An important approach to reducing persistent technical inefficiency is through technical change. This paper considers the case of genetically modified crop production. A stochastic frontier approach is used to examine how a drastic change from non-GM to GM technology effects the position of the...

The Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute of the International Centre of Tropical Agriculture (TSBF-CIAT) introduced dual purpose soybean varieties in south-west Kenya both to improve soil fertility by nitrogen fixation and to provide a source of better food and income. Since the start...

The primary focus of the study is the changes that occurred in the pesticide-use structure of cotton production sector of India, owing to the diffusion of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) technology. Studies from different countries show that transgenic Bt crops can reduce chemical pesticide use with...

A survey carried out among olive tree growers in different districts of southern Spain allows the identification and analysis of factors related with adoption of several technical and institutional innovations. At that respect, a composite numerical index has been performed including all...

The goal of this study is to investigate the price relationship of EU biofuel market with other main markets in both horizontal level and vertical level. We first carry out Granger causality between ethanol price of EU, USA and Brazil. Secondly, we use vecto error cointegration Mechnism (VECM)...

We analyse the impacts of the CAP reforms on the technical efficiency of the crop farms. We use an output distance function and an inefficiency effects model which incorporates the influences of exogenous variables on farm efficiency. We formulate policy variables (e.g. the CAP subsidies) and...

Standard deterministic analysis of agricultural and biofuel policies can yield incomplete or misleading results. Stochastic analysis is especially important when policies have asymmetric effects and when there is intrinsic interest in uncommon events or the distribution of possible outcomes. The...

The challenges posed by food security for populations in sub-Saharan Africa and the fact that extensive production systems are reaching their limits in food-producing agriculture imply accelerating technological innovation toward ecological intensification of agricultural production systems. A...

The new EU Animal Health Strategy suggests a shift in emphasis away from control towards prevention and surveillance activities for the management of threats to animal health. The optimal combination of these actions will differ among diseases and depend on largely unknown and uncertain costs...