Farm Management
Amala Christiana Okoye; Jude Anayochukwu Mbanasor; Benjamin Chukwuemeka Okoye,
Volume 10, Issue 1 , Winter 2020, , Pages 87-100
Abstract
Farmers can only be market oriented if his/her production plan follows market signals and produce commodities that is more marketable. In other to achieve it, this study provided empirical evidence on the gender analyses of market orientation in South-East, Nigeria. A stratified sampling design was used ...
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Farmers can only be market oriented if his/her production plan follows market signals and produce commodities that is more marketable. In other to achieve it, this study provided empirical evidence on the gender analyses of market orientation in South-East, Nigeria. A stratified sampling design was used to select 360 sample respondents in 2017. Market Orientation Index (MOI) and Heckit selectivity model were used to estimate the level of market orientation and determinants of market orientation respectively. The results show a mean market orientation score (0.17 and 0.59) for the male and female sweet potato farmers respectively, indicating low level of market orientation especially for the male farmers. The coefficients for age, educational level, capital, area cultivated with sweet potato, farming experience, marketing experience, native of community, and road conditions were positive and household size negative and significantly related to market orientation for female farmers. Coefficients for age, household size, level of education, transportation cost, native of community, and marketing experience were positive and distance from farm to the market was negative and significantly related with market orientation for the male farmers. The coefficients for gender were negative and significant at 5% and 1% for probability of being market oriented and level of market orientation respectively, indicating that the female farmers were more likely to be market oriented compared to their male counterparts. The study therefore calls for policies on promoting farmers access to land (particularly the female farmers), availability and the use of quality planting seed and establishment of formal sweet potato market.
Environmental policy and management
Seyedeh Marzieh Razeghi; Hossein Shabanali Fami; Rohollah Rezaei
Volume 10, Issue 1 , Winter 2020, , Pages 45-57
Abstract
The main purpose of this survey was to assess biomass production and use as a source of energy by smallholders in Tafresh County located in Markazi Province, Iran. A descriptive survey method was used for data collection. The statistical population consisted of 2,470 smallholders. A sample size of 300 ...
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The main purpose of this survey was to assess biomass production and use as a source of energy by smallholders in Tafresh County located in Markazi Province, Iran. A descriptive survey method was used for data collection. The statistical population consisted of 2,470 smallholders. A sample size of 300 was selected by using the stratified random sampling technique. A questionnaire was used to collect the data. A panel of experts confirmed the validity of the questionnaire. A pilot study was conducted to establish the reliability of the instrument. The Cronbach alpha's coefficient was higher than 0.75 for the main scales of the questionnaire. The results showed that the residues of plants and animals are recognized as a potential source of renewable energy, but there exists no specific policy or technical instruction for their optimal use, particularly in organizations such as Agriculture Jihad. Therefore, many farmers burn a considerable amount of firewood without being aware of its potential use. Findings revealed that “diversification of productive activities” had the greatest influence on the use of biomass energy, and the variables “annual cost of gas at home” and “animal farming experience” were ranked the 2nd and 3rd most important factors influencing the dependent variable, respectively.
Farm Management
Hossein Badih Bbarzin; Mohammad Norozian; Seyed Mahdi Hoseyni; Amir Taghavi
Volume 10, Issue 1 , Winter 2020, , Pages 101-112
Abstract
Subsidy is a tool used by governments as a form of financial aid to support specific economic sectors. Today subsidy is common in several countries such as Iran due to different political and economic reasons. This study has examined the effects of changing agricultural subsidies on, production and exports. ...
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Subsidy is a tool used by governments as a form of financial aid to support specific economic sectors. Today subsidy is common in several countries such as Iran due to different political and economic reasons. This study has examined the effects of changing agricultural subsidies on, production and exports. For this purpose, a computable general equilibrium model (CGE) for the year 2012 was used in social accounting matrix form in 2001 as the statistical basis. For the extraction and transportation of nonlinear programming model "mixed complementary problem" (MCP) was used. Social Accounting Matrix was divided into main sectors: agriculture, oil and gas, textiles, energy, industry and services. Then, the effect of agricultural subsidies and its effect on endogenous variables were investigated. Results showed that reducing agricultural subsidies, decreases the level of agricultural production by 21.3 percent and increases prices which in turn causes deviation of real exchange rate from equilibrium that prevents the exports in this sector. Moreover, by reducing subsidies the unemployment rate increases and welfare decreases.
