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Agricultural and applied economists have maintained a public discourse at the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) meetings and subsequently published papers discussing the mission of land‐grant institutions and the role of AAEA members in that mission. With a content analysis of 4001 Invited Papers and Presidential Speeches, we find agricultural and applied economists questioned their profession's purpose and role within the land‐grant system. The reflective questions still apply to land‐grant institutions and the agricultural and applied economics profession. We argue that AAEA members are crucial in addressing the food and agricultural challenges connected to society's deepest needs today and into the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comprehensive understanding of the impact of land fragmentation on collective action is essential for rural governance in developing countries. Prior publications have argued that land fragmentation impedes the sustainable development of agricultural economies and rural societies, while the connection between humans and nature has not been considered comprehensively. Therefore, the conclusion that the impact of land fragmentation on collective action is purely negative may be one-sided. To examine this conclusion, this paper re-evaluates the relationship between land fragmentation and rural collective action from a multidisciplinary perspective. Based on a rural field survey using stratified random sampling, Oprobit regression was employed to conduct an econometric analysis on data from 798 rural households across 14 cities in the border region of Guangxi, China. The following research findings were obtained: (1) When the human–nature connection is considered, the relationship between land fragmentation and collective action follows an inverted U-shaped curve. Specifically, moderate initial increases in land fragmentation can lead to improvements in collective action; however, when the degree of land fragmentation exceeds a certain threshold, further increases in land fragmentation will decrease the collective action capacity. (2) This nonlinear relationship between land fragmentation and collective action may be realized through three pathways: agricultural production, land use patterns, and the ecological environment. Under the context of collective action, this study shows that a moderate level of land fragmentation objectively exists in reality. This insight provides a new impetus for developing countries to shift policy perspectives to increase their land use efficiency. Additionally, this paper integrates relevant findings from both social sciences and natural sciences. Thereby, it not only expands the existing understanding of key factors influencing rural household collective action but also emphasizes the potential for cross-disciplinary integration between social sciences and natural sciences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the market value for the agricultural properties - agricultural lands located within the Casimcea Administrative Territorial Unit (UAT), Tulcea county, Romania. What was analyzed is the fact that a well-executed market analysis can help a lot in the evaluation process. Thus, after choosing the case study, the exact identification of the agricultural land was made. The next stage was the realization of the market analysis. Thus, the current state of agricultural land transactions was analyzed at the European, national and local level. The actual evaluation of the land was done through the market approach and all the adjustments were explained in the content of this paper. The results revealed the fact that the final market value falls within the range found following the market analysis. The analysis is carried out also at the processing level, the results indicating also a quite high coefficient of variation. This paper has achieved its goal, that is to see the impact that the market analysis has in determining the market value of an agricultural land. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to draw a research agenda for unveiling the underlying bottlenecks and possibilities for improving the agricultural total factor productivity in the European Union (EU). To this aim, the paper first surveys the key challenges for the modern agricultural economy. Then, the case of the EU is discussed by looking at the convergence in the partial productivity indicators (including the GHG emission) and growth efficiency that relate to the gap in the total factor productivity growth. The results suggest that the EU member states exhibited growth inefficiency (i.e., a gap in the total factor productivity growth) of 5–9% on average during 2004–2021. The paper also discusses the possibilities to utilize the production theory for assessing the pathways towards improvements in the productivity and sustainability of the EU agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the interrelationships between international commodity markets and food security in Brazil. Through bibliographical research, document analysis, and data visualization, this paper illustrates the key connections between the dynamics of agricultural commodity markets, the growth of commodity production in Brazil, and the behavior of food prices in Brazil. Greater integration of the Brazilian food market with the global food market not only raises land use and environmental concerns, but also requires a discussion of development strategies that can ensure national food. The paper's conclusion emphasizes the need for greater understanding of the ongoing dynamics and their local effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review examines the essential components of a circular economy (CE) in relation to the agricultural sector. The bioeconomy and circular economy are crucial for sustainable global industrial growth, focusing on closed-loop systems. The sustainability debate centers on intergenerational equity and natural capital. The CE requires new environmental technologies and global coordination in order to combat climate change and biodiversity loss. In addition, efficient food production and waste reduction are essential due to population growth. However, biomass is vital for a bio-based economy, impacting food waste and climate change. Grasslands support sustainable dairy production and carbon sequestration. Thus, effective waste and wastewater management are critical, with biomass energy providing renewable alternatives. Nonetheless, biofuels remain key for sustainability, focusing on pollution control and Green Chemistry. It is well known that sustainable transportation relies on bioenergy, with ongoing research improving processes and discovering new fuels. One notable challenge is managing heavy metals in biofuel production, and this underscores the need for eco-friendly energy solutions. The main purpose for this review paper is to create a connection between circular economy aspects and the agricultural system, with focus on the following: bioeconomy research, biomass utilities, and biofuel production. Extensive research was performed on the specialized literature by putting in common the main problems. Key subjects in this paper include the use of biomass in agriculture, the problems of plastic recycling, and the function of the CE in mitigating climate change and biodiversity loss. Efficient food production and waste minimization are highlighted due to their relevance in a growing population. The study's detailed research and discussion aim to give important insights into how these practices might promote economic development and sustainability. Furthermore, the study covers important waste management issues such as food waste, plant composting, and chemical waste neutralization. These topics are critical to understanding the circular economy's broader implications for minimizing environmental damage and implementing sustainable waste management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The construction of digital villages is widely acknowledged as a way to achieve the "dual goals" of high quality of the agricultural and rural economy and common prosperity under the digital China strategy. Studies have explored the socio-economic benefits of different aspects of rural digitization, but few have focused on the productivity role of rural broadband development in the context of the urban-rural broadband divide. