Varietal Integrity Damage Abatement And Productivity

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Varietal integrity, damage abatement, and productivity

Ma, Xingliang,Smale, Melinda,Spielman, David J.,Zambrano, Patricia,Nazli, Hina,Zaidi, Fatima
Varietal integrity damage abatement and productivity Book PDF

Author : Ma, Xingliang,Smale, Melinda,Spielman, David J.,Zambrano, Patricia,Nazli, Hina,Zaidi, Fatima
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 50,6 Mb
Release : 2016-04-07
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Varietal integrity, damage abatement, and productivity by Ma, Xingliang,Smale, Melinda,Spielman, David J.,Zambrano, Patricia,Nazli, Hina,Zaidi, Fatima Pdf

Bt cotton remains one of the most widely grown biotech crops among smallholder farmers. Numerous studies, including those previously conducted in Pakistan, attest to its yield and cost advantages. However, the effectiveness of Bt toxin, which depends on many technical constraints, is heterogeneous. Furthermore, in Pakistan, the diffusion of Bt cotton varieties occurred despite a weak regulatory system and without seed quality control; evidence demonstrates that varieties sold as Bt may not contain the genes or express them effectively. We use data collected from a sample that is statistically representative of the nation’s cotton growers to test the effects of Bt cotton use on productivity in a damage control framework. Unlike previous studies, we employ five measures of Bt identity: name, official approval status, farmer belief, laboratory tests of Bt presence in plant tissue, and biophysical assays measuring Bt effectiveness. Only farmers’ belief that a variety is Bt affects cotton productivity. Although all measures reduce damage from pests, the biophysical indicators have the largest effect, and official approval has the weakest. For applied economists, findings highlight the importance of getting the data right concerning Bt. For policy makers, they suggest the need, on ethical if not productivity grounds, to monitor variety integrity closer to point of sale.

Can labor market imperfections explain changes in the inverse farm size-productivity relationship ?

Deininger, Klaus,Jin, Songqing,Liu, Yanyan,Singh, Sudhir K.
Can labor market imperfections explain changes in the inverse farm size productivity relationship Book PDF

Author : Deininger, Klaus,Jin, Songqing,Liu, Yanyan,Singh, Sudhir K.
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2016-06-24
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Can labor market imperfections explain changes in the inverse farm size-productivity relationship ? by Deininger, Klaus,Jin, Songqing,Liu, Yanyan,Singh, Sudhir K. Pdf

To understand whether and how inverse relationship between farm size and productivity changes when labor market performance improves, we use large national farm panel from India covering a quarter-century (1982, 1999, 2008) to show that the inverserelationship weakened significantly over time, despite an increase in the dispersion of farm sizes. A key reason was the substitution of capital for labor in response to nonagricultural labor demand. In addition, family labor wasmore efficient than hired labor in the 1982–1999 period, but not during the 1999–2008period.In line with labor market imperfections as a key factor, separability of labor supply and demand decisions cannot be rejected in the second period,except in villages with very low nonagricultural labor demand.

Delegation of quality control in value chains

Saak, Alexander E.
Delegation of quality control in value chains Book PDF

Author : Saak, Alexander E.
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 56 pages
File Size : 52,7 Mb
Release : 2016-04-21
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Delegation of quality control in value chains by Saak, Alexander E. Pdf

This paper studies the decision of a firm that sells an experience good to delegate quality control to an independent monitor. In an infinitely repeated game consumers’ trust provides incentives to (1) acquire information about whether the good is defective and (2) withhold the good from sale if it is defective. If third-party reports are observable to consumers, delegation of monitoring lessens the first and dispenses with the second moral hazard concern but also creates agency costs due to either limited liability or lack of commitment. In equilibrium the firm controls quality without an independent monitor only if trades are sufficiently frequent and consumer information about quality is sufficiently precise. This result holds under different assumptions about feasible contracts, collusion, verifiability of reports, joint inspections, and the number of firms that hire the third-party monitor. If third-party reports are not publicly observed, delegation can be optimal only if two or more firms hire the third-party monitor because then both moral hazard concerns are present under delegation.

Does female labor scarcity encourage innovation?

