The results support the conclusion that the change in the number of farms was largely determined by the absence of successors in family farms and by the average operators’ age, unlike the change in the farmed area, for which natural land conditions were the main drivers.

THE USE OF LINEAR PROGRAMMING TECHNIQUES TO OPTIMIZE FARM SIZE

2019 ◽  
pp. 93-100
Author(s):  
T. Movchan ◽  
V. Artеmov ◽  
D. Bulysheva
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Linear Programming ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
Minimum Cost ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Analysis Method ◽  
Microsoft Excel ◽  
Management Activity ◽  
Economic Zones

It is recommended to implement forecasting management models in the area of land use and protection by applying linear programming methods to optimize the size of farms, which land is located in different natural and economic zones. Analysis and assessment of land use in natural-economic zones is a type of management activity for deep understanding of the dialectic of a managed object development and true assessment of its moving forces. This enables to simulate the situation of land use, to identify a specific goal, to choose the means to achieve it and to obtain the optimum result. The implementation of the proposed forecast models of the optimal farm size is carried out by linear programming in three ways (northwest corner method, minimum cost method and What-If analysis method, that uses Solver, a Microsoft Excel add-in program). The implementation of the above approaches is based on the example of four farms and five natural-economic zones. The obtained solutions show that the best result is attained by using Solver for What-If analysis method, a Microsoft Excel add-in program. The northwest corner method gives the worst result, but this is the simplest solution. The minimum cost method depends on the researcher qualification and produces the result that is most often found between the results obtained by the northwest corner method and the "Solver" procedure. When using the method of the northwest corner a program of consideration of different options for the distribution of land resources and the choice of the optimal solution was developed. This allows to find an optimal result of land allocation according to the result, which is similar to the result of the procedure "Solver", but it is more adapted for the direct participation of the researcher in the process of solving problems. There is an opportunity to improve the result by changing the original data, which simulates the forecast of the distribution of farm land in natural-economic zones, while minimizing production costs. In the absence of access to computers, the solutions obtained by the northwest corner and the minimum cost methods can be improved by the potential method.

scholarly journals Historical Changes in Land Use and Suitability for Future Agriculture Expansion in Western Bahia, Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1088
Author(s):  
Fernando Martins Pimenta ◽  
Allan Turini Speroto ◽  
Marcos Heil Costa ◽  
Emily Ane Dionizio
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Suitability ◽  
Agricultural Area ◽  
Landsat Images ◽  
Historical Changes ◽  
Cropland Area ◽  
Irrigated Area ◽  
Agriculture Expansion ◽  
Forest Code

Western Bahia is a critical region in Brazil’s recent expansion of agricultural output. Its outstanding increase in production is associated with strong growth in cropland area and irrigation. Here we present analyses of Western Bahian historical changes in land use, including irrigated area, and suitability for future agricultural expansion that respects permanent protection areas and the limits established by the Brazilian Forest Code in the Cerrado biome. For this purpose, we developed a land use and land cover classification database using a random forest classifier and Landsat images. A spatial multicriteria decision analysis to evaluate land suitability was performed by combining this database with precipitation and slope data. We demonstrate that between 1990 and 2020, the region’s total agricultural area increased by 3.17 Mha and the irrigated area increased by 193,480 ha. Throughout the region, the transition between the different classes of land use and land cover followed different pathways and was strongly influenced by land suitability and also appears to be influenced by Brazil’s new Forest Code of 2012. We conclude that even if conservation restrictions are considered, agricultural area could nearly double in the region, with expansion possible mostly in areas we classify as moderately suitable for agriculture, which are subject to climate hazards when used for rainfed crops but are otherwise fine for pastures and irrigated croplands.

