Agriculture Organization Data Research Articles

Seeking sustainable efficient global agricultural production with nexus approach

This study aims to estimate the shadow prices of water and carbon dioxide (CO2) in global agriculture under three scenarios: pursuing economic efficiency, sustainable development goals (SDGs), and environmental protection. It assesses the social cost of environmental impacts compared to actual prices. This study also evaluates substitutability among water, labor, and capital in the three scenarios for developing relevant agricultural policies depending on distinct agricultural conditions. Social costs tend to be underestimated because they are not directly observed. Our society has faced an overproduction of agriculture in terms of CO2 emissions and the exploitation of water. This study employs a method of a directional technology distance function for global agricultural production based on Food and Agriculture Organization data on agricultural inputs and outputs. The following three critical findings were obtained: First, the average shadow price of water under the economic scenario was close to the current actual water prices, and water prices would increase if agricultural production accomplished the three SDGs (Goal 2, 6, and 13). Second, labor is substituted for water under the environmental scenario because water prices increase rapidly. In contrast, water is complementary to labor under the SDGs scenario, implying that labor becomes more important for increasing food production. Third, the current CO2 prices are lower than those in the economic scenario. These values are significantly lower than those under the SDGs and environmental scenarios. Based on these results, we conclude that agricultural products are often undervalued because the appropriate value of water is overlooked in real markets. The contribution to reducing CO2 in agriculture is insufficient, owing to current low carbon taxes.

Changes in Climate Vulnerability and Projected Water Stress of The Gambia's Food Supply Between 1988 and 2018: Trading With Trade-Offs.

BackgroundThe coexistence of under- and overnutrition is of increasing public health concern in The Gambia. Fruits, vegetables and pulses are essential to healthy and sustainable diets, preventing micronutrient deficiencies and non-communicable diseases, while cereals significantly contribute to energy intake. However, environmental changes are predicted to intensify, reducing future yields of these crops if agricultural productivity and resilience are not improved. The Gambia is highly climate-vulnerable and import-dependent, but the extent of its reliance on other climate-vulnerable countries for its supply of nutritionally important crops is currently unknown.MethodsWe used United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization data, with novel origin-tracing algorithms applied, to analyse The Gambia's supply of cereals, fruits, vegetables and pulses between 1988 and 2018. The climate vulnerability of countries was assessed using Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN) index scores, and projected water stress (2040) assessed using World Resources Institute (WRI) scores. Multilevel generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to identify changes in the overall climate vulnerability and projected water stress of supply.ResultsBetween 1988 and 2018, The Gambia's supply of cereals, fruits, vegetables and pulses diversified, with the proportion domestically produced falling (Cereals: 61.4%–27.7%; Fruits: 93.0%–55.7%; Vegetables: 24.6%–16.3%; Pulses: 100.0%–76.0%). The weighted-average ND-GAIN scores improved (indicating less climate vulnerability) for supply of all crops except cereals, but the weighted-average WRI score for supply deteriorated (indicating increased projected water stress) for all crops except vegetables. When just considering imports, weighted-average ND-GAIN scores deteriorated for fruits and cereals while showing no significant change for other food groups, and the WRI score deteriorated for cereals only.ConclusionsDespite some notable improvements in the environmental vulnerability of The Gambia's supply of nutritionally important crops (particularly vegetables), considerable, and in some cases increasing, proportions of their supply are produced in countries that are vulnerable to climate change and future water stress. This may have implications for the availability, affordability, and hence consumption of these crops in The Gambia, ultimately exacerbating existing nutritional challenges. Exploring the options to strengthen supply resilience—such as altering trade patterns, agricultural techniques and diets—should be prioritized.

