Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa
The economic farm-size–efficiency relationship for maize remains unclear. A question that has yet to be answered conclusively is whether farm size affects productivity. The debate on land-appropriation-without-compensation ultimately revolves around the optimal land size and conditions under which f...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2020-04-01
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| Series: | Agriculture |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/10/4/98 |
| _version_ | 1827719510112600064 |
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| author | Ajuruchukwu Obi Balogun Taofeek Ayodeji |
| author_facet | Ajuruchukwu Obi Balogun Taofeek Ayodeji |
| author_sort | Ajuruchukwu Obi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The economic farm-size–efficiency relationship for maize remains unclear. A question that has yet to be answered conclusively is whether farm size affects productivity. The debate on land-appropriation-without-compensation ultimately revolves around the optimal land size and conditions under which farmers can benefit from a more rational utilization of available land. As important as the farm-size–efficiency debate is, it has not received much attention since the launch of the land reform programme. Again, the farm sizes examined in the previous studies reflected large-scale commercial agriculture and were mainly in relation to wheat production rather than the dietary staple of maize. This paper applied parametric efficiency measures under alternative distributional assumptions to data generated from 267 maize-farming households, to understand the economic farm-size–efficiency relationships and their determinants. It emerged that, while farm size is a key determinant of economic efficiency in maize production, its effect on technical efficiency is still contested. Findings suggest that farmer support should be prioritized, and the government’s efforts to make farmers more productive should emphasize gender equity and optimal use of land. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:45:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9b5f715e34634c0ebe67a784e6376413 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0472 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:45:04Z |
| publishDate | 2020-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agriculture |
| spelling | doaj.art-9b5f715e34634c0ebe67a784e63764132023-11-19T20:22:20ZengMDPI AGAgriculture2077-04722020-04-011049810.3390/agriculture10040098Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South AfricaAjuruchukwu Obi0Balogun Taofeek Ayodeji1Department of Agricultural Economic and Extension, University of Fort Hare, Alice, Eastern Cape 5700, South AfricaDepartment of Agricultural Economic and Extension, University of Fort Hare, Alice, Eastern Cape 5700, South AfricaThe economic farm-size–efficiency relationship for maize remains unclear. A question that has yet to be answered conclusively is whether farm size affects productivity. The debate on land-appropriation-without-compensation ultimately revolves around the optimal land size and conditions under which farmers can benefit from a more rational utilization of available land. As important as the farm-size–efficiency debate is, it has not received much attention since the launch of the land reform programme. Again, the farm sizes examined in the previous studies reflected large-scale commercial agriculture and were mainly in relation to wheat production rather than the dietary staple of maize. This paper applied parametric efficiency measures under alternative distributional assumptions to data generated from 267 maize-farming households, to understand the economic farm-size–efficiency relationships and their determinants. It emerged that, while farm size is a key determinant of economic efficiency in maize production, its effect on technical efficiency is still contested. Findings suggest that farmer support should be prioritized, and the government’s efforts to make farmers more productive should emphasize gender equity and optimal use of land.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/10/4/98economic farm sizetrans-log stochastic frontierland reformcost and economic efficiency |
| spellingShingle | Ajuruchukwu Obi Balogun Taofeek Ayodeji Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa Agriculture economic farm size trans-log stochastic frontier land reform cost and economic efficiency |
| title | Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa |
| title_full | Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa |
| title_short | Determinants of Economic Farm-Size–Efficiency Relationship in Smallholder Maize Farms in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa |
| title_sort | determinants of economic farm size efficiency relationship in smallholder maize farms in the eastern cape province of south africa |
| topic | economic farm size trans-log stochastic frontier land reform cost and economic efficiency |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/10/4/98 |
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