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between rural broadband development and agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) and the intrinsic mechanism of action, and to provide empirical evidence on the productivity effect of promoting digital transformation in rural agriculture. Methods: Using panel data from 31 provinces in China from 2011 to 2020, this paper investigates the impact and mechanism of rural broadband development on agricultural TFP from the perspective of agriculture-related loans by setting up a two-way fixed effects model, a mechanism effects model and a threshold effects model. Results: The results find that rural broadband development has a significant role in enhancing agricultural TFP. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that the productivity-enhancing effect of rural broadband development is remarkable only in the central region and the region with higher rural disposable income. Mechanism analysis points out that rural broadband development can increase agricultural TFP by influencing the share of farm-related loans. Threshold analysis further reveals that the role of increasing the share of farm-related loans on agricultural TFP is marked only after rural broadband development reaches a certain level. Discussion: These findings can provide practical guidance for other developing countries in accelerating the digital transformation of villages and optimizing factor allocation to achieve high-quality agricultural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's agricultural economy has been hindered by insufficient accumulation of agricultural capital and credit constraints. It is worth investigating whether China's county financial marketization reform policy can alleviate these constraints and promote high-quality development of the agricultural economy (HQDAE). This paper presents an empirical analysis of the impact of county financial marketization reform on the HQDAE, based on county panel data. The focus is on the mechanism of county urbanization in the above relationship. The results show that county financial marketization has a significant non-linear impact on the HQDAE. Specifically, it has a 'U-shaped' impact on the overall growth of the agricultural economy and an inverted 'N-shaped' impact on the quality improvement of the agricultural economy. Secondly, the relationship between county financial marketization and the HQDAE is influenced by a threshold effect based on the level of county urbanization. As the level of county urbanization increases, the promoting effect of county financial marketization on HQDAE also increases significantly. Additionally, county financial marketization helps to promote county urbanization and accelerate urban-rural integration, which in turn leads to HQDAE. The research in this paper suggests that county-level local governments should promote a differentiated county financial system. In the early stages of financial market-oriented reform, the government should enhance the capacity of financial services in rural areas through tax breaks, policy incentives, and other measures to prevent financial leakage from agriculture. In the later stages of financial marketization reform, the government should strengthen financial supervision to prevent financial resources from being diverted from industry to capital. Moreover, to achieve the HQDAE, it is necessary to promote county financial market-oriented reform and accelerate the construction of county urbanization. This will help break the dual economic structure of urban and rural areas and promote the flow of financial capital, technology, and human capital from county cities to rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stability of agricultural futures market is of great significance to social economy and agri-cultural development. In view of the complexity of the fluctuation of agricultural futures prices, it is challenging to make up for the shortcomings of the existing data preprocessing technology so as to improve the prediction accuracy of the model. This paper puts forward a new VMDSGMD-LSTM model based on improved quadratic decomposition technology and artificial intelligence model. First of all, in the data preprocessing part, VMD is used to decompose the original futures price data, and SGMD is used to further process the remaining components. Secondly, the LSTM model is used to predict a series of modal components, and the final result is obtained by synthesizing the predicted values of different components. Furthermore, based on the futures trading data of wheat, corn and sugar in China agricultural futures market, this paper makes an empirical study in the 1-step, 2-step and 4-step ahead forecasting scenarios, respectively. The results show that compared with other benchmark models, the VMD-SGMD-LSTM hybrid model proposed in this paper has better forecasting ability and robustness for different agricultural futures, which effectively makes up for the shortcomings of existing research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The recognition that one publication receives from another is a citation. The nature of these references (citations), their variability and the drivers of the citations concerning the subject of foreign investment in agribusiness are unknown. Consequently, we investigated the nature, variability, and drivers of the citations in the writings on foreign investment in agribusiness. We used 406 studies extracted from Google Scholar through Publish or Perish Software and modeled with a twopart regression analysis. The results show that peer-reviewed publications, age of publication, full text in Google scholar, collaborative publications and self-citation enhance citations. Review articles and publishing in journals with impact factors do not promote citations. To make an impact through citations, authors and funders must focus on peer review, full text, and collaborative publications and engage in self-citation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the author reviews the literature on institutions and their relations with agricultural economics. The aims of the article are to clarify the definition of an institution, indicate its relevance from the perspective of agricultural economics and propose a method of institution classification. Using the PRISMA method, 35 articles were selected out of 238 articles from the Web of Science database that met the established requirements (i.e. they were simultaneously related to institutions, economic performance and the agricultural sector). Based on the identified articles as well as the preliminary literature review it can be concluded that there is a lack of research that precisely defines institutions and examines the historical context at the same time. There are not many papers in which authors assess relations between institutions. Furthermore, authors rarely associate directly with any theory, especially with institutionalism or new institutional economics. That may be a pragmatic approach, but at the same time results are less comparable with other papers written in the same manner. The contribution made by this article is a synthetic presentation of the issue of institutions in agricultural economics and a classification of institutions, with an indication of which type of institutions will be viable when assessing the relations of institutions with the farming sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the outcome from a case study analysis for a Canadian farm that does site-specific fertilisation (SSF), a precision farming approach which takes into consideration the spatial variability of soils. The economic results for three years of wheat and canola production are compared to a neighbouring farm, which is practicing conventional broadcast application of fertilisers. Since no additional investments in machinery are needed, the annual variable cost is 6 CAD/acre. In the standard case, the average profit is 30 CAD/acre. The rather pronounced difference in the effects from SSF application in wheat vs. canola leads one to question whether this is a crop-related systematic outcome or instead represents something more random. Sensitivity analyses generated two main insights. First, the economics of SSF are sensitive to a modification in commodity prices -- a 50 % cut would reduce the average profit to about 9 CAD/acre. Second, another scenario calculation in which no-till is assumed to generate a 5% increase in yields suggests that the net profit would be just 7 CAD/acre. Given the existence of so many