Farm Management
Maxwell Amedi; Moses Dumayiri; Abdul-Rashid Mohammed
Volume 9, Issue 4 , Autumn 2019, , Pages 391-408
Abstract
The study investigated performance of loan repayment among rice farmers under the MiDA agricultural credit programme in the Hohoe Municipality. Primary data was collected from 120 farmers from four beneficiary towns while secondary data was gathered from literatures and various actors. Multistage random ...
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The study investigated performance of loan repayment among rice farmers under the MiDA agricultural credit programme in the Hohoe Municipality. Primary data was collected from 120 farmers from four beneficiary towns while secondary data was gathered from literatures and various actors. Multistage random sampling technique was used to select the respondents. Obtained data were analyzed using t-test, Tobit regression model.Results from t-test showed statistically significant difference (p < 0.001) between the amount of loan applied for and the amount received by farmers.Out of the ten explanatory variables included in the Tobit regression model, five were significant. Significant factors (p < 0.001) include: sex, household size, group size, value of output and timeliness of loan disbursement.
Farm Management
Azita Sherej Sharifi; Ghasemali Bazaee; Seyed Abbas Heydari
Volume 9, Issue 4 , Autumn 2019, , Pages 331-346
Abstract
One of the major industries to meet the expansion goals in human, social, and economic aspects is herbal medicine. Marketing department, producers, and entrepreneurs play an important role in applying potentials in this industry, but, as herbal medicine scholars argue, herbal medicine market share in ...
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One of the major industries to meet the expansion goals in human, social, and economic aspects is herbal medicine. Marketing department, producers, and entrepreneurs play an important role in applying potentials in this industry, but, as herbal medicine scholars argue, herbal medicine market share in Iran is less than 4 percent. This might be due to neglecting executive targeted marketing. The participants of the study included all people going to pharmacies to purchase herbal medicines. Purposeful and classified sampling methods were used in qualitative and quantitative sections, respectively. As to the qualitative phase, grounded theory method was applied, while k-means approach was used for quantitative data analysis. Qualitative findings resulted in the extraction of eight essential categories. Moreover, the results of K- mean algorithm suggested that the best mode is segmenting this market (i.e., herbal medicine) into four segments. The segments differ from each other in terms of the selected categories. Results contribute to presenting an appropriate strategy for each segment in order to simultaneously create value for both customers and market in particular and create facilities for expansion and growth of herbal medicine industry in general.
Farm Management
Fatemeh Sepahvand; Saeed Gholamrezai; Mehdi Rahimian
Volume 9, Issue 3 , Summer 2019, , Pages 261-271
Abstract
Water Users Association (WUAs) is one of the methods of participatory water resource management whose success and efficiency requires the participation of farmers. Purpose of this study was to identify and prioritize the solutions for farmers’ participation enhancing in WUAs. This exploratory article ...
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Water Users Association (WUAs) is one of the methods of participatory water resource management whose success and efficiency requires the participation of farmers. Purpose of this study was to identify and prioritize the solutions for farmers’ participation enhancing in WUAs. This exploratory article was carried out by the mixed methods design. The qualitative part of the study was conducted by Grounded Theory (GT). The statistical population consisted of 14 key informant experts of water resources management. Data were gathered by semi-structured interview. The triangulation of peers in different position was used to enhance the accuracy of the data. Categories were derived from interviews by MAXQDA12 software. In the quantitative phase, 133 members of WUAs were sampled in Lorestan Province (N=1990) using the Cochran formula. Solutions proposed by experts were provided to the members of WUAs in the form of a questionnaire. Results showed that there were distrust among members, members' distrust to WUAs mangers and tension in management of this organization. The most important solutions for farmer's participation in WUAs were to reduce local tensions, motivating mechanisms for cooperation of farmers in WUAs and helping farmers for a better consensus
Farm Management
Armaghan Kosari-Moghaddam; Abbas Rohani; Lobat Kosari-Moghaddam; Mehdi Esmailpour Troujeni
Volume 9, Issue 2 , Spring 2019, , Pages 119-133
Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the probability of working days (PWD) for tillage operation using weather data with Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) and Radial Basis Function (RBF) artificial networks. In both models, seven variables were considered as input parameters, namely minimum, average ...
