Agricultural Innovation and Its Impacts on Farming and Rural Welfare

Abstract

This chapter reviews the background of innovation and its types, as well as its implementation in agriculture. The content covers the measurement of innovation in all industries by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which focuses on four types of innovation: product innovation, process innovation, marketing innovation, and organizational innovation. Following these types of innovations, this chapter categorizes the types of agricultural innovations adopted in Asian countries over time into three main groups. These are product and process innovation, marketing and organizational innovation, and social innovations by institutional changes and welfare. Measuring the impact of agricultural innovations on farming and rural welfare is also summarized on three aspects, namely, production, economics, and welfare in Asian countries. Our findings show that agricultural innovations have brought positive outcomes for agriculture and society in the countries, albeit with some limitations.