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Spain occupies the first position in worldwide rankings of olive oil production and trade. This analysis assesses the relative technical efficiency with which this sector is operating. The concept of technical efficiency is critical to measuring the performance of a firm, determining the degree of innovative technology adoption and the overall production efficiency. Specifically, the main objective of this study is to assess the relative technical efficiency and to decompose the productivity growth of Spanish olive farms. Technical efficiency effects are assumed to be a function of firm-specific characteristics. Maximum-likelihood methods are applied to the estimation of the model. A primal approach is used to decompose total factor productivity (TFP) growth into its various components. Results indicate that farm location, age of manager, as well as the composition of the workforce affect efficiency levels. Technical efficiency changes and scale effects are found to be the main sources affecting TFP growth.

The cereal, oilseeds, and protein crop sector (COP) occupies a prominent position within the European Union's agricultural sector. Within Spain, the COP sector accounts for almost a third of total Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund expenses, and a half of the utilized agricultural area. The COP sector is not only relevant because of its physical and economic magnitude, but also because of the political attention it receives.The Common Agricultural Policy reforms that occurred during the 1990s paid special attention to this sector. This paper aims to determine the impacts of Agenda 2000 on a sample of Spanish COP farmers' production decisions by using an output-oriented stochastic distance function. The distance function allows for an assessment of the reformmotivated changes on total output, input used, input composition and crop mix. It also permits an assessment of the impacts of the reform on farms' technical efficiency.Results show that the reform has shifted the production frontier inward and changed output composition in favor of voluntary set aside land. With respect to input composition, Agenda 2000 induced a decrease in land, fertilizers, pesticides and other inputs in favor of labor. In addition, Agenda 2000 has had a negative impact on technical efficiency. IntroductionThe cereal, oilseeds and protein crop (COP) sector occupies a prominent position within the European Union's (EU) agricultural sector. This sector represented The EU is the third most important cereal producer in the world (behind China and the US) and accounts for 14.3% of total production, as well as 24.1% of world wheat exports and 42.9% of world barley exports (FAOSTAT, 2004). The main COP producing countries within the EU are France and Germany, followed by Italy, Poland and Spain.1 The rate of self-sufficiency in the EU is on the order of 118% for cereals, 80% for protein crops and 44% for oilseeds. The Spanish COP sector contributes 11%to the final agricultural output in Spain and is the third most frequent farming type among Spanish farms, after citrus and olive. Within Spain, the COP sector accounts for 28% of total EAGGF expenses, 48% of the UAA, and 37% of total agricultural area Compared to other EU producers, Spanish COP yields are lower with high annual variation due to uneven rainfall (Eurostat, 2007) 2 . Further, the average Spanish COP farm size (52.71 ha) is above the EU average (46.3 ha) (FAO, 2006; and Eurostat, 2008), although it is below the average farm size in France and Germany, on the order of 78.11 ha and 64.09 ha, respectively (Eurostat, 2008).The COP sector is not only relevant because of its physical and economic magnitude, but also because of the political attention it receives. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reforms that occurred during the 1990s involved specific policies for this sector. The reform in 1992 and Agenda 2000 involved reductions in 1 France ranks first among European countries in COP production accounting for 23.3% of total production followed by Germany with 15%, an...

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The Green Moroccan Plan (GMP) is a national long-term strategy launched by the Moroccan government to support the agricultural sector as the main driver of social and economic development. The GMP involves a labeling strategy based on geographical indications, aimed at protecting and promoting the marketing of locally produced food specialties and linking their specific qualities and reputations to their domestic production region. We evaluated the success of this policy by comparing consumers’ attitudes and preferences toward a local product having a geographical indication label to one without. We conducted a survey of 500 consumers in main Moroccan cities. The potential consumer set for the local product was found to be segmented, indicating the potential for a domestic niche of environmentally aware consumers preferring organically and sustainably produced food. We applied the analytical hierarchy process to prioritize the attributes of the commodities of interest, which underscores the importance of the origin when choosing a local product without origin labeling; for the labeled product, intrinsic quality attributes are considered to be more important. These findings demonstrate the limited promotion of the established origin labeling in the domestic market. Hence, we recommend that the Moroccan government reinforce the labeling scheme with an organic label to increase the market potential of the environmentally aware consumers by ensuring sustainable production of local products.

Origin labelling is one of the most prominent approaches in the Green Morocco Plan with which the Moroccan government aims to support the marketing of domestically produced food and then improve the income of smallholder farmers. We analyse the preferences and attitudes of Moroccan consumers towards the recently established Protected Geographical Indication label "Majhoul dates of Tafilalet". The analysis is based on a survey of 303 Moroccan consumers and focuses on the influence of the label as extrinsic attribute on consumer choice. We use cluster analysis to segment the market and the Analytical Hierarchy Process to shed light on preferences of consumers under this labelling strategy. Results indicate two consumer types. The largest group seeks authenticity, origin, and quality. The label of origin in general and the origin from the oasis of Tafilalet in particular are the most important attributes affecting the purchasing decisions which fit with the goal of the labelling strategy implanted as part of the policy. The acceptance of the labelling by Moroccan consumers implies that the neighbouring countries might pursue similar approaches to support rural livelihoods in arid areas.

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