1,721,010 research outputs found
Farm Business Management - analysis of farming systems
No full textThis book discusses the methods to determine optimal systems in farm business management. The methods are all about problem solving, as any decision situation implies choice and, therefore, requires a method for deciding which alternative maximizes the objectives. The book is not, however, about carrying out the optimal plans. Most of the chapters relate to quantitative methods and qualitative analysis. The book has a penultimate chapter discussing a number of analytical models that are commonly used in urban business but which are less important in primary production. The results of farming systems analyses can have a major impact on good decision-making in any primary producing community. Some of the methods might be used by farmers themselves, but more likely by farm advisors and consultants, and by farm management researchers interested in, firstly, providing farmers with guidance on optimal systems, and, secondly, providing governments with advice on the impact of farm policy measures
Actual and potential computer use by a group of primary producers
No full text"In the rural sector, computer adoption has been significant, although not at the rate evident in the urban scene. In order to identify the level and type of computer use practised by rural businesses, especially farmers, a survey was carried out by the Kellogg Farm Management Unit at Lincoln University. The results of that survey are presented in this research report.
The Agribusiness and Economics Research Unit has a continuing interest in farmer decision
making, the information sources used and the aids employed in making farm business
decisions. This research report provides information on the computing side of farmer
decision making and provides useful insight to that process. We anticipate that publication of these research results will be of considerable interest to those in farm business management, and to those involved in providing computer hardware and software to the rural sector. We also anticipate that these research results will enable those servicing the rural sector to make more effective contributions to farmer decision making and so help to enhance the efficiency of the farm management process.
The use of linear programming for individual farm planning
No full textWe are all only too aware of the decline in our living standards and the immediate causes of this situation. Most of us accept that the primary sector can, and must, play an important part in rectifying the problem. Unfortunately, the best that may be realistically possible is a halt to the decline in material standards — unless, that is, an unknown fairy godmother with a special talent for altering the terms of trade suddenly appears out of the forthcoming elections. Even though many things are possible in our political scene, I for one don't think our hopes should lie in this direction
The psychology of decision making in farm management : a review of the background to managerial ability, and suggestions for a research programme to investigate its improvement
No full textManagerial ability has always been regarded as an important parameter in agricultural production. However, while there have been studies on descriptive aspects of management processes and abilities (e.g., Johnson et al (1961)), few studies have focussed on developing methods and procedures for improving the level of individual manager's abilities. This review is designed to appraise the background to managerial ability, particularly with respect to the relevant psychological research, and to consider the structure of research programmes designed to develop ability enhancing systems
The management of Christchurch milk supply farms
No full textThe number of town milk producing farms in the Christchurch region is relatively small compared with other classes of farms. It is partly for this reason that a comprehensive farm management study of town milk dairy farming has not been carried out in the past. Work presented in this bulletin attempts to make a contribution towards meeting this gap. It is based on research carried out during the period 1965-67, part of which involved an analysis of the profitability of different management systems on a particular farm. It is this section, together with supporting information, that is presented. The farm chosen was carefully selected so that it would have similar attributes to as many other farms as possible, the selection being based on information obtained from a postal survey sent to all town milk producers in 1965. The bulletin consists of six sections. The first section defines the area in which milk is produced and discusses its soils and climate. In section two the major management decisions which must be made by a town supply farmer are discussed and some of the factors which should influence these decisions are outlined. In section three descriptive information obtained about farms in the area from the postal survey and the method used in selecting the case farm from this information is presented. In section four the method used to determine the optimum management systems for the case farm is briefly discussed while in section five the results of this analysis are given. Finally a summary of recommendations is given in section six. In order to widen the applicability of the results the analysis compared management systems for different quota levels. No claim can be made that the results can be directly applied to other farms. The most that can be claimed is that the method of selecting the case-form gives some confidence in making recommendations based on these results. Over four years have elapsed since the postal survey was conducted. In the interim some of the statistics used in selecting the case farm will have changed but it is believed that these changes will not have significantly affected the results. Statistics such as the area of farms and the number of labour units employed do not change much where a large number of farms is considered. Similarly, as the prices and costs existing at the end of 1967 were used in the analysis some of the optimum plans could change slightly if the analysis was based on current prices. In the original analysis the effect of price changes was explored and this indicated that the optimum management systems determined were quite stable in relation to price variations. It is therefore considered that the major conclusion of this analysis apply. Minor changes considered possible are outlined in the results section
Challenges in computer systems for farmers