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The aim of this study was to determine the probability of working days (PWD) for tillage operation using weather data with Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) and Radial Basis Function (RBF) artificial networks. In both models, seven variables were considered as input parameters, namely minimum, average and maximum temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, wind speed, and evaporation on a daily basis. The PWD was considered to be the output of the developed models. Performance criteria were RMSE, MAPE, and R2. Results showed that the R2-valuewas 0.78 and 0.99 for MLR and RBF models, respectively. Both models had acceptable performance, but the RBF model was more accurate than the MLR model. The RMSE and MAPE values for the RBF model were lower than those for the MLR model. Thus, the RBF model was selected as the suitable model for predicting PWD. Moreover, the results of these models were compared to the prior soil moisture model. It was indicated that the results of the studied models had a good agreement with the results of the soil moisture model. However, the RBF model had the highest R2 (99%). In conclusion, the developed RBF model could be used to predict the probability of working days in terms of agricultural management policies.
Decision-making
Olaoluwa Ayodeji Adebayo
Volume 9, Issue 2 , Spring 2019, , Pages 77-88
Abstract
Group dynamics features are important factors for improving farmers’ socio-economic status. This study focused on the effect of group dynamics features on the socio-economic status of cocoa farmers in Ogun State, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 93 cocoa farmers for ...
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Group dynamics features are important factors for improving farmers’ socio-economic status. This study focused on the effect of group dynamics features on the socio-economic status of cocoa farmers in Ogun State, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 93 cocoa farmers for the study. Descriptive statistics and linear regression were used to analyze the data. Results showed that the mean monetary value of their material possessions, income generated from the cocoa producer per production cycle per year and other agricultural production activities were 9,819,796.60 Naira, 2,693,900 Naira and 1,887,400 Naira respectively. Majority (51.7%) of the cocoa farmers are of moderate socioeconomic status (M=4,800,365.53 Naira). Results showed that the group dynamics features of the cocoa farmers are high in group cohesion (M=31.04) and leadership dynamism (M=25.75) while it is low in group attitude and behavior (M=23.09), discipline, trust and accountability (M=17.76) and group rapport (M=14.47). The results of linear regression revealed that farming experience (β=0.301) and educational level (β=0.561) significantly (p< 0.01) increased the socio-economic status of the cocoa farmers. The study concluded that personal characteristics can influence cocoa farmers’ socio-economic status and their group dynamics features. The study recommended that cocoa farmers’ personal characteristics (educational level and farming experience) should be improved through intervention programs, training and sensitization as this will translate into better-quality group dynamics features thereby enhancing their socio-economic status.
Farm Management
Ahmadreza Ommani; Azadeh Noorollah Noorivandi
Volume 9, Issue 1 , Winter 2019, , Pages 37-44
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to identify factors influencing the adoption of wheat waste management by wheat farmers. The method used in this study using the spatial Probit models and Bayesian model was used to estimate the model. MATLAB software was used in this study. The data of 220 wheat farmers ...
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The purpose of this study was to identify factors influencing the adoption of wheat waste management by wheat farmers. The method used in this study using the spatial Probit models and Bayesian model was used to estimate the model. MATLAB software was used in this study. The data of 220 wheat farmers in Khouzestan Province based on random sampling were collected in winter 2016. To calculate Bayesian coefficients the Gibbs sampling and Metropolis–Hastings algorithm were used. A Lagrange Multiplier test for spatial error dependence [LM(err)] and a Lagrange Multiplier test for spatial lag dependence [LM(lag)] to extract the appropriate model were used.The results of both models were statistically significant with 99% probability. Thus, both models can be used in interpreting the results. Based on the results of the estimation of spatial models the variables of participation in extension courses, technical knowledge about management of waste, income, crop’s yield, mechanization level and the spatial autoregressive coefficient had significant role on adoption of waste management.
Farm Management
Hashem Aminpanah; Saeed Firouzi
Volume 9, Issue 1 , Winter 2019, , Pages 67-76
Abstract
A field experiment was conducted at Rice Research Station of Tonekabon, Iran, to determine the effect of seed inoculation with plant growth-promotingrhizobacteria on rice grain yield and yield components under different nitrogen (N) rates. The experimental design was a Randomized Complete Block with ...
