The hedging efficiency of wheat futures in various types of farms in Germany

Data on farmers' perception and acceptance of sustainability standards.

The housing condition of pig (Sus scrofa) fattening farms are increasingly receiving criticism, because they are associated with impaired animal welfare. Consumers view the increase in farm sizes critically, even though scientifically based knowledge on the relationship between farm size and welfare is still limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the welfare level of conventional fattening pig farms in Germany and to evaluate the relationship between farm size and animal welfare level. In total, the Welfare Quality® protocol (WQ) for pigs was applied on 60 farms. Farms were classified according to their size into small (< 1,500 pigs per farm), medium (1,500-3,000 pigs per farm) and large (> 3,000 pigs per farm). Independent of the farm size, the overall WQ classifications ‘excellent’ and ‘not classified’ were not recorded in any of the farms, while ‘enhanced’ and ‘acceptable’ was achieved by 80 and 20% of the farms, respectively. Farm sizes had no effect on any of the four principles ‘good feeding’, ‘good housing’, ‘good health’ or ‘appropriate behaviour’. Overall, moderate bursitis (35%) was found to be the most prevalent indicator of welfare-related problems. However, it did not differ between farm sizes. Another highly prevalent indicator, moderately soiled body, increased from 11.1% in small-to 20.8% in large-sized farms. In conclusion, our findings show that none of the farm sizes were superior in terms of animal welfare. Overall, acceptable or enhanced scores were achieved for many of the criteria, however the need for improvement in other criteria such as ‘expression of other behaviour’ and ‘positive emotional state’, was clear.

Nine years has passed since the EU accession, thus, it is possible to make an objective evaluation about the impacts of the accession. Several reviews were made in this topic, but most of them made their assessment at macroeconomic level. This research focuses on the impacts of accession at farm level, using the data of the EU Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) database. The main goals of this research were to explore the impacts of the accession on different farm sizes and types of farming and to find which types of farming were the ‘winners’ or the ‘losers’ of the accession. For the research, the primary data of the Hungarian FADN database were used (between the years 2002 and 2009) created by the Hungarian Research Institute of Agricultural Economics. Based on the domestic and international sources, the ROE ratio was chosen as a top-indicator for measuring profitability, and was used during the further examinations. Based on the research results I show how the profitability of different farm types and farm sizes have been changed and which farm types and sizes may be considered more and less successful since the date of EU accession

The main objective of this paper was to study the economics of poultry egg- production in the open- system in Khartoum State. Specific objectives were to study the socio-economic features of poultry egg producers, investigate the main factors contributing to the production cost and compare between production costs, total returns and gross margins in different farm types and sizes. A questionnaire was prepared in order to obtain information on quantities and costs beside socio-economic questions such as level of education. The farms were stratified into strata according to the size of the flock to increase the homogeneity of sampling units. The data were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis to analyze socio-economic characteristics of egg poultry producers. Also, quantitative technique tools were used to measure the profitability of the farms. The study revealed that 58% from egg poultry producers whose main job are poultry breeding, and 60% of poultry producers have experience of more than five years. The feed cost was the main cost item in the egg farm in open-system that, it represented 90.2, 89.7 and 92.7% of total production cost in small, medium and large farm sizes of egg production, respectively, and about 75.8% in (4 - 5 months old) pullet farm. Also, the study revealed that the other factors of production such as price of day-old chicks, price of (4 - 5 months) hens, mortality cost, vaccines and drugs and labor cost represented the most total cost of production. The total cost of production and cost per dozen were lowest in large farm sizes than other farm sizes and type. Highest gross profit was obtained in large farm sizes, while the lowest ones were observed in pullet farms. However, all farms have CPP greater than unity. The study concluded that: feed cost was the main cost item in different farm types and sizes. High percentage of mortality cost and price of day-old chicks and (4 - 5 months) hens were also high. Also, it concluded that, the large size farm was more efficient than other sizes and type of the farms. Key words: Egg production, pullet farm, open-system farms.