uncertainties, this paper calls for more farm-based economic analysis of SSF, one which should also include a comparison of different service providers for application maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present, agricultural non-point source pollution has become the main source of water pollution, which mainly comes from the excessive use of agricultural chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers. The TRS is another land system reform in China after the household contract responsibility system, which relaxes the management rights of rural land and clarifies the ownership of land. Using this land reform in China as a case study, this paper constructs panel data for 30 provinces in China to explore the impact of land tenure intensification on agricultural non-point source pollution, using the difference-in-difference (DID) model to identify the causal relationship between the two. The results show that the coefficient of the TRS policy variable is −4.056 at the 1% significance level, indicating that this round of land reform has suppressed agricultural non-point source pollution. The provinces that have implemented TRS have seen an average annual reduction of 405,600 tons in Agnps emissions compared to those that have not implemented TRS, and the scale operation of agriculture and the size of the agricultural economy act as two paths. Moreover, heterogeneity analysis shows that the policy effect of the provinces in non-major food-producing areas is smaller than that of the provinces in major food-producing areas, and the path to realization is also different. Therefore, we should continue to encourage large-scale agricultural operations, cultivate new agricultural business entities, and strengthen the inhibitory effect of TRS on agricultural non-point source pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shares new insights on the dynamics of entrepreneurship in the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector, focusing on the case of sub-Saharan Africa. Despite being the region's most important rural nonfarm activity, and generating finance that sustains a sizable portion of its subsistence/smallholder agricultural economy, ASM has barely featured in the business and management literature. It has rather been scholars from other disciplines who have shared opinions on the individuals who pursue work in this sector and why. They are in broad agreement that in sub-Saharan Africa, ASM sites attract, at the one extreme, people who are desperate for income (the "poverty-driven" category) and, at the other extreme, individuals motivated by the possibility of becoming wealthy (the "get-rich-quick" category). These two narratives map, virtually wholesale, on to the necessity-based-opportunity-based typology of entrepreneurship that business and management scholars have interrogated for decades. This paper fuses these narratives with the typology, with the goal of showcasing ASM within an evolving body of literature on entrepreneurship in sub-Saharan Africa. It then draws on a case study of Kéniéba District (Mali), the location of one of the region's more dynamic gold-panning industries, to articulate more clearly the sector's different entrepreneurs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because the complexity of the external environment has put great pressure on the agricultural economy, making it vulnerable, it is necessary to promote a system of resilience in the agricultural economy so that Chinese agriculture can continue to persevere in the face of serious external uncertainties. Therefore, this paper investigates the spatio-temporal pattern and evolution of the distributional dynamics of China's county-level agricultural economic resilience based on 2000–2020 data covering 2,545 counties. The results are as follows: first, from 2000 to 2020, the mean value of China's county-level agricultural economic resilience showed an obvious upward trend, which indicates that China's agricultural economy gradually increased its ability to resist risks and continued to develop in a favourable manner. Specifically, the county-level agricultural economic resilience index of the northeast region grew the most significantly, while the index of county units in the western region was relatively low. Second, the centre of gravity of the spatial distribution of China's agricultural economic resilience gradually migrated to the northwest, showing a dominant direction from northeast to southwest and a tendency to develop from southeast to northwest. Third, the spatial differences in China's agricultural economic resilience generally showed an upward trend, while county-level differences were the main source of the overall differences, followed by inter-provincial differences, inter-municipal differences and inter-regional differences. Additionally, the contribution of county-level differences to the overall differences fluctuated within the range of 54%-58%. Fourth, there is a possibility of localized convergence in China's agricultural economic resilience, which is continuous in spatial effects and has obvious positively correlated spatial effects at different times and in different county spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pricing behavior of agricultural processing firms in input markets has large impacts on farmers' and processors' prosperity as well as the overall market structure. Despite analytical approaches to food processors' pricing in agricultural input markets, the need for models to represent complex market features is urgent. Agent-based models (ABMs) serve as computational laboratories to understand complex markets emerging from autonomously interacting agents. Yet, individual agents within ABMs must be equipped with intelligent learning algorithms. In this paper, we propose supervised and unsupervised learning agents to simulate the pricing behavior of firms in agricultural markets' ABMs. Supervised learning firms are pre-trained to accurately best respond to their competitors and are deemed to result in the market Nash equilibria. Unsupervised learning firms play a course of pricing interaction with their competitors without any pre-knowledge but based on deep reinforcement learning. The simulation results show that unsupervised deep learning firms are capable of approximating the pricing equilibria obtained by the supervised firms in different spatial market settings. Optimal discriminatory and uniform delivery pricing emerges in agricultural input markets with the high and intermediary importance placed on space. Free on board pricing emerges in agricultural input markets with small importance placed on space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dates are the fruits of the date palm belonging to the Arecaceae family; they comprise over 2500 species and 200 genera and constitute an essential part of the daily diet worldwide, with beneficial nutritional, health, and economic values. Several varieties of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) fruit exist globally, especially in hot and humid regions. This review is an overview of date palms as a significant global food resource, including their historical significance, nutritional composition, cultivation practices, economic importance, and health benefits. The historical journey of dates goes back to ancient civilizations where they were revered for their richness in essential nutrients and natural sweetness. Today, dates are a vital crop in arid regions, contributing substantially to the agricultural economy and livelihoods of communities. This paper further explores the cultivation techniques employed to enhance date production. Furthermore, the nutritional composition of dates is analyzed in detail, highlighting their high content of vitamins, minerals, dietary fibers, and antioxidants. These attributes make dates a delicious treat and a valuable nutritional component, offering numerous health benefits. The potential health effects, including improved digestion, enhanced cardiovascular health, and increased energy levels, are discussed. Additionally, this paper delves into the economic significance of the date industry and its global trade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy, and it is essential for the country's food security and rural development. In order to boost agricultural production and productivity, farmers need access to credit. Agricultural credit institutions are financial institutions, that provide loans to farmers for agricultural