Production Technical Efficiency Research Articles

Yield Gaps and Factors Affecting Production Inefficiency in Smallholder Oil Palm Plantations in Muaro Jambi District Jambi Province

Abstract Oil palm plantations in Indonesia, including in Jambi Province, are categorized into large private plantation, state-owned plantation, and smallholder plantation. The productivity of smallholders is the lowest compared to the other 2 categories. At the district and sub-district level, the yield of smallholder oil palm is also vary, spreading from 1,675 to 6,680 kg CPO per ha per year. The large yield variation is inseparable from the plantation management among farmers. The objectives of this research are to study the yield gap and technical efficiency of production among smallholders, and to analyze the factors that affect the technical production inefficiency in smallholder oil palm plantation. The research was conducted in Muaro Jambi District as a main palm oil producing district in Jambi Province. Data was collected from a sampel of 120 independent smallholders. One way anova test was used to study the yield gap and double natural log (ln) of Cobb–Douglas stochastic frontier production function was used to analyze the technical efficiency and some factors affects its inefficiency. The results revealed that there were significant differences in yield among smallholders based on area size, level of education, and activeness in the farmer organizations. However, on average, the management of oil palm by independent smallholders is quite technically efficient. The factor that significantly affects the level of technical inefficiency are the size of the area and farmers’ level of education.

Effects of fiscal support for agriculture on grain production technical efficiency: empirical evidence from Chinese farms

ABSTRACT This study utilizes micro-level farm panel data from 2007 to 2012 to measure the technical efficiency of grain production among farms using a stochastic frontier analysis model. Additionally, it employs a two-way fixed effects model to empirically investigate the impact of fiscal support for agriculture on grain production technical efficiency and its underlying mechanisms. The results reveal significant room for improvement in the technical efficiency of grain production among Chinese farms, with increased fiscal support for agriculture demonstrating a substantial enhancement of their efficiency. This promoting effect only exists in the major grain-producing areas and increases with the increase of farm size. The augmentation of fiscal support for agriculture achieves this goal by augmenting modern agricultural input factors, alleviating financing constraints faced by farms, and optimizing agricultural production infrastructure. Our findings provide guidance for optimizing fiscal policy to support agriculture, promoting agricultural modernization, and achieving food security.

A Stochastic Frontier Analysis of the Performance of Livestock in the North-Eastern Cape Communal Rangelands, South Africa

This paper examined the technical efficiency of livestock in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, to improve the understanding of the performance of livestock production of rural households in the communal rangelands. Surveys from 120 households were used to estimate a stochastic frontier model to assess livestock production's technical efficiency (TE) amongst households in a communal production environment where rangelands are the primary source of fodder. The estimated coefficients of the stochastic frontier model indicated that livestock units (LSU) and costs of additional feed supplements positively influenced livestock output per household. Management practices such as livestock kraaling and livestock herding influenced TE positively. An average technical efficiency score of 0.79 was estimated among households, suggesting that an improvement in efficiency could be achieved if proper interventions were employed. These interventions may include programmes such as the Extended Public Work Programmes to provide livestock herding support, gender-sensitive strategies that support the inclusion of women in livestock production, and other labour inputs related to animal husbandry. Lastly, this study provided essential information in understanding livestock production and informed policy about possible interventions that could potentially improve livestock production in rangelands.

The Role of Economic and Social Factors Affecting the Efficiency of Small-Scale Sunflower Oil Production Companies in Tanzania

Most developing nations, including Tanzania, consider agro-processing a key to industrialization. Despite an attractive sunflower seed yield, Tanzania's sunflower oil processing and production have been staggering over the years. Sunflower oil production is inefficient, which leads to low output. So, this research studied sunflower oil production technical efficiency in the Singida region. The study examined the social and economic factors that affect technical efficiency in small-scale sunflower oil producers. It applied cross-sectional design and secondary data for the years 2016–2017, which were collected from the Central Zone Sunflower Oil Processors Association and Small Industrial Development Organization based on Singida sunflower oil producers. It also used stochastic frontier analysis and multiple linear regressions to find the empirical economic relationship between the variables. Sunflower oil producers averaged 30.1% less technical efficiency, as the average was 69.9%. It also revealed that labor, seed, capital, and electricity affect production, while age, experience, education, and locality also matter. Finally, processing techniques, socio-economic, and demographic differences affect sunflower oil production. So, producers must increase capital inputs to be technically efficient. Consider boosting producer capacity and abilities and observing a minimum number of productive staff.

