University of Minnesota, Duluth
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Resilience to Risk in Modern Agriculture: Implications of Farm Management
No full textInternational conflicts, bottlenecks in distribution systems, and changes in agricultural policy represent unexpected risks, which develop at a rapid pace, creating disruption and a reshaping of market dynamics. We define strategic risks as the occurrence of these unanticipated market disruptions. The ability of producers to build resilience to these risks has become a crucial factor for business survival and success in an increasingly turbulent environment. This research develops metrics to assess the farm resilience levels of U.S. agricultural producers and analyzes how farm-level characteristics influence a farms ability to withstand and recover from strategic risks. Using ordinary least squares and multivariate probit regression analysis, we explore the relationships between farm resilience and factors such as risk preferences, management practices, and technology adoption. This research offers insights into how farm managers can enhance resilience to strategic risk and build more robust business strategies in the face of global uncertainties
Estimated Additional Base Acres Under OBBBA for Crop Year 2026
No full textThe One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) permits the first net expansion of base acres since 2002. This paper estimates the magnitude and distribution of additional base acres under OBBBA using USDA Farm Service Agency crop acreage data. Under the main scenario incorporating recent Federal Register implementation guidance, approximately 39.9 million acres would be eligible for addition, which would be prorated down to the 30 million acre statutory cap. Corn receives the largest allocation (10.2 million acres), followed by soybeans (8.3 million) and wheat (7.1 million). North Dakota, Texas, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Missouri lead among states. Using estimated 2025 crop year payment rates, these additional base acres could generate hundreds of millions of dollars in additional ARC/PLC payments, with corn alone valued at approximately $414–634 million. Estimation of alternative scenarios reveals that estimates are particularly sensitive to the treatment of forage crops; excluding forage from eligible non-covered commodities reduces estimated additional base acres from 30 million to 18.6 million. Under the assumption that the main scenario is representative of how the update will be implemented, this suggests additional base acres will be concentrated in areas with high forage crop production
Environmental Quality Incentives Program [EQIP] as Part of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act (The 1996 Farm Bill): Environmental Risk Assessment (Final)
No full textExcerpts: A team of Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) personnel worked to create the EQIP risk assessment in cooperation with USDA's Office of Risk Assessment and Cost Benefit Analysis (ORACBA). The NRCS team determined that there are significant risks to on-farm and off-site environments as a result of agricultural production activities. This report consists of technical evaluations and analyses that attempt to characterize the relationships between agricultural production activities, ecosystem stressors and resulting adverse ecological effects on particular natural resources. The report consists of four sections: 1) Introduction; 2) Problem Formulation; 3) Analysis of Ecological Effects; and 4) Risk Characterization. The results of this assessment demonstrate that natural resources are at risk from agriculturally related activities. Opportunities exist for the EQIP to reduce those risks and to create positive environmental enhancements across the Nation. Where the most severe environmental conditions exist, the EQIP can provide financial incentives and technical/educational assistance to land owners and land users for adopting conservation systems to address those problems
Green Trails & Golden Fields: Agri-Ecotourism in Rajasthan, India
No full textEcotourism involves environmentally conscious tours to natural environment, promoting local communities and fostering educational experiences. Integrating agriculture with eco-tourism, also known as agri-ecotourism, combines agricultural experiences with sustainable travel practices. Agri-ecotourism refers to a business model that combines agricultural activities with tourism, drawing visitors to farms, ranches, and other agricultural enterprises for entertainment or educational purposes. This approach helps to generate income for the owners. It also includes heritage tourism, village tourism, farm tourism, pilgrim tourism, adventure tourism, nature tourism, which lead to development of community, eradication of poverty and protection of cultural heritage. The diverse landscape and rich cultural heritage of Rajasthan make the state an ideal destination for tourists. Agri-ecotourism offers significant potential by combining sustainable agriculture with tourism, promoting rural development and environmental conservation