Tan, Zhibo,Zhang, Xiaobo
Does female labor scarcity encourage innovation Book PDF

Author : Tan, Zhibo,Zhang, Xiaobo
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 44 pages
File Size : 43,9 Mb
Release : 2016-07-01
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Does female labor scarcity encourage innovation? by Tan, Zhibo,Zhang, Xiaobo Pdf

Facing scarcity of a production factor, a firm can develop technologies to either substitute the scarce factor (price effect) or complement the more abundant factors (market size effect). Whether the market size effect or the price effect dominates largely depends on the elasticity of substitution among factors according to the theory of directed technical change. However, it is a great challenge to empirically test the theory because factor prices are often endogenously determined. In this paper, we use imbalanced sex ratios across Chinese provinces as a source of identification strategy to test how female labor scarcity affects corporate innovation based on the matched dataset of annual surveys of industrial firms in China and the national patent database. In regions with a large male population, female-intensive industries face more serious problems finding female workers than their male-intensive counterparts. We find that such female shortages have spurred firms in female-intensive industries to innovate more. The pattern is much more evident in industries with low substitution between female and male workers than in those with high substitution, consistent with the predictions of directed technical change theory.

Linking smallholder farmers to commercial markets

Ebata, Ayako,Hernandez, Manuel A.
Linking smallholder farmers to commercial markets Book PDF

Author : Ebata, Ayako,Hernandez, Manuel A.
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 53,8 Mb
Release : 2016-07-01
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Linking smallholder farmers to commercial markets by Ebata, Ayako,Hernandez, Manuel A. Pdf

Access to modern commercialization channels is key for smallholder farmers to be able to move away from subsistence farming and overcome poverty. However, achieving that goal is challenging for smallholders given their lack of appropriate managerial practices, production technology and infrastructure. This paper examines the effect of receiving training in two different entrepreneurial practices designed to link farmers to commercial markets: one direct aimed at the individual and farmer-association level and another indirect focused at the community level. We exploit an extensive panel dataset of staple bean farmers in Nicaragua who participated in a program run by a nongovernmental organization between 2007–2012. We find that the two market-linkage training activities had opposite effects on the commercialization of beans, especially on the intensive margin or volume of sales. While receiving direct training on entrepreneurial practices is positively associated with sales in commercial markets, training on municipality engagement (ME) activities is negatively associated. The market-linkage activities mainly affected entrant farmers as opposed to those already participating in commercial markets. We further find varying effects of the ME activities by plot size and leadership position. Additional results show that training activities that appear to work for bean producers do not necessarily work for other crop producers, and vice versa.

A systematic review of cross-country data initiatives on agricultural public expenditures in developing countries

Anson, Richard,Mogues, Tewodaj
A systematic review of cross country data initiatives on agricultural public expenditures in developing countries Book PDF

Author : Anson, Richard,Mogues, Tewodaj
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 76 pages
File Size : 50,8 Mb
Release : 2016-07-08
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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A systematic review of cross-country data initiatives on agricultural public expenditures in developing countries by Anson, Richard,Mogues, Tewodaj Pdf

This study reviews all of the relevant data and analytical initiatives or activities that focus on or include agricultural public expenditure (AgPE) in developing and transitioning countries. In addition to taking stock of such initiatives, we carry out a comparison of relevant features, describe differences and similarities, and identify possible avenues for greater collaboration and complementarity, including the use of selected empirical examples arising from the comparative review.

Roads to innovation

Wang, Xu,Zhang, Xiaobo,Xie, Zhuan,Huang, Yiping
Roads to innovation Book PDF

Author : Wang, Xu,Zhang, Xiaobo,Xie, Zhuan,Huang, Yiping
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 52,8 Mb
Release : 2016-07-08
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Roads to innovation by Wang, Xu,Zhang, Xiaobo,Xie, Zhuan,Huang, Yiping Pdf

Although both infrastructure and innovation play an important role in fostering a country’s economic growth, discussion in the literature about how the two are connected is limited. This paper examines the impact of road density on firm innovation in China using a matched patent database at the firm level and road information at the city level. Regional variation in the difficulty of constructing roads is used as an instrumental variable to address the potential endogeneity problem of the road variable. The empirical results show that a 10 percent improvement in road density increases the average number of approved patents per firm by 0.71 percent. Road development spurs innovation by enlarging market size and facilitating knowledge spillover.