Rice production technical efficiency in a highly urbanised area in Samut Prakan Province, Thailand

Rice production technical efficiency in a highly urbanised area in Samut Prakan Province, Thailand

Analysis of the Impact of Land Use Change on Grain Production in Jiangsu Province, China

Located in the Yangtze River Delta region, Jiangsu Province has become the major grain production area of China and plays an important role in ensuring national food security. With rapid economic development and urbanization, the amount of cultivated land has decreased, which greatly affects food security. Based on the statistical data of grain production in Jiangsu Province since 2000 and the remote sensing data of 2000, 2010, and 2020, this paper used the stochastic frontier production function to calculate the output elasticity of various factors and the technical efficiency of grain production. The agglomeration effect of food production was investigated by using spatial correlation analysis. Finally, regression analysis was applied to examine the impact of land use change on grain yield and the technical efficiency of production. The results show that the grain-sown area is the decisive factor for the increase in grain output in Jiangsu Province. The technical efficiency of grain production in the province has been maintained at a relatively high level since 2000, showing a fluctuating upward trend, and the efficiency value in southern Jiangsu Province is greater than that in central and northern Jiangsu. The analysis of the spatial distribution characteristics of grain production technical efficiency shows that grain production has an agglomeration effect. The regression results showed that the complexity of land use and the density of the cultivated land patch were negatively correlated with grain yield and grain production technical efficiency, while the location of cultivated land was positively correlated with grain yield and grain production technical efficiency. The conclusion of this paper has important policy significance for promoting food production and ensuring food security.

Stochastic Frontier Analysis of Production, Socio-economic and Institutional Factors Affecting Technical Efficiency of Cowpea Production in Chuka Sub-county, Kenya

Cowpea is one of the most important vegetable that ranks third among pulses and top five leafy vegetables consumed in Sub Saharan Africa. In Kenya cowpea contributes to cheap supply of nutritious food, revenue and food security. Despite its importance, cowpea production levels are a fraction of the potential due to low technical efficiency of production which affects the revenue levels and food security of the smallholder farmers. This study aimed to determine the production, socio-economic and institutional factors affecting the level of technical efficiency among smallholder cowpea farmers in Chuka Sub County, Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya. Using semi structured questionnaire in a population of 12905 households and using multistage sampling technique from 389 households cross-sectional data on production factors, socioeconomic and institutional characteristics was collected. Data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier production function. The results indicated that production factors, socioeconomic and institutional characteristics significantly affected cowpea production. The mean technical efficiency index was 0.34. The stochastic frontier analysis revealed that production factor coefficients of labour (0.825), topdressing fertilizer (0.635), manure (0.325), agrochemicals (0.221) and land size (0.628) were all positive and statistically significant at 5% level. The inefficiency model revealed that the coefficients of socio-economic factors age (0.038), education (-0.156) and farming experience (-0.053), and the institutional factors, information sources/extension contact (-0.669) and access to digital financial services (1.527) were negative but statistically significant, except for age and access to digital service that were positive and significant. These variables were the determinants of technical efficiency in cowpea production. The results suggest that there is potential for cowpea farmers to increase production and net profits in the long run by efficient utilization of the existing mix of production inputs and technologies. Formulation of policies revolving around the significant variables, input supply, technology transfer and subsidies; extension services, information exchanges and market linkages are recommended to palliate technical inefficiency in cowpea production among farmers.

Determinants of technical efficiency of coffee production in Jimma Zone, Southwest Ethiopia

Agriculture has been and continues to assume center stage in the economic policy of Ethiopia. Coffee is one of the most vital sources of income for many coffee growers and continues to be still the leading export commodity in the national economy of the country. Despite the economic use, the productivity and quality of the coffee are unsatisfactory. The adoption of coffee yield-enhancing technical efficiency is key to improving coffee productivity and quality. Therefore, this study aims to investigate determinants that influence the technical efficiency of coffee production in Jimma Zone, Southwest Ethiopia. The primary data was collected among 398 coffee growers in research locations during the 2020/21 season. Descriptive statistics and econometric methods were developed for the data analysis. The estimated average value of technical, allocative, and economic efficiencies was 82.63%, 78.35%, and 74.65% respectively, which shows the existence of inefficiency in coffee production in the study area. The findings of OLS regression indicated that technical inefficiency is affected by age, sex, education status, landholding, livestock holding, credit uses, the extension uses, off-farm activity, land ownerships, seed, and variety of coffee planted. Coffee yield technical efficiency was associated with a significantly higher coffee yield and per capita annual income of coffee cultivators. Concerned bodies should give important attention to coffee yield enhancing technical efficiency which is base for improving production. The summary of this coffee production technical efficiency by policymakers and plan designers could bring better enhancement to the coffee cultivator in the study area.