No full textAlmost since computers first became generally available for research purposes, farm management professionals have been using their power to help farmers make improved decisions. In 1966 university computers were used for optimal farming systems research and not long after this cash recording and analysis systems based on mail communication were instituted on a trial basis. This latter experiment followed work in the United States (Michigan State University) based in part on calculator like devices which, when attached to the mouthpiece of a telephone, could be used to send data to a remotely based computer. The printed results were then mailed back. The Michigan experiment proved to be successful partly because U.S. farmers rely less on accountants than New Zealand producers for tax returns and, consequently, were receptive to a machine that solved the problem of many late and confusing nights. In the end most of this work relied on mailing the data to a central computer rather than the telephone device as this proved unreliable. The technology available today has, however, markedly changed this situation. Despite the early computer work using sophisticated operations research techniques, the management aids that have prospered are the simple budgeting and accounting systems. Some success was, however, achieved in Indiana with using linear programming by bringing farmers to the University in workshop groups. The campus computer, with the help of experts, was then used to produce machinery and cropping programmes for each farmer. The experts were an important ingredient of the process as setting up and interpretation required experience. After several years of workshops the experts lost their enthusiasm so the Top Farmer Programme, as it was called, waned. Perhaps the advent of powerful personal computers and improved interface systems might eventually enable linear programming to be reinstated without the need for expert assistance. Even given the early successes with recording systems, it was really not until the end of the 70's and early 80's when microcomputers started to become available that computer based management aids started to become a truly significant factor in farm management. While many people believed central computers could be useful through mail-in operations, the facts were that the form filling, transcription errors and mail delays prevented any real growth. With the chance of removing these frustrations the situation changed overnight. This paper contains a discussion on the developments that have subsequently occurred worldwide in computer based management aids as well as thoughts on the future developments required and the form these might take. A conclusion on the steps necessary to achieve the needed improvements is also provided. Growth in on farm computers has occurred because most producers find the process and results useful. A recent survey indicated some 54% of computer users believed the benefits covered the costs (cash costs were believed to average 2500 depending on the interest and depreciation rates assumed. If labour is also a charge this becomes approximately 5000 is necessary for the investment to be worthwhile. In some respects cost benefit studies will be superfluous as the consumer society will tend to force computers on all families in much the same way as cars and television sets, to give two examples, have become necessities. For better or worse, the computer will increasingly become an integral part of society. Similarly, many other electronic based technologies will be introduced. Chip controlled fuel injection and computer controlled cultivation equipment depth are two examples. Massive development funding is going into evolving devices for all areas of agricultural activity so farm managers will increasingly be faced with using electronic based equipment. This will certainly change the nature of on farm repairs
Factors associated with the development of effective experience in excellent managerial ability
No full textModelling farmers’ managerial ability shows that farmers’ lessons from various forms of experience are by far the most significant factor in achieving high management skill. This begs the question of obtaining an understanding of the components making up successful experiential outcomes. To help unravel this question the results from analysing 740 farmer survey questionnaires is presented. It turns out high ‘experience’ is related to many factors
Design Considerations for Computer Based Marketing and Information Systems
No full textRecent years have seen a major revolution in the world of
electronics. Computers have increased in size and capability and at
the same time decreased in cost. Equally as important, communication
systems have improved, though not yet to the same extent as computers,
and will continue to do so.
In contrast, the cost of providing farmers with information
that is constantly updated using traditional methods is increasing.
Similarly, the increasing cost of transport and personnel costs means
marketing costs using traditional auction and contract arrangements
continue to increase. To counteract these cost problems the
agricultural sector is expressing considerable interest in the
potential for replacing traditional information and marketing systems
with computer based operations.
To satisfy this demand for information this paper contains a
review of the alternative systems available. The different types of
systems available are defined and their advantages and disadvantages
listed. Probably more importantly, considerable attention is paid to
design details and practical questions which, in the end, will
determine whether the promise of cost economies are in fact achieved.
Finally, an argument is presented that for the success of
electronic systems it is essential to have national integration
through a cooperative communication system in contrast to government
domination on the one hand or complete independence of competing
systems on the other
A management study of town supply dairy farming in the Christchurch area
No full textTown milk supply is produced by small groups
of farmers throughout the country, each with its own particular problems. Many of the areas are not suited to dairy farming
so that town milk producing farms are often isolated groups
in the middle of sheep and cropping areas. Because
entry to the market is restricted by allocating production
quotas to selected suppliers, the major enterprise on these
farms is milk production rather than some other product as
might be the case in other than dairying districts. The importance of the butterfat industry has meant that most dairying research has been centred on this class of
farming rather than on liquid milk production. Most of the
technical research, however, can also be applied to town milk
farms and as a result methods of production have altered considerably.
Economic research, on the other hand, has largely
been inapplicable to this industry both at the macro and micro levels and for this reason there is a need for this kind of
work. There is no doubt, however, that the return to a
given outlay on micro-economic research will be comparatively small due to the large number of different groups involved.
In some cases the same conclusion must apply to macroeconomic research. This study is primarily concerned with analysing the profit maximising problem facing a town supply dairy farmer the Christchurch area. It also considers the setting of the price of milk received by the producer but does not critically examine the other aspects of the industry. The farm used in the study was selected so that it was representative of a section of the farm population.
The presentation of this study has been divided into eight chapters. The development of the town milk industry
with particular reference to the method adopted in setting the producer price is discussed Chapter II. In Chapter III
the physical nature of the Christchurch area is specified and the physical management aspects of this type of farming are
discussed. The farms in the area are described and the
method and factors used in selecting the case study farms are
outlined in Chapter IV. The linear programming tableau used
in studying the farmer's profit maximising problem is defined
in Chapter V. In Chapter VI the results of the analysis are
presented and discussed. The results obtained by using
linear programming to calculate milk supply price estimates
are presented and discussed in Chapter VII.
Chapter VIII the study is summarized.
Finally, in Chapter VIII the study is summarized
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