Economic structure, power and institutions: A conceptual framework for analysing the historical transformation of US industrial strategy

2021 ◽  
pp. 102452942110154
Author(s):  
Mattia Tassinari
Keyword(s):  
Structural Change ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Economic Structure ◽  
Institutional Arrangements ◽  
Illustrative Case ◽  
Alexander Hamilton ◽  
The Government ◽  
Distribution Of Power ◽  
Illustrative Case Study

An industrial strategy emerges from possibilities for structural change, that depend on material constraints and opportunities afforded by economic structure, the distribution of power in society and the institutional arrangements organized at the political level. Building on a structural political economy perspective, this article develops a structure–power–institutions conceptual framework to describe how economic structure, the distribution of power, and institutions interact through a ‘circular process,’ which is useful for analysing the historical transformation of industrial strategy. In this framework, an industrial strategy refers to the institutional arrangements through which the government manages emerging conflicts or agreements between different powers and influences structural change. As an illustrative case study, the structure–power–institutions framework is applied to analyse the historical transformation of US industrial strategy from the era of Alexander Hamilton to that of Donald Trump.

Small change: individual farm work and collective life in a western Nigerian savanna town, 1969–88

Africa ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 62 (4) ◽  
pp. 465-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane I. Guyer
Keyword(s):  
Farming System ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Cropping Patterns ◽  
Farm Work ◽  
Small Change ◽  
Returns To Labour ◽  
Individual Farm ◽  
Ceremonial Life ◽  
Nigerian Savanna

AbstractA comparison of data collected in western Nigeria (the Yoruba area) in 1968-69 and 1988 suggests that small-scale male farmers' patterns of work remained quite similar in the total amount of work they did and in the amount by task. This finding seemed surprising, since the study area lies in the food supply hinterland of the rapidly growing cities of Ibadan, Lagos and Abeokuta. The farming system has changed in several ways in response to increased urban demand and improved transport, including an increase in farm size on the part of male farmers. Changed cropping patterns, the increased use of hired labour and somewhat increased returns to labour seem only partly to account for the persistence. Analysis of the work data in terms of its timing, rather than in terms of time, suggests that farmers are tending to work at the same task in longer stretches ofconsecutive days, and this, in turn, is related to the marked rescheduling of traditional ceremonial life and the intensified politico-associational life moved to the weekend.

scholarly journals Agropastoral Mobility and Rangelands Multiple Uses in the Miombo Frontier Ecozone of Tabora Region, Western Tanzania

Scientifica ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
George Felix Masanja
Keyword(s):  
Growth Control ◽  
Herd Size ◽  
Demographic Variables ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Resource Base ◽  
High Data ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
Agroecological Zones ◽  
Ex Post Facto ◽  
Multistage Sampling

This study aimed to examine the argument of environmental resource-use conflict as the primary cause of crop farmers and agropastoralists conflicts in Tabora Region, Tanzania. It explored the multiple interdependent phenomena that affect livelihoods relationships between crop farmers and agropastoralists and the nature of their continuing conflicts over the ecozonal resources. A primary dataset of the two groups’ conflicts was used. An ex post facto and multistage sampling design was adopted. A total of 252 respondents were interviewed in three separate villages drawn from agroecological zones fringing the miombo woodland where such tensions are high. Data were analyzed using logistic regression. Results indicate that education (β = −1.215, .297; p=.050), household size (β=.958, 2.607; p=.017), herd size (β = 4.276, 7.197; p=0.001), farm size (β = -1.734, .048; p=.176), the police (β = -.912, 4.582; p=.043), and village leaders (β = -.122, .885; p=.012) were the most potent predictors of causes of conflicts. The study found no support for demographic variables, like age, sex, marital status, income, duration of residence, and distance to resource base. The study recommends population growth control and strengthening of local institutions and recommends local communities to sustain management of natural resources base in the area.

scholarly journals Structural Changes in Israeli Family Farms: Long-Run Trends in the Farm Size Distribution and the Role of Part-Time Farming

Agriculture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 518
Author(s):  
Ayal Kimhi ◽  
Nitzan Tzur-Ilan
Keyword(s):  
Size Distribution ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Higher Moments ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Family Farms ◽  
Income Sources ◽  
Part Time ◽  
The Mean