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A field experiment was conducted at Rice Research Station of Tonekabon, Iran, to determine the effect of seed inoculation with plant growth-promotingrhizobacteria on rice grain yield and yield components under different nitrogen (N) rates. The experimental design was a Randomized Complete Block with factorial arrangement and three replicates. Factors included seed inoculation with plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria [control (un-inoculated), seed inoculation with Azospirillum lipoferum, seed inoculation with Azotobacter chroococcum, and seed inoculation with a combination of A. lipoferumand A. chroococcum] and N rates (100%, 75%, and 50% of recommended nitrogen rates, i.e. 100, 75 and 50 kg N ha-1, respectively). Results showed that the highest grain yield (7875 kg ha-1) was recorded for plants inoculated with a combination of A. lipoferumand A. chroococcum, while the lowest one was recorded for un-inoculated control plants. Moreover, rice grain yield, panicle number per m2, grain number per panicle, and 1000-grain weight increased by 9%, 9%, 18%, and 6%, respectively, as N fertilizer rate increased from 50 to 100 kg ha-1. The highest grain yield (7875 kg ha-1) was obtained when N was applied at the rate of 75 kg ha-1to seeds inoculated with a combination of A. lipoferumand A. chroococcum.
Farm Management
Azadeh Ahmadvand; Enayat Abbasi; Homayon Farhadian; Hadi Moumenihelali; Alireza Norouzi
Volume 9, Issue 1 , Winter 2019, , Pages 11-24
Abstract
This research investigated the effectiveness of IPM/FFS project from economic, technical, social-communicative, environmental and psychological aspects in a descriptive-correlational design based on the survey method. The research population consisted of 70 greenhouse producers that had implemented IPM/FFS ...
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This research investigated the effectiveness of IPM/FFS project from economic, technical, social-communicative, environmental and psychological aspects in a descriptive-correlational design based on the survey method. The research population consisted of 70 greenhouse producers that had implemented IPM/FFS project in Tehran and Alborz provinces, Iran. Using Krejcie and Morgan (1970)'s sample size table and stratified random sampling method, 55 greenhouse producers were selected as the research sample. A questionnaire was the main tool for data collection. The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by a panel of agricultural extension and education experts and its reliability was confirmed by calculating Cronbach's alpha coefficients (0.77≤a≤0.86). The results showed that the IPM/FFS project has affected social-communicative, psychological, environmental, technical and economic factors, respectively. There were positive and significant relationships between effectiveness of the IPM/FFS project and education, the duration of IPM implementation, satisfaction with governmental support and the characteristics of IPM/FFS learning sites whilst the effectiveness of IPM/FFS project was negatively and significantly related to age and greenhouse area under IPM project. According to multiple regression analysis, the characteristics of IPM/FFS learning sites, education and satisfaction with governmental supports could account for 66 percent of variance of the effectiveness of IPM/FFS project. Finally, as implementation cost of integrated pest management is usually beyond greenhouse producers’ financial ability, it is suggested that the government provide greenhouse producers with more economic supports (e.g. granting loan and special facilities and guaranteed purchase of organic products).
Farm Management
Mohammadali Zare; Alireza Eslami
Volume 8, Issue 4 , Autumn 2018, , Pages 553-564
Abstract
The aim of this study was to compare the social capital indicators of members and non-members of cooperatives in Siahkal County. The sample size was calculated by the Cochran formula to include300individuals (150 member cooperatives and 150 non-members of the cooperative) that were selected by ...
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The aim of this study was to compare the social capital indicators of members and non-members of cooperatives in Siahkal County. The sample size was calculated by the Cochran formula to include300individuals (150 member cooperatives and 150 non-members of the cooperative) that were selected by the stratified random sampling method. The main tool employed in this study was a questionnaire that evaluated the reliability of internal consistency using Cronbach’s alpha was calculated. In this research, correlation coefficients, t-test, Mann-Whitney test and multivariate regression were used for testing hypotheses. Results obtained from inferential findings indicated that there was a significant positive relationship at 1 percent level between the variables of social cooperation and social interaction, social cooperation and social conflict, social cooperation and informal relations network, social cooperation and trust in others, social cooperation and trust in institutions, social cooperation and social partnership, and finally social conflict and informal relations network. Based on the t-test results, most individual indices of members and non-members of forestry cooperatives showed a significant difference with each other at 1 percent level. Results showed that there was a significant difference between members and non-members of the cooperative in terms of social capital components of forest dwellers except for the component of trust in institutions, which lacked a significant difference. This analysis shows that about 68% of the variation of the dependent variable is determined by independent variables which were significant here.
Farm Management
Ayatollah Karami; Hamid Yeilagh Choghakhor
Volume 8, Issue 4 , Autumn 2018, , Pages 451-463
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to assess the farmer's satisfaction with services delivered by Water User Associations (WUAs) and determine the factors affecting farmer's satisfaction with the WUAs. Stratified sampling was used to select 124 farmer members of WUAs in the Gotvand irrigation Scheme (GIS). ...
