In this article we perform production efficiency analysis for the 40 countries with largest value added by agricultural sector in 2005. Under the assumption of a nonparametric frontier and production observations satisfying a statistical model including both random and inefficiency errors, we estimate an agricultural production function using DEA measures of efficiency with output orientation a...

This study has estimated the total factor productivity (TFP) and its share in output growth, and returns to public investments on research in agriculture in India. The contribution of agricultural research in reducing real cost of production and attainment of food self-sufficiency has also been estimated for the country. The estimates of TFP have shown considerable variations across crops in di...

Investment in the agricultural sector is important because this sector greatly affects the realms of providing food independence and security, employment, sustainable development, and environmental preservation. So, this study investigated the socio-economic impacts (direct and indirect effects) of the investment development policy on the agricultural sector and its sub-sectors in Iran in 2011 ...

Sorghum grows well in arid and semi-arid agroecological zones and is thus one of the most important cereals in the Sahel region of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).3 Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali, Nigeria, and Niger lead sorghum production per capita in SSA. Per capita consumption is dominated by Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Chad. Ethiopia is also a major producer and consumer of sorghum.4 FAO data from ...

Reconciling the aims of feeding an ever more demanding human population and conserving biodiversity is a difficult challenge. Here, we explore potential solutions by assessing whether land sparing (farming for high yield, potentially enabling the protection of non-farmland habitat), land sharing (lower yielding farming with more biodiversity within farmland) or a mixed strategy would result in ...

AIMS To study the association between fetal death and paternal agricultural occupation in areas and time periods with different levels of use of agricultural pesticides. METHODS A total of 1 473 146 stillbirths and births occurring in Spain between 1995 and 1999 were analysed. RESULTS The offspring of agricultural workers had the highest risk of fetal death from congenital anomalies in the ...

water is one of the most valuable natural resources in human societies which is demanded by different parts of the society, and as one of the main inputs of production in agriculture has a special role in the agricultural sustainable development. nowadays, the consumption of water is more than the supply, and its highest consumption is in agriculture. this study scrutinized the role of manageme...

The present study was carried out in the rice-wheat area of Pakistani Punjab. The data for the study was collected from three main districts of central Punjab Province i.e. Gujranwala, Sheikhupura and Hafizabad. In total 234 farmers were interviewed. The impact of agricultural extension services was estimated on adoption of new improved technologies and crop yields. The propensity score matchin...

Many commentators have speculated that agricultural policies have contributed to increased obesity rates in the United States, yet such claims are often made without any analysis of the complex links between real-world farm commodity support programs, prices and consumption of foods, and caloric intake. This article carefully studies the effects of US agricultural policies on prices and quantit...