The Effect of Internet Information Dependence and Land Transfer on Agricultural Production Technical Efficiency of Households

In this essay, the author studies the relationship between internet information dependence, land transfer, and agricultural production technical efficiency based on the CFPS database, including observations from households from 25 provinces in China. The stochastic frontier approach is adopted to predict the technical efficiency of each household, and then OLS, group regression, and regression under interaction terms are applied, respectively. As a result, leasing land from others and internet information dependence are proven to have a positive impact on technical efficiency, while only in the case that the house owner does not depend on the internet to acquire information, the effect of leasing land from others is significant. Though the interaction term between internet dependence and land transfer is not significantly negative, internet dependence does have a substitution effect on land transfer in terms of improving technical efficiency. The result sheds light on developing countries striving to increase agricultural production efficiency and thus presents possible suggestions for peasants to gain better economic status.

Technical efficiency and its determinants in rice production: The case of small-scale rice growers in the Ejisu Juaben Municipality of Ghana

This study assessed the technical efficiency of smallholder rice growers in the Ejisu Juaben Municipality of Ghana and explained variations using the Stochastic Frontier Approach. Cross-sectional data were collected from 200 rice farmers using a structured questionnaire. The results showed that inefficiency exists as the mean technical efficiency was 55% implying that nearly half (45%) more output could be produced using the existing input levels if farmers were technically efficient. A scope, therefore, exists for increasing rice production. A wide range (11.7% to 98.4%) of technical production efficiency exists among the sampled rice farmers, showing the various levels of improvements expected to bring various farmers to operate on the frontier. Labour cost was revealed as the main constraint hindering the development of the rice sector. The main factors that positively and significantly explain the level of variation in efficiency production were membership to a Farmer-Based Organization (FBO), access to improved varieties, and access to credit. Furthermore, gender, farmer experience, and contact with extension services negatively influence the efficiency performance of farmers. Encouraging farmers to form FBOs is recommended, as this will make credit more available to farmers and improve access to community-based extension services.

How Operation Scale Improve the Production Technical Efficiency of Grape Growers? An Empirical Evidence of Novel Panel Methods for China’s Survey Data

The agricultural production technical efficiency is the key to improving the sustainability of an agricultural section. Taking survey data of 314 grape growers in Fujian Province, China, this paper presents the impact of operation scale on their technical efficiency under a rain-shelter cultivation mode. Through the threshold effect model, we find an inverted U-shape trend between operation scale and the growers’ technical efficiency, and the threshold is 18 mu. We also further introduce the employee input to analyze the mediating effect. The test results show that with the expansion of operation scale, the efficiency loss caused by greater employee input gradually suppresses the positive impact of economies of scale on technical efficiency—that is, there is a significant suppressing effect. Hence, this paper argues that, in the process of promoting agricultural green production, the government should guide farmers to a ‘natural flow’ to moderate scale management by reducing transaction costs, such as land transfer costs, and should not blindly encourage growers to expand their scale. At the same time, research and development of labor-saving technologies should be enhanced to reduce labor demand and cost in the production process.

Regional differences and threshold effects of labor transfer affecting the technical efficiency of China's agricultural industry: A case study of the apple industry.

Apples, as a typical agricultural product with high added value, play a significant role in increasing farmers' income and promoting regional economic growth. They have become one of the main ways for farmers to develop agricultural and sideline products in China's Loess Plateau and Bohai Rim region. Based on panel data for provinces from 2007 to 2020, this study used stochastic frontier analysis to calculate the technical efficiency of apple production in China's major apple-producing areas and then introduced urbanization rate as the threshold variable. Based on the quantity, quality, and structure of the rural labor force, the threshold model was used to empirically analyze the effect of labor transfer at different stages of urbanization on industrial technical efficiency in the main apple-producing areas. The results showed that labor transfer had an obvious negative effect on apple production. The labor transfer at the national level has had an obvious negative impact on the output of the apple industry, and the impact of labor transfer on the technical efficiency of China's apple industry is significantly different; that is, the impact of labor outflow on the technical efficiency of apple production is different in different regions. In some areas, the technical efficiency of production in the main apple-producing areas can be significantly improved. Finally, the proportion of the labor force showed significant differences in its effect on technical efficiency in different stages of urbanization.