Israeli agriculture has experienced rapid structural changes in recent decades, including the massive exit of farmers, a resulting increase in average farm size, a higher farm specialization and a higher reliance on non-farm income sources. The higher farm heterogeneity makes it necessary to examine changes in the entire farm size distribution rather than the common practice of analyzing changes in the average farm size alone. This article proposes a nonparametric analysis in which the change in the distribution of farm sizes between two periods is decomposed into several components, and the contributions of subgroups of farms to this change are analyzed. Using data on Israeli family farms, we analyze the changes in the farm size distribution in two separate time periods that are characterized by very different economic environments, focusing on the different contributions of full-time farms and part-time farms to the overall distributional changes. We found that between 1971 and 1981, a period characterized by stability and prosperity, the farm size distribution has shifted to the right with relatively minor changes in higher moments of the distribution. On the other hand, between 1981 and 1995, a largely unfavorable period to Israeli farmers, the change in the distribution was much more complex. While the overall change in the size distribution of farms was smaller in magnitude than in the earlier period, higher moments of the distribution were not less important than the increase in the mean and led to higher dispersion of farm sizes. Between 1971 and 1981, the contributions of full- and part-time farms to the change in the size distribution were quite similar. Between 1981 and 1995, however, full-time farms contributed mostly to the growth in the average farm size, while the average farm size among part-time farms actually decreased, and their contribution to the higher dispersion of farm sizes was quantitatively larger. This highlights the need to analyze the changes in the entire farm size distribution rather than focusing on the mean alone, and to allow for differences between types of farms.

scholarly journals Modeling Past, Present, and Future Urban Growth Impacts on Primary Agricultural Land in Greater Irbid Municipality, Jordan Using SLEUTH (1972–2050)

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 212
Author(s):  
Rana N. Jawarneh
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Growth Model ◽  
Urban Growth ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Urban Land Use ◽  
Agricultural Area ◽  
Grand Challenge ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Urban Growth Model ◽  
Rate Of Increase

Urban expansion and loss of primarily agricultural land are two of the challenges facing Jordan. Located in the most productive agricultural area of Jordan, Greater Irbid Municipality (GIM) uncontrolled urban growth has posed a grand challenge in both sustaining its prime croplands and developing comprehensive planning strategies. This study investigated the loss of agricultural land for urban growth in GIM from 1972–2050 and denoted the negative consequences of the amalgamation process of 2001 on farmland loss. The aim is to unfold and track historical land use/cover changes and forecast these changes to the future using a modified SLEUTH-3r urban growth model. The accuracy of prediction results was assessed in three different sites between 2015 and 2020. In 43 years the built-up area increased from 29.2 km2 in 1972 to 71 km2 in 2015. By 2050, the built-up urban area would increase to 107 km2. The overall rate of increase, however, showed a decline across the study period, with the periods of 1990–2000 and 2000–2015 having the highest rate of built-up areas expansion at 68.6 and 41.4%, respectively. While the agricultural area increased from 178 km2 in 1972 to 207 km2 in 2000, it decreased to 195 km2 in 2015 and would continue to decrease to 188 km2 by 2050. The district-level analysis shows that from 2000–2015, the majority of districts exhibited an urban increase at twice the rate of 1990–2000. The results of the net change analysis of agriculture show that between 1990 and 2000, 9 districts exhibited a positive gain in agricultural land while the rest of the districts showed a negative loss of agricultural land. From 2000 to 2015, the four districts of Naser, Nozha, Rawdah, and Hashmyah completely lost their agricultural areas for urbanization. By 2050, Idoon and Boshra districts will likely lose more than half of their high-quality agricultural land. This study seeks to utilize a spatially explicit urban growth model to support sustainable planning policies for urban land use through forecasting. The implications from this study confirm the worldwide urbanization impacts on losing the most productive agricultural land in the outskirts and consequences on food production and food security. The study calls for urgent actions to adopt a compact growth policy with no new land added for development as what is available now exceeds what is needed by 2050 to accommodate urban growth in GIM.

scholarly journals Spatial Planning as a Tool for Effective Nature Conservation: A Conceptual Framework for Turkey’s Spatial Planning System

