Address: Centre for Rural Policy Research, College of Social Sciences & International Studies, Lazenby, Prince of Wales Road, Exeter, Devon, UK. EX4 4PJ
Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, 2009
ABSTRACT Organic farming is similar to conventional agriculture in that it is bifurcated in terms... more ABSTRACT Organic farming is similar to conventional agriculture in that it is bifurcated in terms of production with the 10% largest farms accounting for over half of sales and half of all full time staff employed. Larger organic businesses are more orientated towards national markets and tend to produce bulk commodities. Smaller, more locally orientated producers are more likely to add value to their produce and to market locally. Consumers of organic food tend not to be particularly price sensitive and are motivated by health and environmental concerns and the desire to support British farmers. They are concerned with the freshness of the products and an expectation by some that they are locally produced. So there may be an 'expectations gap' developing between what is required for organic certification and what consumers expect organic food to deliver.
Organic agriculture has a totemic role in debates about farming. Domestic organic production is t... more Organic agriculture has a totemic role in debates about farming. Domestic organic production is thought to play a role in relocalised food networks. However, little is known about the market orientation of organic producers in England and Wales. Drawing on a mixed methods approach this paper characterises national, regional and local markets for organic food from a supply perspective. It identifies local, regional and national market orientation and considers the concentration of marketing channels using the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index. The analysis demonstrates the heterogeneity of the sector and an uneven geography of organic marketing in England and Wales.
Aimed at readers interested in a wide range of rural issues, the Centre for Rural Research Annual... more Aimed at readers interested in a wide range of rural issues, the Centre for Rural Research Annual Review 2004 offers an overview of the work conducted by CRR staff over the last twelve months. This year's collection of papers reflects the growing diversity of research undertaken by members of the Centre, ranging from longstanding areas of interest such as changing farm incomes through to the role of women in rural economies and the war time Plough-Up campaign. In many cases full reports or further details on individual projects are available from the CRR website: www.ex.ac.uk/crr.
A large number of people have helped us in the course of this project. We are very grateful to al... more A large number of people have helped us in the course of this project. We are very grateful to all of them. Neil Spencer convened the focus groups and assisted with the Policy Forum. Chris Firth (with the help of Ulrich Schmutz) provided expertise on opportunities and barriers to expansion of organic production. Matt Reed took part in farm interviews, stakeholder engagement and provided comments on an earlier draft of this report. Carol Kambites also took part in farmer interviewers and commented on an earlier draft of this report. Members of the stakeholder panel provided helpful information at various stages of the project and a number took part in the final Policy Forum. We are grateful to Rob Fish for preparing a summary of the main report; and Alan Hopkins who convened the stakeholder workshops and contributed to several other aspects of the project. We are grateful to Guy and Rachel Watson from Riverford, Alan Schofield from Growing With Nature and Renee Elliot from Planet Organic for allowing us access to their customers and, finally, we are particularly grateful to all the farmers and consumers who gave so freely of their time to complete the postal questionnaires, take part in face-to-face interviews, focus groups and the Policy Forum. All errors and omissions are, of course, the responsibility of the authors. The basic information on which this report is based was originally collected on behalf of, and financed by, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Chapter 1 Project background, aims and methodology 1 Chapter 2 Patterns and trends in agricultura... more Chapter 1 Project background, aims and methodology 1 Chapter 2 Patterns and trends in agricultural restructuring 6 Chapter 3 The social implications of agricultural restructuring 24 Chapter 4 Farmers in the community 40 Chapter 5 Conclusions and policy observations 50 References 55 Appendix 1 Methodology 58 Appendix 2 Parish Council consultation 61 Appendix 3 Household survey questionnaire 69 Tests of Statistical Significance: A Note On a number of occasions in this report comparisons are made between characteristics of subgroups of respondents using bivariate tabular analysis. In these cases Chi 2 has been calculated to test the statistical significance of the independence between two categorical variables. A 'significant' association between variables is taken to be one where there is less than a 5% probability of the difference arising by chance (p < 0.05). This report also notes statistical significance regarding the comparison of means between subgroups of respondents. For these, the t-tests procedure compares the means for two groups of cases. A 'significant' difference between means is taken when there is a less than 5% probability of the difference arriving by chance (p < 0.05). Tables with total rows may not sum exactly to 100% due to rounding.
This paper considers farmer intentions following the implementation of the 2003 CAP reforms, iden... more This paper considers farmer intentions following the implementation of the 2003 CAP reforms, identifies the extent to which these plans have been influenced by the introduction of the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) in 2005 and considers the implications in terms of likely structural change (i.e. changes in the deployment of land, labour and capital). The analysis uses data from a large sample survey of farmers in South West England and the results indicate that CAP reform is not stimulating rapid agricultural restructuring, rather it appears to be reinforcing many existing trends towards diversification and an increasing polarisation between the largest and smallest farms. CAP reform is impacting unevenly on the farm community and different farming situations are associated with different types of reaction. Market signals may become a more powerful driver of farmer behaviour, in which case the 2003 reforms will have proved successful in providing farmers the freedom to farm without coupled subsidies. On the basis of the results presented in this paper though, only a minority of farmers seem both well placed and well disposed to exploit such opportunities.
Recognition that an economy is complex is not new. Frederick von Hayek, for example, made explici... more Recognition that an economy is complex is not new. Frederick von Hayek, for example, made explicit that markets are complex systems in the 1960s. Contemporary proponents of complexity, movement across the sciences including economics, argue that an economy is a complex system in which economic agents (whether consumers, banks, firms or farmers) continually adjust and react to market behaviour of others. A major claim by these
Acknowledgements and disclaimers We are grateful for the help and information provided by Graham ... more Acknowledgements and disclaimers We are grateful for the help and information provided by Graham Wills and David Lloyd during the course of this research and, in particular, to all the farmers who returned questionnaires, often providing considerable additional information. All errors and omissions are the responsibility of the authors.
This paper addressed the effects of climate on the net revenue of farmers in Cross River State. T... more This paper addressed the effects of climate on the net revenue of farmers in Cross River State. The specific objectives of this paper are; to examine the level of yam production in Cross River State and, to determine the factors that affect farmers' net revenue. Data was collected from 209 farmers using a well-structured questionnaire. The analysis was done using the independent sample t-test, the Chi-square test and Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression. The findings revealed that the mean value of the respondents on the level of profit was N88,192.13, while the maximum and minimum amount were N110,000 and N50,000, respectively. The independent sample t-test showed that education produced a statistically significant difference in means. The Chi-square test showed that educational level (p-value =0.047), age (p-value=0.034), farming experience (p-value=0.061) and access to credit (p-value=0.088) have a relationship with the net revenue of farmers. The result from the OLS regres...
The Vet Futures Report has identified ‘exceptional leadership’ as a key ambition for the long-ter... more The Vet Futures Report has identified ‘exceptional leadership’ as a key ambition for the long-term sustainability of the industry. This research investigates what it is like to be a veterinary surgeon in an in-practice leadership position, applying the qualitative methodology of interpretative phenomenological analysis. Through the researchers’ interpretation of the seven participants’ stories of their leadership experiences, the study advances understanding of the work environment, underlying motivations and the perceived responsibilities of veterinary leaders. Findings suggest, for many, a struggle in transition to leader positions, improving with time. The increase in pace of work is relayed by participants, with an ongoing, and unchallenged, work–life imbalance. The vets involved are highly motivated, driven by enjoyment of their jobs, a desire for self-determination and a need to make a difference. Relationships form the core of the perceived responsibilities, and yet are ident...
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