The Impact of Off-Farm Employment on Farmland Production Efficiency: An Empirical Study Based in Jiangsu Province, China

The secret to ensuring food security and the growth of agricultural development is farmland production efficiency. In the context of urbanization, this means that farmers need to increase their off-farm employment behavior. The research goal of this paper is to explore whether this will have a impact on farmland production. This paper is based on the data of the China Land Economic Survey conducted by Nanjing Agricultural University and uses Tobit and other methods to conduct empirical tests. The main findings of this paper are as follows: (1) When the proportion of the household’s off-farm employment time is less than 73%, an increase in off-farm employment reduces farmland production efficiency. When the proportion of the household’s off-farm employment time exceeds 73%, an increase in off-farm employment increases the farmland production efficiency. (2) This paper eliminates the scale efficiency contribution in farmland production efficiency to obtain pure technical production efficiency. After verification, off-farm employment and farmland pure technical production efficiency show a U-shaped correlation and the inflection points of the two U-shaped curves coincide. (3) The reason for the inflection point is that after the off-farm employment of farmers reaches the inflection point, with a further increase in off-farm employment, the renting-out behavior of farmland increases and there is increased input of labor-saving technology in agricultural land production, because of which the production efficiency and pure technical efficiency of the farmland increase. To sum up, off-farm employment does not necessarily mean reduced farmland production efficiency. Farmland leasing behavior plays a key role in mitigating the impact of off-farm employment on farmland production. Therefore, in the process of urbanization, the improvement of the land transfer market, the development of agricultural socialized services, and the promotion of cooperative operation will help to ensure the productivity of farmland.

Avaliação da eficiência técnica da produção de trigo dos agricultores com base no aumento da renda

ABSTRACT: Based on the goal of income increasing, this research uses the DEA-BCC model under the input and the output orientation to estimate the differences and changes in the technical efficiency of wheat production by farmers of different scales based on the survey data of 1669 farmers’ wheat production from China’s main wheat-producing regions. Results showed that there are significant differences in the technical efficiency of farmer’s wheat production and the optimal scale of efficiency under the input and the output orientation. The relationship between farmers’ planting scale and efficiency is characterized by U-shaped curves and inverted U-shaped curves respectively. The wheat production technical efficiency of farmers in most major grain production areas is in a DEA ineffective state, and agricultural technical efficiency needs to be improved.

The Effect of Farmland Transfer on the Technical Efficiency of Farm Households in China: An Empirical Result of External Environmental Factors

In the context of food security, the market-oriented allocation of factors under the collective ownership system has had a profound impact on agricultural production. As a hot issue under the Household Responsibility System (HRS), the impact mechanism of farmland market transaction on agricultural production efficiency deserves discussion. Based on the stochastic frontier production function model, this paper analyzes the impact of farmland transfer on farmers’ production technical efficiency under the external environmental factors by using the moderating effect and threshold effect. The study found that farmland transfer can improve farmers’ technical efficiency. The market price of agricultural products and farmland transfer subsidies have a positive moderating effect on the impact of farmland transfer on technical efficiency. Furthermore, farmland transfer subsidy shows a nonlinear effect on the impact of technical efficiency.

Multi-scale energy efficiency recognition and diagnosis scheme for ethylene production based on a hierarchical multi-indicator system