Transformative Impact of Vocational Training on Socio-economic Development of Deprived Women in Haryana
No full textThe present study examined the socio-economic impact of vocational training in cutting and tailoring on the life of marginalized women in Haryana state. The research was conducted in KVKs located in Kurukshetra and Kaithal districts. A systematic random sampling method was employed to select the study sample. Data were collected through personal interviews and Google Form from a total of 160 women, comprising 80 participants and 80 non-participants. The data were analysed using SPSS software for appropriate statistical tools. The study followed a quantitative research approach and a comparative and evaluative research design for impact assessment. The investigation assessed the impact of training on five key development indicators, including knowledge, adoption, income, employment, and socio-economic status. The findings revealed a statistically significant (Z=2.380, P<0.05) increase in knowledge levels among participants. Results show that majority of participants fully adopted the vocation, while 38.75 percent partially adopted due to barriers such as time constraints, lack of skills, familial responsibility and financial limitations. A positive impact on the additional income generation among participants was also reported. The study had a profound impact on employment as majority of participants created employment for themselves, as well as for the family members, in contrast to non-participants. Further reduction in household’s clothing expenditures and increased spending on children’s education, healthcare and nutritious food indicates a significant socio-economic impact of training on the life of deprived women
Index Approach and Livelihood Security of Small Scale Buffalo Farmers in Prakasam District of Andhra Pradesh, India
No full textThe research aims to study the livelihood security status of buffalo farmers in Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh. The information collected through direct interview using pretested structured interview schedule. A Total number of 120 buffalo farmers who possess at least two milch animals were selected from six villages using purposive and multi-stage random sampling. A composite of livelihood security index was developed for the study. The index values were further analyzed and categorized in to high, medium and low using appropriate statistical operations. The different dimensions of livelihood security studied were food, economic, livestock farming, social, institutional and environmental security. The food security (78.10%) was in better situation as compared to others and environmental security (31.20%) was in most vulnerable situation. The study inferred that most (40.80%) of the buffalo farmers were in medium livelihood security situation and the trend is towards better livelihood in the study area
Development of a Scale to Measure the Entrepreneurial Attitude Orientation of Agriculture Students
No full textEntrepreneurial Attitude Orientation (EAO) is a multi-dimensional construct that plays a vital role in shaping the entrepreneurial behaviour and career choices of agriculture students. As entrepreneurship emerges as a viable alternative to traditional employment in the agricultural sector, assessing students’ attitudes becomes crucial for effective policy planning and educational interventions. However, attitude being a latent psychological trait, cannot be measured directly through a single indicator. This necessitates the development of a standardized and valid scale to assess entrepreneurial attitude orientation among agriculture students. In the present study, a reliable instrument was developed using the Equal-Appearing Interval Scale method. An initial pool of 80 attitude statements related to entrepreneurship was generated through literature review and student interviews. These items were refined based on Edward’s criteria and subjected to evaluation by a panel of experts from Agricultural Universities, ICAR institutions, and entrepreneurship training centres. Based on judges’ ratings, a final scale comprising 10 attitude statements was selected, ensuring content validity, a wide and uniform distribution along the psychological continuum, high scale values, low Q-values, and a balanced representation of favourable and unfavourable items. The resulting Entrepreneurial Attitude Orientation Scale (EAOS) is a standardized tool with potential applications in academic assessments, entrepreneurship training programmes, and policy-level decision-making in agricultural education
Assessment of Rural Farmers’ Perception and Utilization of Traditional Medicines in Imo State, Nigeria