purposes through various schemes. The Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme is one of the schemes designed to provide farmers with timely and adequate credit support through a simplified and flexible process. An attempt is made in this paper to study and analyze the performance of KCC in India and Karnataka. The study is based on the secondary data collected from various reports, journals, and websites. The study found that the Kisan Credit Cards issued by commercial banks have shown an increasing trend during the study period in India and fluctuation in the growth of operative KCCs and the amount outstanding in Karnataka for the study period. The study concluded that to uplift the well-being of farmers, financial institutions should educate them in utilizing these schemes and implementing KCC properly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the trading and non-trading returns to diagnose the impact of market microstructure changes on market quality. The daily data of ten agricultural commodities traded on the National Commodity and Derivative Exchange (NCDEX) were used for the study. The data has been divided into three categories: year-wise, pre- and post-reform, pre-ban, and post-ban period. The study employs variance ratio analysis, and the results suggest high daytime and opening variances. A first-order autocorrelation detects the return predictability in the data series. A Value at Risk (VaR) and Expected Shortfall (ES) methods were employed to get more detail about the downside risk of the series. It suggested that daytime return has more risk compared to overnight return. Overall, this study suggests that market microstructure effects are visible in the Indian agricultural commodity market and hardly observe any improvement in the market quality. Since we reveal the impact of policy changes on market quality, the results will be useful for policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For millennia, food systems worldwide have employed practices befitting a circular economy: recycling of agricultural and food waste or byproducts, environmentally sustainable production methods, and food preservation to reduce waste. Many modern-day agricultural practices may also contribute to a circular economy through the reuse of waste products and/or reducing agricultural inputs. There are, however, food safety impacts. This paper describes two sustainable agricultural practices that have unintended positive and negative impacts on food safety: alternative rice cultivation practices and no-till agriculture. We highlight how alternative rice cultivation practices have intended benefits of water conservation and economic savings, yet also unintended effects on food safety by reducing foodborne arsenic levels while increasing cadmium levels. No-till agriculture reduces soil erosion and repurposes crop residues, but can lead to increased foodborne mycotoxin levels. Trade-offs, future research, and policy recommendations are discussed as we explore the duality of sustainable agricultural practices and food safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how some small-scale palm oil growers in northeast Colombia have managed to exercise partial autonomy from global markets while still participating in them. By comparing the varied experiences of these farmers, I find that, state-led land access and multiscale organizational support for small-scale farming have enabled these farmers to selectively engage with global markets and carve-out space for autonomous decision-making on their farms. By examining the risks and possibilities associated with farmers' engagement in global value chains, this study illuminates the potential for agricultural transitions and small-scale farming within the context of global agricultural markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vegetable sector is a vital pillar of society and an indispensable part of the national economic structure. As a significant segment of the agricultural market, accurately forecasting vegetable prices holds significant importance. Vegetable market pricing is subject to a myriad of complex influences, resulting in nonlinear patterns that conventional time series methodologies often struggle to decode. In this paper, we exploit the average daily price data of six distinct types of vegetables sourced from seven key wholesale markets in Beijing, spanning from 2009 to 2023. Upon training an LSTM model, we discovered that it exhibited exceptional performance on the test dataset. Demonstrating robust predictive performance across various vegetable categories, the LSTM model shows commendable generalization abilities. Moreover, LSTM model has a higher accuracy compared to several machine learning methods, including CNN-based time series forecasting approaches. With R2 score of 0.958 and MAE of 0.143, our LSTM model registers an enhancement of over 5% in forecast accuracy relative to conventional machine learning counterparts. Therefore, by predicting vegetable prices for the upcoming week, we envision this LSTM model application in real-world settings to aid growers, consumers, and policymakers in facilitating informed decision-making. The insights derived from this forecasting research could augment market transparency and optimize supply chain management. Furthermore, it contributes to the market stability and the balance of supply and demand, offering a valuable reference for the sustainable development of the vegetable industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural e-commerce is rapidly expanding in rural China, profoundly affecting the agricultural and rural development of China. This paper focuses on the impact of farmers' e-commerce adoption on land transfer, aiming to reveal the role of farmers' e-commerce adoption in promoting rural transformation. Based on the 2020 Comprehensive Survey of Rural Revitalization in China conducted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, this study employs the method of least squares and propensity score matching to evaluate the impact of farmers' e-commerce adoption on land-transfer behaviors in China. The results indicate that farmers' e-commerce adoption promotes farmers' participation in land transfer, significantly facilitating farmers' land transfer in and increasing the area of land acquired. Additionally, farmers' e-commerce adoption also promotes the trend of standardization and contractualization in land transfer, significantly increasing the probability of farmers signing formal agreements, clarifying lease terms, and renting land to strangers when acquiring land. This study can provide some theoretical inputs for policies to promote the development of agricultural land markets in developing countries and for policy formulation to promote e-commerce development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The new development pattern has identified two key avenues for the sustained advancement of high-quality agricultural and rural development: digitalisation and low-carbon development. The measurement of the digital economy and the agricultural carbon emission performance, and their spatial and temporal heterogeneity, is a crucial step in promoting the spatial coordination and sustainable development of digitalisation and low-carbon agriculture. This paper employs the entropy value method, SBM model, and coupling coordination degree model to investigate the coupling coordination measurement and spatial-temporal heterogeneity of the performance of the digital economy and agricultural carbon emissions. The data used are provincial panel data from 2013 to 2021. The simulation results demonstrate that, between 2013 and 2021, the digital economy of all provinces exhibited varying degrees of growth, yet the development of the digital economy between provinces exhibited a more pronounced tendency to diverge. Concurrently, the agricultural carbon emission efficiency in China exhibited a fluctuating upward trend. The development of the digital economy and the efficiency of agricultural carbon emission were found to be highly coupled. Their coupling and coordination relationship showed a downward trend followed by an upward trend. In general, it is suggested that we should increase investment in digital economy infrastructure and technology, promote digital agricultural applications, strengthen policy guidance and financial support, establish a coupling coordination mechanism and strengthen farmers' digital literacy and environmental