Farm Typology and Sustainable Agriculture: Does Size Matter?

Tavernier, Edmund M.; Tolomeo, Vic

doi:10.1300/j064v24n02_05

Cited by 33 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…The social requisites for sustainability in general have received much less attention than the environmental and economic components, and the distinctions between alternative approaches to social sustainability are not nearly as well defined as those of environmental and economic sustainability. From a farm policy perspective, much of the discussion of the social component of sustainable agriculture has revolved around meeting the needs of small farmers and the economic health of rural communities (Ashwood, Diamond, & Thu, 2014;Hamilton, 2014;Kirner & Kratochvil, 2006;Pilgeram, 2011;Reinhardt & Barlett, 1989;Tavernier & Tolomeo, 2004;Woodhouse, 2010). However, a broader agenda of food and agriculture-related issues also exists and is perhaps growing in importance.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Moore

Swisher

Rodríguez³

et al. 2016

J. Agric. Food Syst. Community Dev.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Moore

Swisher

Rodríguez³

et al. 2016

J. Agric. Food Syst. Community Dev.

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“…Tavernier and Tolomeo (2004) found that smaller farms in New Jersey were more likely than larger farms to engage in "sustainable agriculture," but this effect reverses direction when the operator owns more than 75% of the land. The reason given for this result is that owners, with an equity stake in the land, are more likely than tenants to behave in accordance with the impermanence syndrome, rejecting sustainable practices as a waste of money.…”

Section: Regression Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Both of these variables are expected to increase the probability of making investments of all types (James and Hendrickson, 2010;Fernandez-Cornejo and Daberkow, 2002;Lambert et al, 2007), although smaller farms are frequently hypothesized to be more environmentally oriented (Tavernier and Tolomeo, 2004;Welsh and Rivers, 2011).…”

Section: Description Of Regression Analysis and Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A large literature exists on the relationship between on-farm business decisions and farm or farmer characteristics that include all of these traits, as well as tenancy/absentee ownership (Soule et al, 2000;Lambert et al, 2007;Wilson et al, 2013). A significant subset of this literature is concerned primarily with conservation or environmental practices (Clearfield and Osgood, 1986;Tavernier and Tolomeo, 2004;Soule, 2001;Sassenrath et al, 2010;Petrzelka et al, 2013). In fact, most studies in agricultural economics that focus on traditional capital investments like equipment and buildings are designed to test hypotheses about financial decision-making or federal farm policies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Are preserved farms actively engaged in agriculture and conservation?

et al. 2015

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Abstract:This study addresses the question of whether farms enrolled in land preservation programs are actively engaged in agricultural or conservation activities. Data are drawn from an original survey administered to preserved farm owners in the states of New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware in 2011. "Actively engaged" is defined as investment in conservation projects, buildings, equipment, or irrigation since the land was preserved. Affirmative answers to the survey's investment questions range from a low of 19% for irrigation to a high of 69% for equipment. Special attention was paid to differences between lifestyle farmers and small and large commercial farmers, which are classified using the USDA typology developed in 2000. Regression analysis estimates differences in investment behavior across these groups as well as farm tenure categories, controlling for farm size, program/ state location, and demographic variables. Only owners who employ tenants or managers exclusively on their land were found to invest significantly less than the largest professional farmers, and they did so across all four types of investment. This study's findings support preservation goals articulated by legislators and program administrators, because (1) agricultural and land stewardship investments appear to be widespread on preserved farms, partly due to administrators' preference for larger parcels, (2) there is no evidence that "hobby farmers" are disproportionately attracted to farmland preservation programs -in fact the opposite seems to be true -while those that exist in our sample behave similarly to the largest commercial farmers, (3) although tenant farming is associated in the sample with lower rates of investment, it is less common on preserved farms than on all farms in the three study states. The matter of land tenure, highlighted in this as in other studies, has not yet become a primary focus of either farm-behavioral research or state agricultural policy. 2 Es s E k s E t a l .

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“…For example, Lee (1980) finds that while the business structure of farms does not affect rates of soil erosion, the size of farms as measured by net farm income is important, with small-scale farms having relatively larger rates of erosion than larger farms. In contrast, Tavernier and Tolomeo (2004) suggest that smaller farms are more likely than larger farms to promote sustainable agriculture because of the significant relationship they find between farm size and land tenure. Lambert et al (2007) find evidence that scale of farm operations is related to decisions to adopt some conservation practices, with larger farms being motivated to adopt practices that lower costs or increase yields and profits.…”

mentioning

confidence: 86%

Are Farmers of the Middle Distinctively “Good Stewards”? Evidence from the Missouri Farm Poll, 2006

James

Hendrickson

2010

J Agric Environ Ethics

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Abstract:In this paper we consider the question of whether middle-scale farmers, which we define as producers generating between $100,000 and$250,000 in sales annually, are better agricultural stewards than small and large-scale producers. Our study is motivated by the argument of some commentators that farmers of this class ought to be protected in part because of the unique attitudes and values they possess regarding what constitutes a "good farmer". We present results of a survey of Missouri farmers designed to assess farmer attitudes and values regarding a variety of indicators of farmer stewardship, such as the most important issues in agriculture, environment and treatment of farm animals, perspectives on the past and future of agriculture, and ethical behavior. We find no evidence that farmers-of-the-middle are particularly noteworthy in these regards. We do find evidence, however, that middle-scale farmers are more pessimistic and anxious about their role in the future of agriculture.

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Farm Typology and Sustainable Agriculture: Does Size Matter?

Cited by 33 publications

References 14 publications

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Are preserved farms actively engaged in agriculture and conservation?

Are Farmers of the Middle Distinctively “Good Stewards”? Evidence from the Missouri Farm Poll, 2006

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