No full textThe study assessed rural farmers’ perception and utilization of traditional medicines in Imo state, Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedure was used. Randomly, 2 zones were sampled; 2 blocks chosen from each of the sampled zone; and 2 circles selected from each of the chosen block. A total of 96 respondents were randomly selected. However, only responses from 90 respondents were found useful for the data analysis. Respondents’ age and household size were measured at interval level while educational level was measured at ordinal level. Respondents’ perception to traditional medicine was measured using a 4 point Likert-typed scale and categorized as favourable (≥mean) and unfavourable (<mean). Use of traditional medicine was rated as frequently used(4), moderately used(3), rarely used(2), and not used(1) and ranked using mean criterion. Data were collected with well-structured questionnaire and analyzed with percentage, mean, and PPMC. Average age and household size were 51.28±10.06 and 8.00±3.00 respectively, while 40.0% had secondary education. Majority (70.0%) had favourable perception towards traditional medicine. Treatment of rheumatism and digestive issue with uziza (x̄=3.74), treatment of digestive problem with scent leaf (x̄=3.57), and treatment of rheumatism with ekpuaku (x̄=3.56) ranked most frequently utilized traditional medicine. Significant relationship existed between farmers’ perception and utilization of traditional medicine (r=0.427; p=0.000). The study concludes that despite varying educational background, majority of the respondents had favourable perception and frequent usage of traditional medicines. Extension professionals should be mandated by government to educate rural people on proper way of using traditional remedies so as to avoid their harmful effect
Decomposition Analysis of Soybean Production in Yawatmal District of Maharashtra
No full textYawatmal is among the major Soybean producing districts in the Maharashtra state. In year 2021-22, Yawatmal contributed to 6.26 per cent of total area under Soybean cultivation and 5.23 per cent of total production of Soybean in Maharashtra which is among the largest producer states of Soybean crop in India. The present research was aims at analysing the changes in soybean production. The study was carried out in Yawatmal district of Maharashtra for the period of 15 years from 2007-08 to 2021-22. The study used time series secondary data on area, production and Yield of Soybean in Yawatmal district collected from authorized government sources. The additive model of decomposition was used to determine the drivers behind the production of Soybean in Yawatmal district of Maharashtra through contribution of each of area and yield effect over the change in production viz., increase/decrease in Soybean production was studied. In the present study it was revealed that, the yield effect was the major contributing factor during the overall study period which was observed from the average annual growth rate of 15.04 percent and the contribution of 85.58 percent by yield of Soybean crop in Yawatmal district of Maharashtra. Whereas the average annual growth in area was observed to be negative at -2.92 percent with the contribution of 14.42 percent over the study period both collectively resulted in the average annual growth of Production to be 12.12 percent. The crop was found to have unstable yield over the years and more often the yield derived was very low from the very high coefficient of variations. The present study concluded that, the change in Soybean production was due to the yield effect in Yawatmal district of Maharashtra throughout the study period and the suggestions were made to increasing and stabilizing the yield of Soybean crop to improve the overall performance of Soybean in Maharashtra
Analysing Farmer Indebtedness: Determinants and Repayment Constraints in Bikaner District, India
No full textFarmer indebtedness in water-scarce regions poses a critical challenge to rural livelihoods and credit sustainability. This study examines 90 farm households in Bikaner district, Rajasthan—where 67.8% of households carry outstanding debt averaging ₹181.8 thousand each—to identify the key determinants of borrowing levels, default risk, and repayment constraints. Multiple linear regression explains 54.1% of variation in total loans, revealing that access to irrigated land (b = 0.495, p < 0.01), higher education (b = 0.234, p < 0.05), and greater reliance on non-institutional credit (b = 0.252, p < 0.01) significantly increase borrowing, while demographic and socio-economic factors such as age and non-farm income exert weaker effects. Logistic regression shows that older farmers (β = 0.779, p < 0.05) and those borrowing informally (β = 0.803, p < 0.05) face higher default risk, whereas larger landholdings (β = –0.140, p < 0.05) and off-farm income (β = –1.331, p < 0.10) enhance repayment capacity. The foremost barriers to loan servicing are low farmgate prices (64.8%), inadequate income (64.1%), and natural calamities (64.0%), compounded by crop failures, loan diversion, and excessive farm expenditure