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The purpose of this study was to assess the farmer's satisfaction with services delivered by Water User Associations (WUAs) and determine the factors affecting farmer's satisfaction with the WUAs. Stratified sampling was used to select 124 farmer members of WUAs in the Gotvand irrigation Scheme (GIS). A researcher-made questionnaire was employed for data collection. Its validity was confirmed by content validity and its total reliability was estimated by Cronbach's alpha as to be 0.73. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics to describe WUAs performance; ordinal logistic regression was also used to determine the relationship between physical, socio-economic characteristics of region context and farmer's satisfaction. Results revealed that although the WUAs performance in operation, maintenance and repair and management is medium, these WUAs are successful in collection of irrigation service fee. Status of maintenance and repair in GIS is a very essential factor in farmer satisfaction with the WUAs and its status is dependent on the strength of WUA connection with government authorities. Therefore, it is recommended that maintenance and repair management is transferred to the WUAs.
Farm Management
Seyed Ehsan Zohoori; Amir Mohamadi-Nejad; Reza Moghaddasi
Volume 8, Issue 4 , Autumn 2018, , Pages 529-538
Abstract
his study aimed to investigate factors affecting the revenue share of Iranian tomato paste exporting companies. Flexible estimation method was used on a two-dimensional panel data set including 224 observations from 14 tomato paste manufacturing and exporting companies and 16 importing countries during ...
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his study aimed to investigate factors affecting the revenue share of Iranian tomato paste exporting companies. Flexible estimation method was used on a two-dimensional panel data set including 224 observations from 14 tomato paste manufacturing and exporting companies and 16 importing countries during 2005-12. Results showed that value added per employee in manufacturing or exporting companies, and dummy variables (common border, religion and number of documents needed to import) had positive effect on the revenue share of a given company. The import tariff rates of selected countries and distance had a negative effect on the export revenue share of all companies. Accordingly, programmers and policy makers should provide background information about the productivity of labor force in these companies via researching, developing, and promoting production technologies, which will increase the exporting revenue share of this product. Furthermore, by making bilateral and multilateral contracts and agreements, the tariff rates can be reduced to increase the revenue share of the tomato paste export.
Farm Management
Mohammad Sadegh Sabouri; Soraya Rafiei; Davood Samarei
Volume 8, Issue 4 , Autumn 2018, , Pages 519-527
Abstract
This research was carried out to investigate the role of legal, philosophical, economic, environmental, educational attitudes and some personal characteristics in farmers' professionalism in the production of optimal wheat in the north of Khuzestan Province, Iran. The methodological approach in this ...
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This research was carried out to investigate the role of legal, philosophical, economic, environmental, educational attitudes and some personal characteristics in farmers' professionalism in the production of optimal wheat in the north of Khuzestan Province, Iran. The methodological approach in this research was casual relative and applied survey. The data were collected by a survey and a questionnaire as the main research instruments. The samples comprised all wheat growers in Northern Khuzestan. Three hundred and ten farmers were selected by using a Cochran's formula through random sampling out of 23,485 wheat farmers of Northern Khuzestan. Finally, 302 questionnaires were analyzed. The questionnaire was developed from a review of the related literature. The content and face validity of the instruments were established after several times of review and correction by the faculty members of Azad University of Garmsar. The questionnaire and data were analyzed by the help of SPSS v21 software package. The reliability was reported to be 0.81 using a Cronbach's alpha. Stepwise regression analysis indicated the most important variable that accounted for 77.2% of the variance of the dependent variable was the economic variable. The next variables (environmental, legal components, and educational attitudes processes) captured 86.5% of the variance of optimal wheat production.
Farm Management
Sedigheh Samiee; Kurosh Rezaei-Moghaddam
Volume 8, Issue 3 , Summer 2018, , Pages 409-420
Abstract
Activities to reduce soil erosion and to improve soil fertility, agricultural production and finally, crop income have been considered to be fundamental for the implementation of sustainable agriculture in Iran. This research investigates the effects of no-till (NL) technology on reducing ...
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Activities to reduce soil erosion and to improve soil fertility, agricultural production and finally, crop income have been considered to be fundamental for the implementation of sustainable agriculture in Iran. This research investigates the effects of no-till (NL) technology on reducing soil erosion and increasing agricultural income and eventually achieving sustainability. Data were collected with a questionnaire. The research sample including 165 NL adopter farmers was selected using multi-stage stratified random sampling method in Fars Province, Iran. The findings revealed that this technology improves performance and reduces water, energy and input consumption. The findings contribute to understanding the effects of no-till technology on agricultural systems. Also, information is provided to help the necessary planning for more effective implementation of no-till technology. According to the results of regression, wheat yields, increased use of pesticides, awareness of the benefits, and satisfaction with NL technology are the factors underpinning farmers` willingness to keep using NL technology.