<b><sc>Abstract.</sc></b> Milk production is the most important branch of German agriculture and the German dairy industry is the largest sector within the German food industry. For about a quarter of agricultural farms in Germany, milk production is the main source of income. The productive and economic quality of the dairy cattle farm depends crucially on the efficient, cost-optimized and quality-oriented milking technique. In the last 20 years, automatic milking has become increasingly popular among dairy cattle farms in Germany. For a long time, the main target group was medium-sized family farms with 60 to 180 cows. Meanwhile, there is also appropriate technology for large farms that can milk more than 4000 cows. The study will show which technique of automatic milking is suitable for which type of farm and its impact on the organization and management of the farms. Additionally, the effect on the farm manager, herd manager and milker but also on their families will be presented. Also, the effect on the cows and the changes in the cow's human relationship is analysed. An overview of the survey shows that family farms between 60 and 180 cows are best at dealing with single box systems and free milking. Large companies with external workers often use automatic milking carts with fixed milking times, as this has organizational advantages in group management. In medium-sized farms between 180 and 500 dairy cows, solutions with several milking robots in individual boxes as well as automatic group milking systems can be found. Both systems have their organizational advantages and disadvantages. In summary, automatic milking has meanwhile reached all company sizes and types. Automatic milking not only has an effect on milking during operation. It is usually the beginning of a further automation of the operation. Due to the lack of contact between man and cow during milking, more information about the cow is transmitted via sensors.

Good calf health is crucial for a successfully operating farm business and animal welfare on dairy farms. To evaluate calf health on farms and to identify potential problem areas, benchmarking tools can be used by farmers, herd managers, veterinarians, and other advisory persons in the field. However, for calves, benchmarking tools are not yet widely established in practice. This study provides hands-on application for on-farm benchmarking of calf health. Reference values were generated from a large dataset of the “PraeRi” study, including 730 dairy farms with a total of 13,658 examined preweaned dairy calves. At herd level, omphalitis (O, median 15.9%) was the most common disorder, followed by diarrhea (D, 15.4%) and respiratory disease (RD, 2.9%). Abnormal weight bearing (AWB) was rarely detected (median, 0.0%). Calves with symptoms of more than one disorder at the same time (multimorbidity, M) were observed with a prevalence of 2.3%. The enrolled farms varied in herd size, farm operating systems, and management practices and thus represented a wide diversity in dairy farming, enabling a comparison with similar managed farms in Germany and beyond. To ensure comparability of the data in practice, the reference values were calculated for the whole data set, clustered according to farm size (1–40 dairy cows (n = 130), 41–60 dairy cows (n = 99), 61–120 dairy cows (n = 180), 121–240 dairy cows (n = 119) and farms with more than 240 dairy cows (n = 138), farm operating systems (conventional (n = 666), organic (n = 64)) and month of the year of the farm visit. There was a slight tendency for smaller farms to have a lower prevalence of disorders. A statistically significant herd-size effect was detected for RD (p = 0.008) and D (p < 0.001). For practical application of these reference values, tables, diagrams, and an Excel® (Microsoft®) based calf health calculator were developed as tools for on-farm benchmarking (https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6172753). In addition, this study provides a detailed description of the colostrum, feeding and housing management of preweaned calves in German dairy farms of different herd sizes and farm type (e.g., conventional and organic).

The analysis of income risk is the basis for successful whole farm risk management. The measurement of risks helps to objectively assess the farms’ individual risk exposure. However, due to limited data availability, comprehensive overall risk analyses are often scarce, e.g. for Germany. The present study analyses risk exposure for more than 3,000 farms in Germany in the period 1996/97-2015/16 on the basis of the national Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN). Our results show that (i) risk exposure is heterogeneous and that fluctuations and particularly large decreases in farm income are rarely attributable to individual risk components (e. g. prices or yields), (ii) farm income risk has been higher in the period after 2007 for many farms, especially arable and dairy farms, (iii) while the income risk in dairy farming increased, it is still lower than that of most other farm types in the period 2006/07-2015/16, (iv) the for-mation of expected values has a significant influence on the absolute level of the measured risk and should be given more attention in future research.

Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia

The term “conventionalization” of organic agriculture was created to depict the controversially discussed phenomenon that organic agriculture departs from the core organic principles on which it is based. We present an empirical, index-based approach to investigate developments of organic farming practices towards conventionalization. An index of conventionalization can be used as a monitoring tool to support policymakers to further develop agricultural regulations. We calculate composite indicators for three farm types: farms specialized on crop production, farms specialized on animal husbandry, and mixed farms. Principal component analysis serves to derive objective weights based on the correlations between indicators which then allow a linear aggregation to the composite indicator. Results show that developments towards conventionalization of the whole organic farming sector cannot be detected for German farms between 2000 and 2009. Therefore, we do not see the necessity for changes in regulation of the organic sector with regard to conventionalization.

The agricultural sector contributes by approximately 22% of the global greenhouse gas emissions. Private carbon certification and emerging carbon markets offer farms a remuneration for sustainable, carbon-reducing and -sequestering practices (carbon farming). However, adopting carbon farming practices (e.g., inter- and cover cropping) requires a costly reorganization of the farm crop portfolio. This process carries uncertain elements such as additionality, leakage, and permanence of the carbon sequestration and thus future profitability of the altered portfolio (e.g., Paul et al. 2023).&amp;#160;In fact, farms need to balance agricultural productivity, efforts (costs) for carbon sequestering, and respective certification and pricing for carbon. Scientific evidence on how the private carbon market may incentivize farms&amp;#8217; adopting carbon farming practices, however, appears limited. This research addresses the gap and explores how German farms would adjust their production programs in different carbon credit pricing scenarios. We surveyed 93 German arable farms to identify their current economically optimal (revenue maximizing) production program without carbon credit pricing. Afterwards, we simulated for each farm a new optimum for different price scenarios for carbon credits using a linear programming approach and the farms&amp;#8217; land and labor constraints as indicated in the survey.Our results suggest that relative to the farms&amp;#8217; baseline, an emission reduction of about 5 kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per hectare is realistically to be achieved at the current price level of &amp;#8364;35 per ton of CO2e. The reduction of carbon emissions increases with carbon prices as farms&amp;#8217; optimum shifts towards more carbon farming practices - however, this is disproportionate in terms of CO2e per hectare. In the scenario with the highest carbon credit price (&amp;#8364;680 per ton of CO2e), the decrease in emissions compared to the baseline approaches 3 tons CO2e per hectare, suggesting net negative emissions from arable farming. This study demonstrated how production management strategies of farms responds to varying prices for carbon credits. Our study, however, was limited to the production portfolio of arable farms in Germany. Extending this approach to other regions and agricultural systems, such as on former peatlands, could provide a useful starting point for future research. For instance, little is known yet how carbon markets, certification and the carbon credit price may incentivize rewetting and reconversion of agricultural land back into peatlands.Reference: Paul, C., ... , Helming, K., 2023. Carbon farming: Are soil carbon certificates a suitable tool for climate change mitigation? J. Environ. Manage. 330, 117142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.117142

Over recent decades, several predator species have returned to human-dominated landscapes in Europe, with wolves (Canis lupus) causing the most damage to livestock. In Germany, some ‘pioneer’ farmers started keeping guard dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) to protect their livestock, but these ‘pioneers’ faced opposition from a general public unfamiliar with methods of protecting against predators. To evaluate the use and management of guard dogs to protect various farm animal species against predators in rural areas frequently used by the public in Germany, we studied the behaviour of 113 guard dogs on farms across Germany that have frequent public contact. Two approaches were used: I) we observed guard dog proximity to and behaviour towards goats and horses with direct field observation, and II) we asked equine science and agriculture students trained in behaviour observations and official herd management commissioners to report their experiences of guard dogs during their initial visits to farms keeping various livestock species. These reports included observations of the dogs’ behaviour and information about the farm and dog management practices, and showed that guard dogs preferentially stay within 1 farm-animal body lengths of goats and horses. They adapted to a large variety of tasks and could protect various species. They displayed friendly behaviour towards the owners of the farms and known persons, and all behaviour categories towards farm animals and unfamiliar persons in the presence of the owner. They were dominant and watchful towards unknown persons and external dogs. The farmers’ training and socialising of their guard dogs appear to be successful, as older dogs, and large mixed-sex guard dog groups were consistently watchful against external individuals, but friendly towards farm personnel. In conclusion, guard dogs adapt well to guarding various species on German farms.