Contribution of animal pollination to food nutrient production in Benin-West Africa

BackgroundPollinators play a key role in human food production by improving the yield and quality of crops. Several studies assessed the economic value of pollination services delivered by animals through yield improvement. However, little is known about the contribution of animal pollinators to nutrient production. This study assessed the contribution of animal pollination to nutrient production in Benin. Food and Agriculture Organization data on crop production and United States Department of Agriculture crop composition data of 37 leading crops were used. These crops were categorized into five classes, depending on their degree of dependence on animal pollinators for fruit production.ResultsThe study showed that more than half of the studied crops (56.75%) relies at different levels on animal pollination for fruit production. Minerals, namely fluoride (83.92%) and selenium (52.62%), were the most delivered by animal-pollinated crops. Roughly 50% of lipids outputs and 24% of proteins outputs were obtained from pollinator-dependent crops. Significant outputs of fat-soluble vitamins up to 65% were also attributed to animal pollination. A low contribution of animal pollination (up to 8%) was reported for water-soluble vitamins.ConclusionAnimal-pollinated crops significantly contribute to the supply of nutrients and consequently to nutritional and food security in Benin. Conservation of pollinators should be considered as an important component of food security programs in the country.

Farming in the Spanish Caribbean: Rural Identity, Culture, and Food Production in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Cuba

Food is not a trivial issue in the Caribbean. The islands of the Caribbean are usually characterized as densely populated and dependent on food imports as a result of their colonial history as producers of sugar in large plantations and under conditions of slavery. The story is largely true. Hundreds of years ago, on most of these islands, imported rice, beans, and salt cod became dietary staples; and the islands have remained dependent on food imports ever since. But this paper will argue that the Dominican Republic stands out in the Caribbean as a producer of food. To substantiate this claim, I will use primarily Food and Agriculture Organization data to compare the countries that make up the Greater Antilles – the four largest islands of the Caribbean – in terms of their ability to produce food and feed their citizens. Subsequently I will examine how the history of the Dominican Republic differed from that of Cuba and Haiti to result in a country that is proud to farm.

Agricultural productivity in Latin America and the Caribbean in the presence of unobserved heterogeneity and climatic effects

Total factor productivity (TFP) analysis has been the focus of a large number of methodological and empirical studies over the past several decades. One remarkable gap in this literature is the omission of climatic variables as regressors in the models used to derive TFP measures. The purpose of this paper is to narrow this gap by developing climate-adjusted (CA) TFP measures. We combine information from the Climatic Research Unit with Food and Agriculture Organization data for 28 Latin American and Caribbean countries over a 52-year period (1961–2012) to estimate random parameter stochastic production frontier (SPF) models. The goal is to investigate the impact of climatic variability on TFP. The estimated coefficients from the SPF models are used to construct a climatic effects index across countries and over time. The average annual variation in climatic conditions is stronger at the end of the 2000s compared to earlier periods. Climatic variability has a negative effect on production in 20 of the 28 LAC countries analyzed, and this is more severe over Central America and the Caribbean. The average reduction in output across the region attributable to climatic variables is between 0.02 and 22.7% over the last decade compared to the period 1961–1999. The estimated average annual growth rate of CATFP (0.69%) is consistently lower than TFP (1.08%), confirming the adverse impact of climatic variability on agricultural output and productivity in LAC. The results show considerable variability across countries, and this points to the importance of accounting for climatic effects in analyzing TFP.

Apples to kangaroos: A framework for developing internationally comparable carbon emission factors for crop and livestock products

Consumption-based greenhouse gas accounting, which encompasses emissions from a nation's domestic final consumption as well as emissions embodied in imports, is gaining favor in the climate change literature for its effectiveness and consideration of equity. Unfortunately, the calculation of emissions embodied in the trade of agricultural food products is hindered by a lack of consistent and comparable emission factors.Food import quantities for every country are readily available through the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Unfortunately, the carbon emission factors necessary to calculate the embodied emissions in imported foods are largely unavailable or unreliable for many countries. On top of this, different methodologies for determining carbon emission factors provide varying estimates based on different assumptions. The differences in these assumptions and methodologies can mean that attempts to compare and combine emissions based on factors from different countries become less of a comparison of apples-to-apples and more of an apples-to-oranges or even apples-to-kangaroos exercise.This study proposes a method to combine the Food and Agriculture Organization's available greenhouse gas data, production data, and agricultural yields and scaling it against benchmarks in the literature to estimate a time-series of crop and livestock carbon emission factors that are internally consistent within the Food and Agriculture Organization's data set and comparable from nation to nation. The framework provided is then used to produce a sample set of carbon emission factors for Chinese agricultural import suppliers to determine the embodied greenhouse gases in China's food imports.