Agricultural mechanization and agricultural transformation

Diao, Xinshen,Silver, Jed,Takeshima, Hiroyuki
Agricultural mechanization and agricultural transformation Book PDF

Author : Diao, Xinshen,Silver, Jed,Takeshima, Hiroyuki
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 56 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2016-04-29
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Agricultural mechanization and agricultural transformation by Diao, Xinshen,Silver, Jed,Takeshima, Hiroyuki Pdf

A renewed focus on agriculture’s potential contribution to economic transformation in Africa has resulted in increased attention paid to agricultural mechanization. African agriculture still relies predominantly on human muscle power despite anecdotal evidence on urbanization and rising rural wages, in contrast to other developing regions that have experienced rapid increases in agricultural mechanization during the past few decades. Past state-led mechanization pushes in Africa often failed due to insufficient understanding of the nature of demand for mechanization technologies among farmers and insufficient knowledge of private-sector functions. This background paper reviews the factors likely to influence farmer demand for mechanization in Africa and details different existing and potential mechanization supply models. Although an empirical analysis of mechanization demand and the effectiveness of supply chains is beyond the scope of this paper, in part due to data limitations, this paper suggests that demand for mechanization may be emerging in some parts of Africa. It also suggests that private-sector-driven supply models are better positioned to meet this demand than direct government involvement and certain types of subsidized programs. The paper then identifies possible areas for government support to complement private-sector leadership in developing mechanization supply chains. Nevertheless, significant further research is required to better understand the changing nature of mechanization demand in Africa and the extent and effectiveness of different supply models in meeting it.

Boserupian pressure and agricultural mechanization in modern Ghana

Cossar, Frances
Boserupian pressure and agricultural mechanization in modern Ghana Book PDF

Author : Cossar, Frances
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 49,9 Mb
Release : 2016-04-29
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Boserupian pressure and agricultural mechanization in modern Ghana by Cossar, Frances Pdf

The adoption of machinery in agricultural production in Africa south of the Sahara has been far behind the level of mechanization found in Asia and Latin America. However, recent survey data have revealed high levels of machinery use in localized areas of cereal production in northern Ghana. A survey conducted by the International Food Policy Research Institute, in partnership with the Savannah Agriculture Research Institute, found that in some areas more than 80 percent of farmers were using machinery for at least one operation. This paper considers the theoretical drivers of agricultural intensification, as outlined by Boserup, Pingali, and Binswanger, and the extent to which they are able to explain the spatial variation in machinery use found in northern Ghana. Population pressure, market access, and agroecological conditions are considered key drivers that cause farmers to find ways to increase productivity and adopt new technologies. Combining survey data with geospatial datasets, the empirical analysis finds that population growth and travel time to the local urban center explain a significant and large proportion of the variation in machinery use by farmers.

A model of reporting and controlling outbreaks by public health agencies

Saak, Alexander E.,Hennessy, David A.
A model of reporting and controlling outbreaks by public health agencies Book PDF

Author : Saak, Alexander E.,Hennessy, David A.
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 48 pages
File Size : 48,8 Mb
Release : 2016-05-03
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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A model of reporting and controlling outbreaks by public health agencies by Saak, Alexander E.,Hennessy, David A. Pdf

When an outbreak of an infectious disease is suspected, a local health agency may notify a state or federal agency and request additional resources to investigate and, if necessary, contain it. However, due to capacity constraints, state and federal health agencies may not be able to grant all such requests, which may give an incentive to local agencies to request help strategically. We study a model of detection and control of an infectious disease by local health agencies in the presence of imperfect information about the likelihood of an outbreak and limited diagnostic capacity. When diagnostic capacity is rationed based on reports of symptoms, the decision to report symptoms or not creates a trade-off. On the one hand, rigorous testing allows one to make an informed disease control decision. On the other hand, it also increases the probability that the disease will spread from an untested area where fewer precautionary measures are taken. Symptoms are overreported (respectively, reported truthfully, or underreported) when the cost of disease control is sufficiently small (respectively, in some intermediate range, or sufficiently large). If the disease incidence decreases or infectiousness increases, symptoms are reported less frequently. If the precision of private signals increases, the extent of overreporting of symptoms may increase. For different values of the parameters it can be socially optimal to subsidize or tax requests for additional investigations and confirmatory testing.