awareness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between farm size expansion and efficiency is a key topic in agricultural economics, especially for achieving sustainable land use and food security. While existing literature focuses on land productivity, technical efficiency, and total factor productivity, the link between farm size and cost efficiency remains less explored. Cost efficiency is a critical indicator of production effectiveness and directly impacts agricultural sustainability and food security. This paper analyzes how farm size expansion affects the cost efficiency of Chinese rapeseed production, with a particular emphasis on sustainable agricultural production and food security. Our findings indicate an average cost efficiency of 0.740 for rapeseed in China, suggesting potential for improvement. We observe an inverted U-shaped relationship between farm size and rapeseed cost efficiency, with variations based on regional and topographic conditions. Optimal rapeseed farm size is between 10 and 30 mu in eastern and central China, and smaller than 10 mu in western China. Interestingly, in central China and plains regions, larger farm sizes have a less negative impact on cost efficiency. Finally, increasing plot size positively moderates the relationship between farm size and rapeseed cost efficiency, suggesting benefits from expanding both plot and farm sizes simultaneously. These findings provide empirical evidence to inform policy decisions related to sustainable land use, cost-efficient agriculture, and food security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Submissions fell back slightly in 2023 to 474 manuscripts but remain above pre‐Covid levels. Despite the high number of submissions, there has been little change in the number of papers accepted for publication, with the acceptance rate in 2023 standing at 8%. The acceptance rate is considerably higher for papers originating from Europe and North America. Accepted papers are now routinely made available online as 'Early View'. The Journal's Impact Factor fell back slightly for 2022, but still compares favourably with other journals in the field of agricultural economics. Operational changes include revisions to the journal's webpage and authors' guidelines and a newly configured editorial team. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural ecological efficiency is an important tool with which to measure the coordination of the sustainable development of agricultural economies and ecological environments. In this paper, a super-efficiency slacks-based measures model was used to measure the agricultural ecological efficiency in Hebei Province. The characteristics of spatial and temporal evolution patterns were explored using a spatial Markov transfer matrix. The results showed that (i) based on measurements, the agricultural ecological efficiency in Hebei Province showed regional differences in four regions (eastern, northern, central and southern Hebei) and 141 counties; (ii) from the perspective of evolutionary characteristics of agricultural ecological efficiency, the overall development of in Hebei Province was good, with more concentrated spatial distribution and more obvious direction, while the type of transfer of agricultural ecological efficiency in Hebei Province showed strong stability that was significantly affected by geographical neighborhood conditions and the club convergence phenomenon; (iii) from the perspective of the long-term evolutionary trend of agricultural ecological efficiency, the areas adjacent to counties with low efficiency had limited potential for improvement, and the areas adjacent to counties with high grade had great potential. However, it was difficult to achieve large-scale improvement in agricultural ecological efficiency in Hebei Province, whether the impact of geospatial backgrounds was considered or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural markets remain major issue downgrading root and tuber crop farmers who form the mainstream of the agricultural producers in Malawi. Recent evidence however reveals that orange‐fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) (Ipomea batatas) is currently being sold in produce markets along with the non‐orange varieties, sometimes in differentiated form in Malawi. The main objective of this study was to examine factors affecting market participation of sweet potato farmers in southern region of Malawi. Using a double‐hurdle model, this paper analyzed both the factors affecting farmer decision to participate and the extent/intensity of participation in market. The first tier of the double hurdle focused on decision to participate in the market using probit model and the second tier addressed factors affecting intensity of participation using truncated normal regression model. The paper used data collected from 360 farmers in southern districts of Malawi. Out of 360, 146 farmers had grown OFSP in the season preceding the survey. Double hurdle results indicate that farm size, output, age of a farmer (household head), and early maturing trait significantly determined decision to participate in the market. Further, results on intensity of participation indicate that access to market training, farm size, asset value, and output positively determined the intensity and negatively determined by distance to main market and gender of a farmer (household head). Based on the research findings, higher output levels and early maturing trait were found to increase smallholder farmer market participation. It is therefore recommended that strategies aimed at increasing household capacity to produce surplus produce through market tailored extension messages and productivity enhancement technologies could be highly effective in fostering smallholders' participation in commercial markets. Again, enhanced capacity building of research institutions to breed sweet potato varieties based on market demand is pivotal for increased market participation. Furthermore, research suggests that improving smallholder farmers' access to market price information, asset value, and farm size can help increase their intensity in the market. Therefore, it is critical for policymakers to holistically comprehend these socioeconomic factors in order to address the issue of smallholder farm households' decisions about market participation and the degree to which they participate. Core Ideas: Orange fleshed sweet potato is currently being sold along with non‐orange varieties, sometimes in differentiated.Decision to participate in market is significantly influenced by output, farm size, age early maturing attribute.Market intensity is determined by access to training, distance to market, farm size, gender, asset value and output.Breeding programs should integrate both sensory and agronomic traits such as early maturity and good taste. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientifically characterizing the intrinsic mechanism of the biased reduction targets affecting agricultural green innovation is of great practical significance for the systematic promotion of the greening transformation of China's agricultural development mode. This paper first constructed a two-sector endogenous economic growth model, theoretically deducing the intrinsic mechanism by which the bias reduction targets were adjusted through the green transformation of agricultural production input factors, which in turn affected the research and development decision-making of the agricultural innovation sector. To the end, this paper treated the strategy of zero growth in synthetic fertilizer use (ZGS) implemented in 2015 as a policy shock and empirically assessed its green innovation effect using the staggered difference-in-differences model. The results showed that ZGS significantly contributed to the increase of green patents in Chinese agriculture. The above conclusion still held after a series of robustness tests, including using terrain complexity as an instrumental variable, estimating the robust staggered difference-in-differences model, eliminating policy interference, altering the estimated model, and replacing the explanatory variables. However, the obvious regional heterogeneity of this effect was reported: the higher the level of marketization and digitalization, the fuller the release of this innovation effect; and that ZGS was more significant in inducing the green innovation activities of enterprises and individuals than of innovation bodies such as universities and research institutions. Finally, this