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-98
Author(s):  
Esra Yazici Gökmen ◽  
Nuran Zeren Gülersoy
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Nature Conservation ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Conservation Planning ◽  
Spatial Planning ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Planning System ◽  
Effective Planning

Abstract Protected areas can be parts of larger ecosystems, and land use changes in the unprotected part of the ecosystems may threaten the biological diversity by affecting the ecological processes. The relationship between protected areas and their surroundings has been influential in understanding the role of spatial planning in nature conservation. This article focuses on the problem that Turkey’s protected areas are vulnerable to pressure and threats caused by land use changes. Spatial planning serving as a bridge between nature conservation and land use is the solution for effective nature conservation in Turkey. Thereby, the aim of this article is to develop a conceptual framework which offers spatial planning as an effective tool to bridge the gap between land use change and nature conservation. In this context, first literature review is conducted, and systematic conservation planning, evidence-based conservation planning, bioregional planning and national system planning are presented as effective planning methods in nature conservation. In addition to literature review, official national statistics and Convention on Biological Diversity’s country reports are utilized to shed light on Turkey’s current state. Finally, a conceptual framework is defined, the main differences with the current situation are revealed. The results indicate that an effective planning system for Turkey’s protected areas incorporates a holistic, target-oriented system defining the spatial planning process for protected areas. The spatial planning system to be developed in this context is also used by decision-makers in evaluating the ecological effectiveness of existing plans.

scholarly journals Land use and soil quality in peri-urban farms in Southern Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 160-174
Author(s):  
Agi Costa Cassimo ◽  
Paulo César Nascimento ◽  
Patrícia Lima De Lima ◽  
Carlos Gustavo Tornquist ◽  
Carlos Alberto Bissani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Family Farms ◽  
Porto Alegre ◽  
Organic Farms ◽  
Rural Landscapes ◽  
Horticultural Crops ◽  
Chemical Attributes ◽  
Physical And Chemical

Small family farms constitute a major part of land use in the surrounding regions of Brazilian cities, as these farms not only contribute to the food supply, but also help conserve rural landscapes and improve environmental services. This study evaluated agricultural impacts on soil quality in seven family farms in Porto Alegre municipality, Rio Grande do Sul state, RS. Selected production units (PUs) were managed as conventional or organic farms, producing horticultural crops, fruits and pastures, besides native forests. Soil samples were collected from representative areas for five use and management types, under disturbed and undisturbed conditions, at 0–20 cm depth. Physical and chemical attributes were analyzed, comparing the effects of types of land use. Data analysis showed that more affected attributes were soil density, macro and microporosity, phosphorus content, pH and electrical conductivity. Macroporosity, phosphorus, zinc and cooper contents are the greater threats to soil quality. Horticulture, under both agroecological and conventional production systems caused major changes compared to natural conditions.

scholarly journals Regional water cycle response to land use/cover change for a typical agricultural area, North China Plain

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chang Li ◽  
Zhili Wang ◽  
Yongjun Lu ◽  
Mingming Song
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Urban Area ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Urban Forest ◽  
Agricultural Area ◽  
Water Yield ◽  
Lulc Change ◽  
Cropland Area

Abstract Quantifying the influences of land use/cover (LULC) change on hydrological processes is important for rational utilization of water resources. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of spatiotemporal LULC change on hydrological components in a typical agricultural area located in the North China Plain at both basin and sub-basin scales. LULC change was quantified, and the Soil and Water Assessment Tool was optimized using parameters associated with LULC conditions. We concluded that the urban and forest areas increased by 25.57 and 10.56%, with the cropland area decreased by 36.76%. About half of the surface runoff (SURQ) in the basin was generated from the urban area, with the SURQ increased significantly in the upstream and downstream of the basin where overlapped with urbanized areas. The proportions of evapotranspiration generated by cropland and forest areas increased slightly (0.89 and 0.55%, respectively), especially in sub-basins where the conversion of cropland to forest was obvious. Urban, forest, and cropland were the main types that generated water yield (WYLD). The proportion of WYLD generated on the urban area increased by 9.55% and decreased in other areas, which may be related to the combined effects of urbanization and forest reduction.

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