Farm Level Modelling

Agriculture is the product of a complex mixture of behavioural, biophysical and market drivers. Understanding how these factors interact to produce crops and livestock for food has been the focus of economic investigation for many years. The advent of optimisation algorithms and the exponential growth in computing technology has allowed significant growth in mathematical modelling of the dynamics of agricultural systems. The complexity of approaches has grown in parallel with the availability of data at increasingly finer resolutions. Farm-level models have been widely used in agricultural economic studies to understand how farmers and land owners respond to market and policy levers. This book provides an in-depth description of different methodologies and techniques currently used in farm-level modelling. While giving an overview of the theoretical grounding behind the models, an applied approach is also used. Case studies range from the application of modelling to policy reforms and the subsequent impacts on rural communities and food supply. This book also provides descriptions of the use of farm-level models in much wider fields such as aggregation and linking with sectoral models. Its purpose is to show the reader the methods that have been employed to inform decision-makers about how to improve the economic, social and environmental goals required to achieve the aims of multidimensional policy.

This book, which is the first to be published in the emerging field of farm-level microsimulation, highlights the different methodological components of microsimulation modelling: hypothetical, static, dynamic, behavioural, spatial and macro–micro. The author applies various microsimulation-based methodological tools to farms in a consistent manner and, supported by a set of Stata codes, undertakes analysis of a wide range of farming systems from OECD countries. To these case studies, O’Donoghue incorporates farming policies such as CAP income support payments, agri-environmental schemes, forestry planting incentives and biomass incentives – in doing so, he illuminates the merits of microsimulation in this environment.

Systems Analysis and Modeling in Food and Agriculture is a component of Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Engineering and Technology Resources in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. Systems analysis and modeling is being used increasingly in understanding and solving problems in food and agriculture. The purpose of systems analysis is to support decisions by emphasizing the interactions of processes and components within a system. Frequently investigated systems level questions in agriculture and food are relevant to the 6 E's: Environment, Energy, Ecology, Economics, Education, and Efficiency. The theme on Systems Analysis and Modeling in Food and Agriculture with contributions from distinguished experts in the field provides information on key topics related to food and agricultural system. The coverage include an overview of food system; system level aspects related to energy, environment, and social/policy issues; knowledge bases and decision support; computer models for crops, food processing, water resources, and agricultural meteorology; collection and analysis methods for data from field experiments; use of models and information systems. This volume is aimed at the following a wide spectrum of audiences from the merely curious to those seeking in-depth knowledge: University and College students Educators, Professional practitioners, Research personnel and Policy analysts, managers, and decision makers and NGOs.

Systems approaches for agricultural development are needed to determine rational strategies for the role of agriculture in national development. Mathematical models and computer simulation provide objective tools for applying science to determine and evaluate options for resource management at field, farm and regional scales. However, these tools would not be fully utilizable without incorporating social and economic dimensions into their application. The second international symposium, Systems Approaches for Agricultural Development, held in Los Baños, 6-8 December 1995, fostered this link between the bio-physical sciences and the social sciences in the choice of keynote papers and oral presentations, a selection of which is included in this book. The book's contents further reflect how systems approaches have definitely moved beyond the research mode into the application mode. The large number and high quality of interdisciplinary research projects reported from different parts of the globe, to determine land use options that will meet multiple goals and yet sustain natural resource bases, is a key indicator of this `coming of age'. At the farm level, where trade-off decisions between processes and products (commodities) feature strongly, much progress is also evident in the development of systems-based tools for decision making. This book will be of particular interest to all agricultural scientists and planners, as well as students interested in multidisciplinary and holistic approaches for agricultural development.

Microeconomic modeling has been an important tool for agricultural economists for several decades and promises to be important for ad-dressing the research problems of the 1980s as well. This volume explores the possibilities for using micromodeling to analyze how individual farm businesses react to and are affected by farm policies. Although this purpose represents only one potential use of micro-modeling, effective modeling for policy analysis necessitates a broad look from several historical, analytical, and institutional perspectives. The Micromodeling Conference held November 18-20, 1981, at Airlie House, Virginia, under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Agri-culture's Economic Research Service and the Farm Foundation reflected these concerns.

This book emphasis the role of farm level adaptation as a key in developmental pathways that are challenged by climate risks in the semi-arid tropics of Asia and Africa. It throws light on key issues that arise in farm level impacts, adaptation and vulnerability to climate change and discusses Q2 methodological approaches undertaken in study domains of Asia and Africa. The book systematically describes the perceptions, aspirations as elicited/voiced by the farmers and identifies determinants of adaptation decisions. Chapters identify constraints and opportunities that are translated into indicative intervention recommendations towards climate resilient farm households in the semi-arid tropics of Asia and Africa. Furthermore, it discusses with evidences that contributes to the development of livelihood strategy for poor farmers in Asia (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam and China) and Africa (Burkina Faso, Niger, Kenya and Ghana).

This book describes how models are used to monitor crops and soils in precision agriculture, and how they are used to support farmers’ decisions. The introductory section starts with an overview of precision agriculture from the early days of yield monitoring in the 1980s to the present, with a focus on the role of models. The section continues with descriptions of the different kinds of models and the opportunities for their application in precision agriculture. The section concludes with a chapter on socio-economic drivers and obstacles to the adoption of precision agriculture technologies. The middle section of the book explores the state-of-the-art in modeling for precision agriculture. Individual chapters focus on the major processes in precision agriculture: water use, nitrogen and other amendments, as well as weeds, pests and diseases. The final section contains a series of short chapters that each describe a commercial, model-based service that is currently available to farmers. The book aims to provide useful information to graduate-level professionals that want to broaden their knowledge of precision agriculture; to scientists who want to learn about using academic knowledge in practical farming; and to farmers, farm consultants and extension workers who want to increase their understanding of the science behind some of the commercial software available to the farming community.