paper also empirically tested the two paths of the theoretical model about the green innovation effect triggered by the biased reduction targets. The study confirmed that the green innovation effect of ZGS mainly resulted from two channels: the expansion of the market scale for agricultural green technologies and the green-oriented allocation of innovation resources. The above conclusions imply that it is necessary to create a sound innovation ecology by strengthening the innovation of green science and technology institutions and combining active government with an effective market. Particularly, a portfolio of policy instruments, including the fiscal, taxation, financial, investment, price policy, and standard system concerning green technology development, should be created to guarantee green technology development. In addition, ZGS can set up differentiated reduction targets considering regional endowment conditions to ensure its smooth progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large-scale management is the key to realizing long-term agricultural growth in smallholder countries. Land-scale management and service-scale management are two forms of agricultural large-scale management. The former is committed to changing the small-scale management pattern, but the latter tends to maintain it. There has been a lack of discussion and controversy about the relationship between the two. From the perspective of market maturity, this paper explores whether the two are complementary or mutually exclusive and how their complementary or mutually exclusive relationship affects agricultural green productivity. The results show the following: Land-scale management and service-scale management are complementary, not superficially contradictory. The benign interaction between the two has a consistent improvement effect on green productivity in both the short and long term, which has spatial spillovers appearing in the long term. The reasons are as follows: The farmland rental market can reverse the inhibitory effect of the current low-maturity outsourcing services market on green productivity. The outsourcing services market can delay the arrival of the inflection point beyond which expansion of farmland rental transactions reduces green productivity, and amplify the positive effect of farmland rental on it. Although the degree of benign interaction between the two forms of large-scale management has gradually increased in recent years, it is still low overall. Agricultural large-scale management in China is still in the stage driven by land-scale management. Smallholder countries such as China need not worry prematurely about which large-scale management path to take, and they should treat both forms of large-scale management with an equal perspective to accelerate the high-level interaction between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The majority of studies of agricultural productivity support the view that there is a relationship between productivity and farm size. How the size of a farm is related to its efficiency is a constant problem in agricultural economics research. It also has important implications for agricultural development policy. For developed countries, including the countries of the European Union, numerous studies show that, with the increase in the size of farms, their efficiency usually increases. Moreover, there is a constant decrease in the number of farms and the concentration of land and labor. For this reason, the problem of the influence of the economic size of a farm is included in the scope of the research related to the analysis of the relationship between the farm size and its efficiency. The purpose of the paper was to investigate the relative technical efficiency of the agricultural sector in the European Union (EU-27) using the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). It was found that with the increase in economic size, the technical efficiency of the researched farms improved. Attention was paid to the possibility of reducing labor inputs, mainly in farms of economic size classes ES1-ES4. No need to reduce the level of capital expenditure has been demonstrated. This emphasizes the growing importance of the substitution of labor with capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The linkages between the US and China, the world's two major agricultural powers, have brought great uncertainty to the global food markets. Inspired by these, this paper examines the extreme risk spillovers between US and Chinese agricultural futures markets during significant crises. We use a copula-conditional value at risk (CoVaR) model with Markov-switching regimes to capture the tail dependence in their pair markets. The study covers the period from January 2006 to December 2022 and identifies two distinct dependence regimes (stable and crisis periods). Moreover, we find significant and asymmetric upside/downside extreme risk spillovers between the US and Chinese markets, which are highly volatile in crises. Additionally, the impact of international capital flows (the financial channel) on risk spillovers is particularly pronounced during the global financial crisis. During the period of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine 2022 war, the impact of supply chain disruptions (the non-financial channel) is highlighted. Our findings provide a theoretical reference for monitoring the co-movements in agricultural futures markets and practical insights for managing investment portfolios and enhancing food market stability during crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the issue of modelling the volatility of futures prices in agricultural markets. We develop a multi-factor model in which the stochastic volatility dynamics incorporate a seasonal component. In addition, we employ a maturity-dependent damping term to account for the Samuelson effect. We give the conditions under which the volatility dynamics are well defined and obtain the joint characteristic function of a pair of futures prices. We then derive the state-space representation of our model in order to use the Kalman filter algorithm for estimation and prediction. The empirical analysis is carried out using daily futures data from 2007 to 2019 for corn, cotton, soybeans, sugar and wheat. In-sample, the seasonal models clearly outperform the nested non-seasonal models in all five markets. Out-of-sample, we predict volatility peaks with high accuracy for four of these five commodities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sugarcane is an annual or perennial persistent rooted tropical and subtropical herb that grows in tropical and subtropical regions. As China's production ranks among the world's leading, sugarcane industry is an important part of agricultural economy in China. As the largest sugarcane production center in China, Guangxi is one of the most suitable areas for sugarcane cultivation in China and even in the world. Sugarcane industry, as an agricultural advantageous industry in Guangxi, not only has a significant image to the national economy of the region, but also is closely related to the issue of security of national sugar supply. Continuous cropping of sugarcane is very common in Guangxi, which is very helpful for the concentration selection of sugarcane samples. The wide application of satellite remote sensing monitoring technology has become an indispensable means of natural resources monitoring. Using optical satellite remote sensing image to identify and extract sugarcane planting areas is of great significance to quickly and conveniently grasp the information of sugarcane distribution and yield. In this paper, the precision of sugarcane extraction from GF1 and GF2 satellite images is analyzed by using deeplab V3 + model, the effect of optical remote sensing images with different resolution on sugarcane extraction accuracy was studied to provide better data support for dynamic monitoring of sugarcane planting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bundelkhand region of India is primarily agrarian, vulnerable to natural calamities with low levels of industrialization and urbanization. Poor crop productivity, declining and irregular rainfall pattern and poor income levels make livelihood uncertain in the region. Pulse crops assume a special significance to the farm economy in Bundelkhand region as well as daily diets of local habitants. Chickpea, lentil, field pea, urdbean, mungbean and pigeon pea are the major pulse crops cultivated