Long-Term Farming Trends. An Inquiry Using Agricultural Censuses

Gustavo Anríquez and Genny Bonomi
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Gustavo Anríquez: Agricultural and Development Economics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization
Genny Bonomi: Agricultural and Development Economics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization

No 07-20, Working Papers from Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO - ESA)

Abstract: This paper provides a long-term and global view at current farming trends by analyzing a specially created database of farming characteristics of 17 countries across 43 different agricultural censuses representing the different developing regions of the world. The study shows that while agricultural land appears to be a constraint in central and East Asia, it has been under expansion in Latin America, Northern Africa, and most of Sub Saharan Africa. We also estimate that 9 out of 10 farms are small (i.e. smaller than 2 ha). These farms are more specialized in staple crops than their larger counterparts, and exhibit slower productivity growth.

Keywords: Small Farms; land distribution; agricultural census; productivity. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q10 Q15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-agr, nep-dev and nep-sea
Date: Written 2007

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