Abstract
The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of farmers’ socioeconomic characteristics on sustainable forage crop production after forage crop subsidies. One of the innovative aspects of the study is the simultaneous modeling of alfalfa, silage corn and vetch production efficiency. For this, the multivariate linear regression model was used. In this way, the effect of socioeconomic characteristics on production is more clearly demonstrated by taking into account the dependency structure between forage crop production. For the study, 487 farmers in the Aegean region, where fodder crops can be produced throughout the year, were interviewed face-to-face and data were collected through a questionnaire. According to the results obtained, it was determined that the width of the land had a positive effect on the increase in alfalfa, silage corn, and vetch production. The number of animals was found to have a positive effect on alfalfa and silage maize production growth. The production of alfalfa was higher in rural farmers, and vetch production was higher in urban farmers. Farmers who do not have non-agricultural income focused on vetch production, and farmers with non-agricultural income focused on alfalfa production. It was seen that the majority of the farmers participating in the study were primary school graduates and lived in rural areas. In general, a significant increase was observed in the production of silage corn, vetch, and alfalfa, respectively. After the subsidies, it was concluded that this increase in the production of silage corn, vetch, and alfalfa was not at a level to meet the amount of forage crops needed by animal husbandry.
Highlights
Forage crop production is important for meeting the feed requirements of livestock and ensuring soil fertility [1]
Since the climatic conditions of the Aegean region are suitable for forage crop production all year round, more yields can be obtained in forage crop production [3]
Especially examining the socioeconomic characteristics of farmers can provide necessary measures to increase the level of production
Summary
Forage crop production is important for meeting the feed requirements of livestock and ensuring soil fertility [1]. One of the most important needs of animal husbandry is the production of forage. The feed requirements of a cattle of 500 kg body weight, to meet the nutrient requirement, are 4 kg/day of good quality dry matter and 10 kg/day of good quality green grass or silage corn [2]. In this context, as the number of animals increases, the need for feed increases.
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