Farm Management
Hassan Brati; Mohammadreza Khaledian; Mohammadhassan Biglouei; Atefeh Parvaresh Rizi
Volume 8, Issue 3 , Summer 2018, , Pages 389-396
Abstract
About 20% of the electricity produced in the world is consumed in rotary equipment for conveying fluids such as water, gas, air, and other liquids, while the loss of energy consumption in this sector is more than 60%. The aim of this study is to evaluate different efficiencies in the pumping stations ...
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About 20% of the electricity produced in the world is consumed in rotary equipment for conveying fluids such as water, gas, air, and other liquids, while the loss of energy consumption in this sector is more than 60%. The aim of this study is to evaluate different efficiencies in the pumping stations in the pressurized irrigation systems to address low energy efficiency issues in the pump stations, and then finding proper solutions to increase it. In this regard, the electrical efficiency, hydraulic efficiency, and mechanical efficiency were determined in the studied pump stations. The total efficiency of each pump station was determined using those efficiencies. Pump station assessment tool (PSAT) software was used for modeling each station and predicting annual energy consumption costs; furthermore, the potential of increasing the efficiency was calculated. Results showed that the total efficiency of the studied pump stations ranged from 13 to 32% and averaged 24%. Factors, such as improper design, disproportion in terms of the operation conditions, and the design and improper operation caused a drop in efficiency of pump stations, and addressing these issues can improve the productivity of the energy consumption in the pump stations from 24 to 49%.
Farm Management
Yazdan Habibi; Jafar Azizi; Fathollah Keshavarz
Volume 8, Issue 3 , Summer 2018, , Pages 321-328
Abstract
Agriculture sector faces risks caused by natural damaging events. So, it is necessary to predict, counteract and mitigate the risks of agricultural activities to increase investment security, to identify risks and to practice risk management methods, in which insurance has a special niche as a risk counteraction ...
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Agriculture sector faces risks caused by natural damaging events. So, it is necessary to predict, counteract and mitigate the risks of agricultural activities to increase investment security, to identify risks and to practice risk management methods, in which insurance has a special niche as a risk counteraction and mitigation measure. The objective of this study was to study the role of insurance in risk management of broiler farms in Rudbar County in Guilan Province in 2016. The statistical population was composed of 121 broiler chicken farms that were active in Rubdar County, Iran in 2013-2015, out of which 55 farms were selected as the sample according to Bartlett Table. Data were collected by interview and a questionnaire whose validity was confirmed by a panel of experts and whose reliability was estimated to be 73% by Cronbach’s alpha. Results of stepwise regression showed that the main production parts affected by risk factors included hygiene and control, technical factors including ventilation and temperature, nutrition, disease prevention, and chicken hatching capacity. Results of the test of variable correlations showed a negative, significant relationship of dependent variable (risk management) with hatching capacity, hygiene factors, technical factors, nutrition, disease prevention, and insurance. Also, risk management was found to have no relationship with farm managers’ age and farming experience.
Farm Management
Jafer Ahmed Mume; Fikadu Gute Tadesse
Volume 8, Issue 2 , Spring 2018, , Pages 173-192
Abstract
At the household level, livestock plays a critical economic and social role in pastoralists and at the household level, livestock plays a critical economic and social role in pastoralists and smallholder farm households. The objectives of this study were to analyze factors affecting participation in ...
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At the household level, livestock plays a critical economic and social role in pastoralists and at the household level, livestock plays a critical economic and social role in pastoralists and smallholder farm households. The objectives of this study were to analyze factors affecting participation in cattle fattening and its impacts on household income in Fadis district of Eastern Hararghe. Both primary and secondary data were used. The data were collected by means of a semi-structured questionnaire from 124 samples during the period of April 20-May20/ 2017. Logit estimation revealed that participation in cattle fattening is significantly influenced by five variables. Age of household head, labor force in family member, market information, access to agricultural extension services and number of livestock are significant variables which affect the participation of the household in cattle fattening practices. Propensity score matching method was applied to analyze the impact of the cattle fattening on the household income generation. In matching processes, kernel matching with 0.25 band width was resulted in relatively low pseudo-R2 with best balancing test was found to be the best matching algorithm. This method was checked for standardized bias, t-test, and joint significance level. Propensity score matching results revealed that household participated in cattle fattening practice have got 14,071 more farm income and 12,617 total household income in Ethiopian Birr (ETB) than those household that were not participated in fattening practices. This income difference shows how non-farm and off-farm income compensated for income obtained from cattle fattening activities with farm income.