It is essential to monitor and diagnose the energy efficiency level of ethylene production process to detect any abnormities in the production and adjust production parameters appropriately to ensure the energy efficiency. However, few studies have been carried out concerning the diagnosis of abnormal energy efficiency in the ethylene production with appropriate energy efficiency indicator system from multiple dimensions due to the incompatibility of the diagnosis algorithm and the complexity of this petrochemical production. Therefore, to achieve a comprehensive energy efficiency diagnosis and anomaly analysis for the ethylene production, a multi-scale energy efficiency recognition and diagnosis scheme based on a hierarchical multi-indicator system is proposed. Firstly, a novel recognition scheme for abnormal energy efficiency is conducted from a single-indicator scale to a multi-indicator scale based on a three-level indicator system with respect to the energy and materials flows in the system, process, and equipment level of the ethylene production, so that the energy efficiency of the ethylene production can be monitored in different levels and granularities. Secondly, an integration-decomposition diagnosis method to analyze the energy efficiency is proposed based on the Malmquist production index, where the overall efficiency is decomposed into production efficiency, pure production technical efficiency, and scale efficiency to form a multi-perspective in-depth diagnosis and exploration. Thirdly, a principal component analysis is converted into a preliminary abnormal cause diagnosis algorithm based on statistics so that the multi-scale and multi-level energy efficiency recognition and diagnosis for the ethylene production is achieved. Finally, the effectiveness of the diagnosis scheme is verified by applying it to a Chinese ethylene plant, and the results show that the abnormal energy efficiency can be identified effectively and the consistency of the diagnosis results with the actual situation is approximately 0.818 at least.

Pengaruh Penggunaan Benih Bersertifikat Terhadap Produksi dan Efisiensi Teknis Usahatani Kentang di Kecamatan Pangalengan

The average food consumption for potato commodities in Indonesia is 2.20 kg/capita/year, an increase of 9% from 2013. The need for potato consumption will increase as Indonesia's population increases. The growth rate of potato production is lower than that of potato consumption; therefore, it is necessary to increase potato productivity. The productivity level of potatoes in Indonesia is still low and fluctuates, with an average potato productivity of 18.23 tons/hectare. Increasing potato productivity can be done by increasing technical production efficiency or using certified seeds. The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of using certified seed on the production and technical efficiency of potato farming in the Pangalengan district as one of the potato production centers in Bandung Regency. The technical efficiency analysis of the potato crop was performed using the Cobb-Douglas Stochastic Frontier Analysis production function with a total of 70 potato farmers as respondents, with details that 30 persons are using certified potato seed and 40 persons are using not certified potato seed. The results indicate that using certified potato seed has increased potato production. Overall, the average technical efficiency of potato production in the Pangalengan district is 70.10%, which means efforts to improve efficiency are still required. There is no significant difference in technical efficiency between potato farms using certified seed and not certified seed which means using certified potato seed has yet to be able to increase the technical efficiency of potato farms. One of the factors that significantly affect technical efficiency is land ownership status.

Redefine carbon footprint performance with the total factor productivity: A case from a regional food production system

By observing the disturbance of indicators, models, and samples variability to the robustness of low carbon performance evaluation, the importance of random errors and heterogeneity of sample data is clarified. The carbon footprint joint total factor productivity conceptual framework is proposed in this study, then we apply it to a food production system in a region of China to reasonably judge the carbon footprint performance level of peasant households. With regard to the single-output production frontier, the internal method changes did not cause significant changes in the level of crop production technical efficiency in the deterministic and stochastic estimation strategies respectively. Although the results of partial low-carbon economic technical efficiency are consistent in the two estimation strategies, a significant difference is obvious for the low-carbon technical efficiency; The total low-carbon economic technical efficiency is significantly different between deterministic non-parametric slacks-based measure and parameterized random distance function estimation strategies under the framework of the multi-output production frontier; Ultimately, the total factor productivity including the carbon footprint of the food system in our research area close to the technical level of the industry, as well as the technical efficiency of the sample is at an efficient level.

The effect, mechanism, and heterogeneity of grassland rental on herders' livestock production technical efficiency: evidence from pastoral areas in Northern China

The effect, mechanism, and heterogeneity of grassland rental on herders' livestock production technical efficiency: evidence from pastoral areas in Northern China

Technical Efficiency in Production of Major Food Grains in Punjab, Pakistan

Based on the 2016–2017 farm survey data, this study examines technical efficiency in the production of wheat, rice, and maize in Punjab province in Pakistan. Technical efficiency, under varying returns to scale, in wheat farming averaged 0.65; in rice, it averaged 0.74, and in the case of maize, it was 0.92. A great majority of the sample farmers were estimated to be operating under increasing returns to scale. Estimations of scale inefficiency in wheat cultivation hovered around 18%; in rice, it ranged from 16% to 21%, and in maize, it varied from 7% to 17%. These estimates are indicative of the scope and the potential for increasing technical and scale efficiencies in the production of all food grains, albeit to varying degrees for different crops.