in the region. Data from Department of economics and statistics, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, New Delhi and the studies on pulses development of Bundelkhand region of India were analyzed. Pulses account for 32% of total agriculture produce and occupy about 33.6% of gross cropped area in the region. However, decline in area coverage of pulses has been observed in the region, in contrast to overall increase in gross cropped area in the region. The paper discusses about the various challenges confronting pulses cultivation in the region along with the possible intervention points for bringing out an enhanced pulse production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As applied and agricultural economists, Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) members work to provide high quality research and data to inform policy decisions. How do we ensure that decision makers see, and use, our research findings or data in the policy formulation process that includes many actors? The paper provides a framework for how information flows during the policy process and a strategy for effective research and data built around five equally important attributes: relevance; quality; trust; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and communication. Examples illustrate how the attributes lead to high impact information and focus on two federal research and statistics agencies, the Economic Research Service and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The paper concludes with strategies and examples of metrics to measure the impact of research and statistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On retirement from the post of Editor in Chief of the JAE, it is appropriate that I offer some reflections on my editorship. First, I review the general performance of the journal over the period 2005‐2023, and conclude that the JAE has held its own amongst our peers though this is is largely due to our authors and reviewers, rather than the Editor. Second, I consider the subject matter and citation scores of our published papers over this period, as a reflection of the evolution of the state of the art of the Agricultural Economics profession. Here, I illustrate the increasing number and subject/method range of published papers, but raise some questions about what, exactly, citations really indicate. I conclude with some reflections on the challenges and opportunities for the profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automation and robotics are the key players in modern agriculture. They offer potential solutions for challenges related to the growing global population, demographic shifts, and economic status. This review paper evaluates the challenges and opportunities of using new technologies and the often-missed link between automation technology and agricultural economics. Through a systematic analysis of the literature, this study explores the potential of automation and robotics in farming practices, as well as their socio-economic effects, and provides strategic recommendations for those involved. For this purpose, various types of robots in different fields of agriculture and the technical feasibility and challenges of using automation have been discussed. Other important factors, including demographic shifts, labor market effects, and economic considerations, have been analyzed. Furthermore, this study investigates the social effects of automation, particularly in terms of employment and workforce adaptation. It finds that, while automation boosts productivity and sustainability, it also causes labor displacement and demands considerable technological investment. This thorough investigation fills a crucial gap by assessing economic sustainability, labor market evolution, and the future of precision agriculture. It also charts a course for further research and policy-making at the intersection of agricultural technology and socio-economic fields and outlines a future roadmap for further research and policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the factors of neo-industrialization and their impact on the functioning of Russian agriculture. The purpose of the work is to identify the key factors of neo-industrialization and assess their impact on the sustainable development of agriculture. The scale of technological changes has been studied, and a comparative analysis of neo-industrial trends in various sectors of the agro-industrial complex has been carried out. The specifics of neo-industrial processes in livestock farming are characterized in detail. A mathematical model of threefactor linear regression has been developed, characterizing the influence of parameters of technological development of Russian agriculture on changes in gross value added. The results of the empirical analysis allow us to conclude that there is a direct relationship between capital-labor ratio and gross value added, as well as between the number of highly productive workers and gross value added. It has been calculated that the investment component has the greatest influence. Thus, the increase in the share of investments in reconstruction and modernization in fixed capital affects the increase in gross value added by 223.7 billion rubles. The practical value of the results lies in the development of mechanisms to stimulate and support the introduction of innovations in agricultural production in order to accelerate neo-industrialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of the scientific and intellectual potential of the agricultural sector of the economy is undoubtedly a vector of sustainable development. The purpose of the article is to study the theory and methodology of factor analysis of the development of scientific and intellectual potential at the macro, meso and micro levels. A study of human resources in the agricultural sector was conducted from the perspective of improving human resources and research forces of society. Cross-country comparisons have been made of the area of agricultural land and the value of gross added value of agriculture in different countries, which may indicate an appropriate level of scientific and technological development of the agricultural sector of the economy. The article classifies positive and negative socio-economic, technological, demographic and organizational factors. Measures are proposed for the use of scientific and intellectual potential in agricultural production as a driver of scientific and technological development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In ensuring the country's food security, the dominant role belongs to scientific activity and the development of advanced production technologies. Moreover, the process of implementation of innovations and further stimulation of demand for the results obtained are of greatest relevance. The purpose of the study is to develop theoretical and methodological approaches to assessing the implementation of scientific developments and new technical solutions in agriculture in the context of innovative transformation of the economy. The article reveals significant interregional and intercountry differentiation of patent activity, and notes the gap between the total number of patents and the inventions being introduced into Russian agriclture. Based on a scientometric analysis of patents with text mining, trends and patterns in the formation of promising patent developments in agriculture have been identified and a bibliometric map has been generated in the direction of the relationship between areas of patent activity in Russian agriculture. The predominant clusters have been identified - agricultural engineering; soil treatment, harvest, pest control, production of herbicides and their components. The results obtained determine the need to develop effective mechanisms for supporting patent activity in agriculture and stimulating the introduction of scientific developments and new technical solutions into the production process in order to determine the most promising areas of research in agricultural science. The practical implementation of the research results is associated with the justification of the necessary incentive measures and government support for scientific developments in the context of fundamental technological changes and innovative structural shifts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analysis of the efficiency of greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture is an important part of agricultural and