The Analysis of Family Farm Efficiency and Its Influencing Factors: Evidence from Rural China

Zhigang Chen, Qianyue Meng, Kaixin Yan and Rongwei Xu
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Zhigang Chen: Institute of Regional and Urban-Rural Development, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Qianyue Meng: Institute of Regional and Urban-Rural Development, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Kaixin Yan: Institute of Regional and Urban-Rural Development, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Rongwei Xu: School of Economics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250358, China

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 4, 1-19

Abstract: Improving the efficiency of family farms is of great significance to rural revitalization and agricultural modernization in China. In order to find out the development status and shortcomings of family farms in China, and put forward targeted policy recommendations to improve the efficiency of various family farms, this paper applies the DEA model to measure the efficiency of family farms from a micro perspective by using the field survey data of the national family farm demonstration bases of Wuhan and Langxi, China. In addition, the Tobit model is further applied to explore the factors that affect the efficiency of full sample family farms, as well as to compare and analyze the differences in the efficiency in different regions and of different operation types. The results show that the efficiency of family farms is low, the efficiency of family farms in Wuhan is higher than that in Langxi, and the efficiency of breeding family farms is higher than that of planting family farms and mixed family farms. Capital input, farmers’ education level, market channels, brand registration, fertilizer usage and financial credit have positively affected the efficiency of family farms, while government subsidies and natural disasters have had negative effects on it. Specially, the land operating area shows a U-shaped relationship with farm efficiency. The efficiency of planting family farms is positively affected by labor input, while that of breeding and mixed family farms rely more on capital input and financial credit instead.

Keywords: family farm; efficiency; DEA model; Tobit model; farm operation; influencing factors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (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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