Farm Management
Zohreh Jesarati; Loghman Rshidpour; Soleiman Rasouli Azar
Volume 8, Issue 2 , Spring 2018, , Pages 299-306
Abstract
Organic agriculture is rapidly growing while the lack of knowledge and skills to manage organic farms and the lack of market opportunities for the organic products are the most important reasons for the disinclination to the use of the organic agriculture practices. The main aim of this study was to ...
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Organic agriculture is rapidly growing while the lack of knowledge and skills to manage organic farms and the lack of market opportunities for the organic products are the most important reasons for the disinclination to the use of the organic agriculture practices. The main aim of this study was to determine the factors underpinning the marketing of organic agriculture products. The research was a descriptive survey in terms of purpose. The research instrument was a questionnaire whose validity was determined by the content validity and its reliability was estimated to be 89% by Cronbach's Alpha. The population of the study included all organic farmers who have supplied their products to a fruit and vegetable market in Miandoab. The sample size was determined as 148 by the Morgan-Kerjisy table and was selected by stratified sampling method and simple randomization. Finally, 150 questionnaires were collected. The results showed a significant relationship between the marketing of the organic agriculture products with educational factors, economic factors, intelligence agents, production factors and social factors at the 0.05 level. Also, the results of regression analysis showed that the variables of production factors, educational factors, and economic factors captured 53% of the variance of the dependent variable.
Farm Management
Mohammad Reza Safari Motlagh; Roya Nazarali; Farzaneh Fallahpoor Salkooyeh
Volume 8, Issue 2 , Spring 2018, , Pages 163-171
Abstract
The waste of agricultural products is considered as one of the major problems in Iranian agricultural sector. The present study is a descriptive-survey one in nature that focused on exploring correlations and comparison. Data were collected through a number of questionnaires and were analyzed by SPSS. ...
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The waste of agricultural products is considered as one of the major problems in Iranian agricultural sector. The present study is a descriptive-survey one in nature that focused on exploring correlations and comparison. Data were collected through a number of questionnaires and were analyzed by SPSS. The relationships between dependent and independent variables were analyzed by obtaining the Pearson's correlation coefficient. The statistical population of the study comprised the participants of vermicompost Training Courses in 2011-12, farmers of Estalkh Zir Village where the vermicompost project was implemented, and facilitators and promoters of the agricultural sector. The results of this investigation showed that there was a relationship between the dependent (familiarity, the skills and interest rate) and independent variables (agricultural waste management) and that it was confirmed p<0.05) that the impact of the four independent variables was significant on the dependent variable at 0.95 level. As a result, all factors as independent variables are believed to have contributed to waste management. The results of Pearson’s correlation test confirmed all the hypotheses of the study. Duncan’s test also indicated that there was a significant difference in terms of waste management among the existing factors, namely interest rate, levels of familiarity and awareness, skills, and support from authorities.
Farm Management
Majid Rostami; Hoda Mohammadi
Volume 8, Issue 1 , Winter 2018, , Pages 91-100
Abstract
Sustainable agriculture is a holistic approach to produce food, fiber, feed and fuel in a way that does not damage the environment and also must meet the needs of the present and future population of the world, while considering agro-ecosystem health, social and economic equity and profitability. Therefore, ...
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Sustainable agriculture is a holistic approach to produce food, fiber, feed and fuel in a way that does not damage the environment and also must meet the needs of the present and future population of the world, while considering agro-ecosystem health, social and economic equity and profitability. Therefore, the sustainable agriculture cannot be isolated from the concept of sustainable development in any country or region. The current survey was conducted in order to study the sustainability of agricultural systems in Golestan Province in the north of Iran during the period of 2002-2011. The required data were obtained from formal statistical database. The total numerical value of sustainability was calculated for individual years using 21 different indexes. Because of the diverse nature of the selected indexes and their wide range, they were normalized to facilitate their comparison. The results show that the agricultural sustainability has been increased significantly over the studied period. The lowest value of sustainability was observed in the first year of the studied period (i.e., 2002) but the highest value was calculated for 2009 and thereafter the sustainability of agro-ecosystem has decreased slightly. The improvement of sustainability could be attributed to the application of less chemical inputs such as pesticides and fertilizers, higher water and nitrogen use efficiencies, higher yield of different crops, especially dry land crops and the higher cultivation area of nitrogen fixing species.