environmental economics research. The theme is extremely important due to the deepening problem of climate change and the simultaneous need to ensure food security. However, counteracting climate change cannot be achieved at the expense of reducing agricultural productivity. Due to the need to study the economic-environmental relationship in agriculture, the main purpose of this study was to assess the changes in the level and structure of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and to examine the changes in efficiency of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. The authors also estimated the relative efficiency of emissions, which allowed for comparing the efficiency of emissions between agriculture and other sectors of the national economy. Analyzing the changes in agricultural emissions efficiency, as well as changes in relative efficiency of emissions, is an indirect way of assessing whether the ongoing trends are consistent with the sustainable development concept and if the country is effective enough in mitigating climate change in relation to its economic performance. The research conducted showed that agriculture has a significant share of greenhouse gas emissions among all sectors of the Polish economy. However, greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture decreased by a total of 23.5% in the years studied. The most significant changes occurred in the context of greenhouse gas emissions from intestinal fermentation. The research also shows that the efficiency of emissions from agriculture more than doubled in the years examined. However, it decreased compared to other sectors of the economy in the country. This study was based on emissions data retrieved from National Inventory Reports prepared by the National Center for Emissions Management and on the Agricultural Statistical Yearbooks of the Central Statistical Office. This paper also proposes some examples of measures that could be taken to reduce agricultural emissions. Some of them include reducing food losses, sustainable use of fertilizers, increasing energy efficiency, and greater use of renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guangzhou is located in the southern part of China, near the South China Sea, belongs to Guangdong Province. It serves as China's southern gateway to the world and was historically called "The Southern Treasure of the Emperor", playing a crucial role in China's maritime trade history. Throughout Chinese history, Guangzhou underwent several cycles of "closure" and "opening", policies that severely impacted trade. However, foreign merchants never ceased to request permission from the Chinese government to engage in trade. In 1757, Emperor Qianlong decreed Guangzhou as the only one official port for foreign trade. This edict led to the establishment of the one port trading system in Guangzhou, as the Qing government aimed to counter foreign influences and local uprisings while maintaining a self-sufficient small-scale agricultural economy. Western nations and their traders sought opportunities within this system, aspiring to expand trade to other regions of China, even the inland areas. The exclusive status of Guangzhou as China's only one trading port persisted until 1842, following the defeat of the Qing government in the Opium War against Britain, the Nanjing Treaty was signed. This treaty opened Guangzhou, Shanghai, Ningbo, Fuzhou, and Xiamen as trading ports, bringing an end to the one port trading system. The reasons and impacts of the establishment of this system have not been comprehensively analyzed to date. Therefore, this paper based on historical archives, analyzes both the direct and underlying reasons behind Emperor Qianlong's decision and elucidates the system's diverse impacts on various aspects of Qing-era China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the response of agricultural commodity markets to Russia's withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI). Employing daily commodity‐level data and event study methods, we analyse the impact on seven agricultural commodities and four key market metrics, including futures prices, historical and implied volatility, and speculative pressure. Our findings show a statistically insignificant increase of 1.1% in agricultural futures prices within the first seven trading days following the BSGI termination. In the following days, futures prices began to decline, eventually returning to levels below those observed before the withdrawal, a pattern further underscored by our implied volatility analysis. While there is no evidence of heightened speculation, we find some evidence for treatment differences across agricultural commodities. These findings suggest that traders did not believe in the likelihood of a blockade of Black Sea grain shipments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural and applied economists make substantial positive contributions to the domestic economy. Defining a measure of the true total value of their contributions is likely impossible, because so much about their efforts is difficult to comprehensively observe and quantitatively document. In this paper, we adopt a conservative approach to generating an estimate of the contributions ag and applied economists make to U.S. economic output and the associated welfare of society through their teaching, research, and outreach efforts. To conduct the analysis, we implemented a nationwide survey of Agricultural and Applied Economics (AAE) departments and developed a framework to calculate the value of their contributions to national income, or Gross Domestic Product (GDP). We estimate that AAE departments increase overall U.S. GDP by $2.6 billion, annually. Through its efforts to improve the human capital of its graduates, AAE teaching raises the (expected) national income by $2.2–$2.3 billion, while we value direct research and outreach contributions at $207 million and $146 million, respectively. Because we do not observe the opportunity cost of the resources used to generate those contributions, we do not claim to estimate a true net economic impact but rather attempt to quantify the gross economic contributions of the professional services AAE departments currently offer the economy. The values we provide—especially the research and extension estimates which are exceedingly difficult to measure—likely underestimate the true benefits AAE offers to the nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blacks have been systematically under‐represented in the Agricultural Economics profession, representing only 7% of agricultural economists in academia and between 5% and 10% in the private and public sectors, respectively. Although different policies and funding strategies have been implemented to increase the representation of minorities in the profession, these numbers have not shown significant improvements over time. This paper provides an overview of the history, role, and struggles of 1890 Land‐Grant Historically Black Colleges and Universities in general, and in particular, their agricultural economics and business (AEB) Programs. Recommendations and thoughts on how to increase diversity in AEB programs are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we discuss the reasons why agricultural and applied economics and similar departments are often stand‐alone academic units. The factors that affect and shape the relationship of agricultural and applied economics faculty and departments with those from general economics departments are discussed. We present case studies of three universities having different relationships with general economics faculty at their respective universities: a merged unit, an unmerged unit, and a never‐merged unit. We conclude with rationale for the existence and future trajectory of agricultural economics and related academic units at Land Grant Universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to discuss the challenges in attracting and securing adequate budgets for departments of agricultural and applied economics, while recognizing that the institutional and political contexts matter. Agricultural and applied economics departments that operate with an entrepreneurial mindset, that maintain and grow their student numbers, and that have a vibrant demand for their extension and research activities will thrive. The good news is we often have considerable control over the factors that contribute to our longer‐term success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]