Research on Regional Differences of the Leisure Agriculture’s Impact on Farmers’ Income—An Empirical Analysis Based on Nonlinear Threshold Regression

Yawen Lu,Binbin Li

doi:10.3390/su13158416

Abstract

As a large agricultural country and a populous country, the development of agricultural and rural areas is the foundation for China to realize a national rejuvenation. Leisure agriculture is the main carrier of industry integration in China’s rural areas and it is an effective means to realize rural revitalization and increase farmers’ income. Industry convergence refers to a dynamic development process in which different industries or different areas of the same industry penetrate and intersect each other and finally merge into one, gradually forming a new industry. However, there is no empirical study on the staged impact of rural agriculture on rural household income and regional differences. This article breaks down the action mechanisms, analyzes the linear impact of leisure agriculture on the income of farmers and divides the development types of leisure agriculture according to the characteristics of leisure agriculture development. Using the provincial panel data from 2008 to 2016, the panel dual-threshold regression model was used to verify the regional differences in the impact of leisure agriculture on farmers’ income, from the perspective of leisure agriculture on farmers’ nominal and actual incomes. Then, the robustness model was used to test leisure agriculture’s impact on farmers’ income. The results show that the impact of leisure agriculture on the income of farmers is staged. Among them, the impact of leisure agriculture on the nominal income of farmers is an “inverted U-shaped” structure and the impact on actual income is an “N-type” structure. At the same time, the paper also finds that the regional differences in the impact of leisure agriculture on farmers’ income are significant and the constraints on the development of leisure agriculture in different regions are different. Based on this, it is proposed that the government should respond to the different development stages of leisure agriculture according to the time, and according to the different development areas of leisure agriculture. Responses should also be based on local conditions, and work to strengthen the participation of farmers.

Highlights

As an agricultural country with a large population, agriculture and rural areas are the foundation of China’s economic growth and national rejuvenation
As a product of the extension of urban consumption as well as the expansion of agricultural functions, leisure agriculture has a certain dependence on the agricultural industry, the ecological environment and the regional economy
The nominal income is the amount of money obtained by farmers’ labor and it is the income under the influence without considering market and external factors

Summary

Introduction

As an agricultural country with a large population, agriculture and rural areas are the foundation of China’s economic growth and national rejuvenation. Income is at the core of the problems concerning agriculture, rural areas and farmers. The. 18th CPC National Congress has put forward the rural revitalization strategy and has included it in the Party Constitution. As a significant starting point for rural revitalization, leisure agriculture is an important means to solve the rural hollowing out, as well as the lack of agricultural industry development power, which can stimulate the endogenous driving force for rural development and realize the prosperity of rural industries. As a new way of agricultural management, leisure agriculture is the main vehicle for the Sustainability 2021, 13, 8416.

Methods

Results

Conclusion