Impact of Labor Migration on Chemical Fertilizer Application of Citrus Growers: Empirical Evidence from China

Ruixin Zhang, Lei Luo, Yuying Liu and Xinhong Fu
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Ruixin Zhang: College of Management, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
Lei Luo: College of Management, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
Yuying Liu: Sichuan Center for Rural Development Research, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
Xinhong Fu: College of Management, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 13, 1-14

Abstract: Due to the growing trend of rural labor migration, farmers’ labor allocation under the condition of constant time endowment has gradually become a key factor in the transformation of green agricultural production methods. Using the propensity score matching method, this paper verified the influence of labor migration on citrus growers’ fertilizer application using 814 survey data from Sichuan Province, China. The study found that the boosting effect of capacity accumulation brought on by farmers’ labor migration was greater than the weakening effect of labor constraints and that the average chemical fertilizer application per acre decreased from 6.95 to 6.74 after farmers’ labor migration, a 3.06 percent decrease. Second, labor migration reduces chemical fertilizer application by allowing farmers to acquire knowledge and technology for green agricultural production and to increase off-farm income. Third, the choice of labor migration by farmers with higher agricultural incomes and younger ages promotes a reduction in their chemical fertilizer application. Therefore, this paper makes the following suggestions: the government should appropriately guide farmers in their labor migration decisions, increase public awareness of green agricultural knowledge and technology, and encourage farmers to to invest their off-farm income in green production. Farmers with higher agricultural income and younger ages, in particular, should be encouraged to choose labor migration and train to become new agricultural business entities.

Keywords: labor migration; amount of chemical fertilizer; citrus growers; propensity score matching; mediating effect (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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