The abolishment of the dairy quota system in the EU is expected to increase competition across dairy farms in Europe. Assuming a common price for milk in the EU, only the most efficient farms will survive in the new environment. The main objective of the research is to compare dairy farms in Germany, The Netherlands and Hungary about their technical efficiency. In the first part of the research, the efficiency is measured by partial efficiency indexes using one dimensional efficiency measuring. In the second part, the Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) have to be used to measure efficiency in a multidimensional space, using six inputs and two outputs. It appears from the results that the highest efficiency farms are in the Netherlands, and then Germany and Hungary follow thus, we get that the most efficient farms are in the Netherlands with 84% efficient. The German farms are 76% efficient. The Hungarian farms are 68% efficient. With respect the abolishment of the dairy quota system, our results suggest that the Dutch farms are the most efficient, thus probably they will increase their production after the quota system. But because the size of the country we cannot expect dramatic changes in the European Dairy market. The Germans farms efficiency is lower, but their efficiency is also lower, so we won’t expect high increase about the dairy supply. The Hungarian dairy sector is not so efficient like the Dutch, and the size of the sector has also small among the European countries, thus if they want to survive the quota system demolishing, they have to increase their technical efficiency.

We study the exit from livestock production of 35,000 German farms. By means of regression analysis we identify the factors affecting farmers' decisions either to quit farming altogether or to abandon certain livestock enterprises (sows and dairy cows). For our data, results from binomial probit estimations are either valid for quitting farming altogether or exiting from livestock production only. The determinants for these two decisions are different. Consequently, for analyzing the decision to exit from livestock production a multinomial probit model is preferred over a binomial model since a livestock farmer has three options to choose from: continuing livestock production, exiting from farming, or exiting from livestock production while keeping arable farming. For both dairy farms and sow farms we find that larger herd sizes make the abandonment of the respective livestock enterprises less likely. By contrast, the decision to quit farming altogether is not affected by herd size. We thus find no evidence in support of the much cited conjecture that the size of a farm's livestock enterprise increases the probability of its survival.

Analysing the energy balances of sugar beet cultivation in commercial farms in Germany

This article reinforces the message of the one immediately preceding by showing that small to medium‐sized firms have even stronger (non‐tax) motives for hedging risks than their large corporate counterparts. Although middle market companies have traditionally been viewed as less sophisticated than their larger corporate counterparts in the risk management arena, the authors suggest that such companies have become increasingly receptive to new hedging strategies using derivative products. When used appropriately, such products allow companies to stabilize their periodic operating cash flow by eliminating specific sources of volatility such as fluctuations in interest rates, exchange rates, and commodity prices.Smaller companies recognize that a single swing in a budgeted cost can have a catastrophic effect on an entire budget, whereas a larger company can more easily absorb such a cost. Moreover, because the principal owners of mid‐sized firms often have a substantial part of their net worth tied up in the business, they are likely to have a far stronger interest than typical outside shareholders in using risk management to reduce the volatility of corporate profits and firm value. Perhaps most important to owners whose firms rely on debt financing, the greater cash flow stability resulting from active risk management significantly reduces the possibility of financial distress or bankruptcy.In this article, three representatives of Bank of America's risk management practice discuss three different exposures faced by middle market companies—those arising from changes in interest rates, foreign exchange rates, and commodity prices—and show how these risks can be managed with derivatives. Besides shielding companies from financial trouble, risk management is also likely to improve their access to the money and capital markets. By protecting the firm's access to capital, risk management increases the odds that the firm will not be forced to pass up good investment opportunities because of capital constraints or fear of getting into financial difficulty.