Impact of Climate Change on the Productivity of Cassava in Nigeria

Impact of Climate Change on the Productivity of Cassava in Nigeria Mbanasor, Jude A; Nwachukwu, Ifeanyi N; Agwu, Nnanna M ; Onwusiribe, Ndubuisi C Abstract The issue of climate has become a recurrent subject of global debate in recent times. The intensity of the debate is on the increase due to the enormity of the challenge posed by the phenomenon especially in the third world. Though the threat of climate is universal, agricultural production activities are generally more vulnerable than other sectors. The vulnerability of the Nigerian agricultural sector to climate change is of particular interest to policy makers, because agriculture is a key sector in the economy accounting for between 60-70% of the labour force and contributing about 40% to the GDP. In line with the foregoing, the study was carried out to examine the impact of climate change on the productivity of cassava with specific interest in assessing changes in climate variables; estimating growth rate in production and productivity of the enterprise and evaluating the impact of climate variables on the productivity of the enterprise. Analytically, trend analysis was performed in assessing changes in climate variables and estimating growth rate in production and productivity of the enterprise. The quadratic function of the multiple regression analysis was employed in order to ascertain the impacts of climate variables on the productivity of the enterprise. However, secondary data were collected from literature, National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), National Meteorological Centre (NIMET), National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), State Agricultural Development Programmes (ADPs), Food and Agriculture Organization data base, World Bank Statistical Bulletin, United Nations Development programme (UNDP) statistical reports and other sources. In the course of data analysis, trend analysis, log quadratic trend equation and multiple regression analysis were applied. The result of the trend analysis showed that cassava production trace out a positive linear trend while annual precipitation, temperature and carbon dioxide (CO2), over the period were unstable. However, the trend forecasts suggested increasing rates of cassava production, temperature and decreasing CO2 emissions in the next five years. The log quadratic equation revealed that cassava production and productivity recorded positive and significant growth during the period with a compound growth rates of 0.976 and 0.969 respectively. The multiple regression model showed that precipitation posted positive coefficient in the short run but imposed a negative effect on cassava productivity over a long period of time while temperature influenced cassava productivity negatively both in the short and long run. On the basis of findings, the study suggested the adoption of appropriate and proactive adaptation cum mitigation measures. These may include use of drought tolerant/resistant varieties, adoption of sustainable land management practices and intensification of campaigns to promote healthy environmental practices among citizenry. Full Text: PDF DOI: 10.15640/jaes.v4n1a18

The Constraints to Escaping Rural Poverty: An Analysis of the Complementarities of Assets in Developing Countries

AbstractBased on Food and Agriculture Organization data for 15 developing countries, we examine household characteristics, asset bundles and income‐generating activities of the rural poor. Assets aid in exiting poverty, not independent of one another, but rather in combination. We develop an approach to estimate the complementarities between education, farm size and infrastructure. Limited access to the three assets of interest here (susceptible to medium‐ and long‐term interventions) might prevent moving a large number of small farmers out of poverty in the short‐term (even with support programs). Increased land holding often has lower poverty‐reducing potential, and when its potential is high, it is in countries where most land is divided among small operations (for example, Bangladesh). Education is confirmed as highly poverty‐alleviating, and has a high complementarity with infrastructure.

Value of Food and Agriculture Organization data on food-balance sheets as a data source for dietary fat intake in epidemiologic studies

The relationships between the per person supply (expressed as percent of total energy supply) of saturated fatty acids (SFAs), monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) obtained from 1979-1981 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) data, and the per person intake obtained from 52 individual dietary surveys performed in 19 countries, were examined. In particular, the ratio of PUFAs to SFAs (P:S) and the ratio of unsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs and PUFAs) to SFAs (U:S) obtained from both data sources were examined. Significant correlations (P less than 0.001) were found between the two data sources for the P:S, U:S, SFAs, and MUFAs and PUFAs (P less than 0.02) in 19 countries. It is concluded that the data on fat intake from the FAO are valid for use in epidemiologic studies. In view of the variability of the data, it is recommended to use them either expressed as percentage of energy or as ratios of the different components.