Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T11:00:24.427Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Beyond profitability: Using economic indicators to measure farm sustainability

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 October 2009

S. Freyenberger ,
R. Levins ,
D. Norman  and
D. Rumsey
S. Freyenberger
Affiliation:
Former Extension Associate, Kansas Center for Agricultural Resources and the Environment, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506;
R. Levins
Affiliation:
Professor and Extension Agricultural Economist, Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108;
D. Norman*
Affiliation:
Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506;
D. Rumsey
Affiliation:
Director, Math Sciences Learning Center, Department of Mathematics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210.
*
Corresponding author is D. Norman ([email protected]).
Get access

Abstract

United States farm policy has a long tradition of subsidizing farmers in order to achieve national goals. The issue of agricultural subsidies poses a particular challenge in terms of relevant policy design. This paper explores the potential for economic indicators to guide policies that encourage sustainable agriculture through alternative-oriented approaches. We begin by reviewing several indicators of sustainable agriculture that have been proposed previously. We then suggest a set of three economic indicators: energy and machinery use, creation of local jobs, and feed balance, and apply them to two groups of farmers: conventional farmers and those with an explicit orientation towards sustainable agriculture. Though our survey groups cannot be compared statistically, it appears that these three indicators are capable of distinguishing between the two farmer groups. We conclude with some suggestions for further research and application.

Keywords

economic analysisgovernment farm paymentsKansassustainability indicatorssustainable agricultureU.S. farm policy
Type
Articles
Information
American Journal of Alternative Agriculture , Volume 16 , Issue 1 , March 2001 , pp. 31 - 34
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2001

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.AJAA. 1992. Amer. J. Alternative Agric. 7(1/2). Henry A. Wallace Institute for Alternative Agriculture, Greenbelt, MD.Google Scholar
2.ASA. 1989. Decision reached on sustainable ag. Agron. News (January): 15. American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI.Google Scholar
3.DeLano, F.D. 1993. Annual Report 1993: Management Information, Kansas Farm Management Association. Kansas State University Cooperative Extension Service; Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Manhattan.Google Scholar
4.Dobbs, T., and Cole, J.. 1992. Potential effects on rural economies of conversion to sustainable farming systems. Amer. J. Alternative Agric. 7:70–80.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5.Doran, J.W., Coleman, D.C., Bezdicek, D.F., and Stewart, B.A. (eds.). 1994. Defining Soil Quality for a Sustainable Environment. SSSA Spec. Pub. 35. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6.Featherstone, A.M., Griebel, J.C., and Langemeier, L.N.. 1992. A comparison of the Farm Management Association data to the USDA cost and return data. Farm Manage. Newsl. (April). Kansas State University, Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Manhattan.Google Scholar
7.Freyenberger, S., Bloomquist, L., Norman, D., Regehr, D., and Schurle, B.. 1994. On-farm research in Kansas, 1993: A survey of farmers' opinions. Agric. Exp. Sta. Report of Progress No. 720. Kansas State University, Manhattan.Google Scholar
8.Freyenberger, S., Janke, R., and Norman, D.. 1997. Indicators of sustainability in whole farm planning: Literature review. Kansas Sustainable Agriculture Series No. 2. Kansas State University, Manhattan. Web site http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/sustainableag/publications/ksas2.htm (verified November 2000).Google Scholar
9.Goodwin, B.K., and Kastens, T.L.. 1993. Adverse selection, disaster relief, and the demand for multiple-peril crop insurance. A research report prepared for the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. Project No. 92- EXCA-3-3020. Kansas State University, Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Manhattan.Google Scholar
10.Ikerd, J. 1992. Impacts of policy on the economics of sustainable agriculture. Outlook '93. Booklet 5. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, DC. p. 47–58.Google Scholar
11.Ikerd, J. 1999. The economics of sustainable agriculture [adapted from sanet-mg Internet discussion group posting]. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education, 1,000 Ways to Sustainable Farming project. Web site http://1000ways.baka.com/resource/economic.htm (verified November 2000).Google Scholar
12.Kline, E. 1994. Seeking sustainability results: Choosing and applying indicators in communities. In Bellows, B.C. (ed.). Proceedings from the SANREM CRSP Conference and Workshop on Indicators of Sustain ability, August 1–5, Arlington, Virginia. SANREM CRSP-PVO/University Center, Cullawhee, NC. p. 51–59.Google Scholar
13.Levins, R.A. 1996. Monitoring Sustainable Agriculture with Conventional Financial Data. Land Stewardship Project, White Bear Lake, MN. Web site http://www.misa.umn.edu/~lsp/MTB/monitoring.pdf (verified November 2000).Google Scholar
14.Ndiaye, E.L., Sandeno, J.M., McGrath, D., and Dick, R.P.. 2000. Integrative biological indicators for detecting change in soil fertility. Amer. J. Alternative Agric. 15:26–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15.Norman, D., Bloomquist, L., Janke, R., Freyenberger, S., Jost, J., Schurle, B., and Kok, H.. 2000. The meaning of sustainable agriculture: Reflections of some Kansas practitioners. Amer. J. Alternative Agric. 15:129–133.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16.Risser, P. 1995. Indicators of grassland sustainability: A first approximation. In Munasinghe, M. and Shearer, W. (eds.). Defining and Measuring Sustainability: The Biogeophysical Foundations. United Nations University, New York. p. 309–319.Google Scholar