Long-term drivers of food and nutrition security

Laborde Debucquet, David,Majeed, Fahd,Tokgoz, Simla,Torero, Máximo
Long term drivers of food and nutrition security Book PDF

Author : Laborde Debucquet, David,Majeed, Fahd,Tokgoz, Simla,Torero, Máximo
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 44 pages
File Size : 49,8 Mb
Release : 2016-05-18
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Long-term drivers of food and nutrition security by Laborde Debucquet, David,Majeed, Fahd,Tokgoz, Simla,Torero, Máximo Pdf

The 2015 Global Hunger Index suggests that despite progress in reducing hunger worldwide, hunger levels in 52 of 117 countries in the 2015 Global Hunger Index remain “serious” or “alarming.” Since achieving and maintaining food and nutrition security (FNS) remains a goal for all countries, it is important to understand the individual, national, and global factors that affect FNS. This paper proposes an analytical framework to identify and analyze the respective roles of key long-term drivers of FNS. We start by identifying what the key variables affecting FNS are at the household and country level, and then we continue by defining what the main exogenous or endogenous drivers affecting these variables are. We discuss the key drivers of both aggregated food supply and demand and therefore their impact on prices. Specifically, for aggregated food demand, we discuss demographic factors, income growth, changes in dietary preferences, aggregated domestic distortions, and overall quality of the food system. With respect to the drivers of aggregated food supply, we discuss land available for food products and the drivers behind land availability, the share of waste/losses generated by the food system, and the normalized average yield. We define yield as the amount of nutrients produced by unit of land. It depends both on the physical yield of the crop or the livestock and on the quality of the food produced. It also can be affected by the changes in production patterns linked to the different dietary patterns of the consumers and by climate change. We emphasize the fact that in many cases, key drivers may have ambiguous effects on the FNS situation of different agents. For instance, more liberal trade policies will affect real income, terms of trade, demand and supply, returns of factors, foreign direct investments, and food prices and thus may lead to the improvement of the global-level FNS, that is, the FNS of the majority of the population. At the same time, more liberal trade policies may bring food insecurity to some households. Therefore, careful quantitative assessment is needed for each policy option. Finally, we propose a typology of variables that will help modelers adapt their models to study the different drivers through both direct and indirect effects.

Contracting by small farmers in commodities with export potential

Kumar, Anjani,Roy, Devesh,Tripathi, Gaurav,Joshi, Pramod Kumar,Adhikari, Rajendra Prasad
Contracting by small farmers in commodities with export potential Book PDF

Author : Kumar, Anjani,Roy, Devesh,Tripathi, Gaurav,Joshi, Pramod Kumar,Adhikari, Rajendra Prasad
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 42,9 Mb
Release : 2016-05-20
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Contracting by small farmers in commodities with export potential by Kumar, Anjani,Roy, Devesh,Tripathi, Gaurav,Joshi, Pramod Kumar,Adhikari, Rajendra Prasad Pdf

This study is undertaken to quantify the benefits of contract farming (CF) on farmers’ income in a case where new market opportunities are emerging for smallholder farmers in Nepal. CF is emerging as an important form of vertical coordination in the agrifood supply chain. The prospect for CF in a country like Nepal with accessibility issues, underdeveloped markets, and a lack of amenities remains ambiguous. Contractors find it difficult to build links in these cases, particularly when final consumers have quality and safety requirements. However, a lack of other market opportunities makes the contracts more sustainable. The latter happens if there are product-specific quality advantages because of agroecology and, more important, lack of side-selling opportunities. Concerns remain about monoposonistic powers of the buyers when small farmers do not have outside options. Results of this study show that CF is significantly more profitable (81 percent greater net income) than independent production, the main pathway being higher yield and price realization. The positive impact of CF on farmers’ profits can help Nepal in harnessing the growing demand for pulses, especially in neighboring international markets, like India.