Farm Management
Maryam Shadpour; Mohammadreza Khaledian; MohammadHassan Biglouei; Mojtaba Rezaei
Volume 7, Issue 4 , Autumn 2017, , Pages 477-487
Abstract
In order to calibrate and validate the PILOTE model for rice in a humid climate, this study was carried in a randomized complete block design with three replications on a popular local variety, Hashemi, during 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2007 crop seasons. This research was done at the Rice Research Institute ...
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In order to calibrate and validate the PILOTE model for rice in a humid climate, this study was carried in a randomized complete block design with three replications on a popular local variety, Hashemi, during 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2007 crop seasons. This research was done at the Rice Research Institute of Rasht, Iran. Evaluation of simulated and measured grain yield and dry matter values was done using Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (EF), Root Mean Square Errors (RMSE) and normalized root mean square errors (NRMSE) indices. The results revealed that RMSE for validation and calibration were 0.69 and 0.72 Mg.ha-1, respectively. NRMSE for calibration was 9.5 % and for validation was 14.1 %. NRMSE for grain yield and dry matter were 8.74 and 13.37 %, respectively. EF values were between 0.84 and 0.98. The results showed that the PILOTE model can be used to manage properly rice irrigation in different regimes. Scenario analysis showed that the best irrigation regime was intermittent irrigation with 8-day interval.
Farm Management
Amin Nikkhah; Zeynab Kougir-Chegini; Armaghan Kosari-Moghadam; Farima Nikkhah
Volume 7, Issue 4 , Autumn 2017, , Pages 439-446
Abstract
In this study, musculoskeletal disorders, energy consumption and input costs of paddy labors have been studied in cultivation, crop protection, and harvesting rice in Northern Iran, Guilan province. The sample size of the study consisted of 74 paddy workers of the study region. The data were collected ...
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In this study, musculoskeletal disorders, energy consumption and input costs of paddy labors have been studied in cultivation, crop protection, and harvesting rice in Northern Iran, Guilan province. The sample size of the study consisted of 74 paddy workers of the study region. The data were collected through Nordic questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The results indicated that the labor input energy of cultivation, crop protection, and harvesting were 674.6, 356.8 and 205.9 MJha-1, respectively. The total labor input costs were determined to be 22,860,000 IRRs ha-1. Lower back, back and knees were the most common areas where paddy workers were feeling pain. There were significant differences among the age, working hours and working years of healthy and relatively healthy poor paddy workers (p<0.01). One-fifth of the selected farmers self-reported that their health was at a very poor level. Overall, considering the relatively high costs and the different types of common musculoskeletal disorders related to rice cultivation in this province and also the side effects of using the painkillers in the working season, it is recommended to invest and accelerate the process of mechanization of rice farming in Guilan Province of Iran.
Farm Management
Saeid Fealy Nahavand; Amir Ahmadpour
Volume 7, Issue 3 , Summer 2017, , Pages 275-282
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to identify factors which affect rural women's participation in rice cultivation (RWPRC) in Mazandaran Province, Iran. The population of this research consisted of all rural women in Mazandaran Province, Iran. By using a multi-stage random sampling, 300 rural women were ...
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The purpose of this study was to identify factors which affect rural women's participation in rice cultivation (RWPRC) in Mazandaran Province, Iran. The population of this research consisted of all rural women in Mazandaran Province, Iran. By using a multi-stage random sampling, 300 rural women were selected as statistical sample. The research instrument was a structured questionnaire including some close-ended questions whose validity and reliability were confirmed by a panel of expert and through a Cranach’s alpha test (α= 0.86), respectively. The descriptive results indicated that RWPRC was close to a moderate level. Furthermore, it was shown that the main reasons for rural women's participating in rice cultivation were helping family economy, obtaining extra income, and gaining production surplus, in the order of importance. In addition, these results illustrated the highest RWPRCs were in selecting seed, transplanting and Preparing pre-germinated seedling storage, respectively. Moreover, the findings showed significant relationships between RWPRC and some of its individual and professional characteristics. Finally, the results of the multivariate regression analysis revealed that 42.9 % of variability in RWPRC stems from household income, family size, and land size under rice cultivation. Finally, it is recommended for extension organizations to give attention to the role of gender in agriculture for better extension planning.