Understanding compliance in programs promoting conservation agriculture

Ward, Patrick S.,Bell, Andrew R.,Droppelmann, Klaus,Benton, Tim
Understanding compliance in programs promoting conservation agriculture Book PDF

Author : Ward, Patrick S.,Bell, Andrew R.,Droppelmann, Klaus,Benton, Tim
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 28 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2016-05-13
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Understanding compliance in programs promoting conservation agriculture by Ward, Patrick S.,Bell, Andrew R.,Droppelmann, Klaus,Benton, Tim Pdf

Land degradation and soil erosion have emerged as serious challenges to smallholder farmers throughout southern Africa. To combat these challenges, conservation agriculture (CA) is widely promoted as a sustainable package of agricultural practices. Despite the many potential benefits of CA, however, adoption remains low. Yet relatively little is known about the decision-making process in choosing to adopt CA. This article attempts to fill this important knowledge gap by studying CA adoption in southern Malawi. Unlike what is implicitly assumed when these packages of practices are introduced, farmers view adoption as a series of independent decisions rather than a single decision. Yet the adoption decisions are not wholly independent. We find strong evidence of interrelated decisions, particularly among mulching crop residues and practicing zero tillage, suggesting that mulching residues and intercropping or rotating with legumes introduces a multiplier effect on the adoption of zero tillage.

Rent Dispersion in the US Agricultural Insurance Industry

Smith, Vincent H.,Glauber, Joseph,Dismukes, Robert
Rent Dispersion in the US Agricultural Insurance Industry Book PDF

Author : Smith, Vincent H.,Glauber, Joseph,Dismukes, Robert
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 40 pages
File Size : 55,7 Mb
Release : 2016-05-20
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Rent Dispersion in the US Agricultural Insurance Industry by Smith, Vincent H.,Glauber, Joseph,Dismukes, Robert Pdf

A central, but inadequately explored issue with respect to subsidized crop insurance programs concerns the costs of delivering insurance coverage to farmers. This study examines that issue in the context of the heavily subsidized US crop insurance program which has often been put forward as a model for agricultural insurance programs in other countries. US Government programs often rely on private firms to deliver income transfers or services, which then establish their own rent-seeking lobbies, which are shared with input suppliers. This rent dispersion process is examined in the context of the U.S. agricultural insurance industry, which receives as much as one third of the annual subsidies that support the federal crop insurance program. We find that as total payments to insurance companies increased between 2001 and 2009, an increasingly large share of the agricultural insurance industry’s rents accrued to insurance agents, although in markets where insurance companies possessed some oligopsony power, agent payments are smaller. The findings also suggest that the insurance industry (companies and independent agents) would almost surely provide the same service for substantially less than the gross revenues from the subsidies and underwriting gains they received.

Anchoring Bias in Recall Data

Godlonton, Susan,Hernandez, Manuel A.,Murphy, Michael
Anchoring Bias in Recall Data Book PDF

Author : Godlonton, Susan,Hernandez, Manuel A.,Murphy, Michael
Publisher : Intl Food Policy Res Inst
Page : 36 pages
File Size : 43,8 Mb
Release : 2016-05-20
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Anchoring Bias in Recall Data by Godlonton, Susan,Hernandez, Manuel A.,Murphy, Michael Pdf

Understanding the magnitude and source of measurement biases in self-reported data is critical to effective economic policy research. This paper examines the role of anchoring bias in self-reports of objective and subjective outcomes under recall. The research exploits a unique panel survey data set collected over a three-year period from four countries in Central America. It assesses whether respondents use their reported value of specific measures from the most recent survey period as a cognitive heuristic when recalling the value from a previous period, while controlling for the value they reported earlier. We find strong evidence of sizable anchoring bias in self-reported retrospective indicators for both objective measures (household and per capita income, wages, and hours spent on the household’s main activity) and subjective measures (reports of happiness, health, stress, and well-being). In general, we also observe a larger bias in response to negative changes for objective indicators and a larger bias in response to positive changes for subjective indicators.