A model to determine the impact of improved agricultural efficiency in Manitoba
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Date
1978
Authors
Ahmad, Bashir.
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Abstract
One of the major objectives of agricultural policy in Canada over time has been the efficient use of resources in the agriculture industry. Efficient use of resources among other things depends on the size of the firm. There are several measures of farm size e.g. number of acres, gross value of production, number of workers, net returns etc. A measure is usually selected by how well it serves as a base for the particuiar kinds of size comparison to be made.... The general objectives of the study were to determine the spatial optimal organization of crop production in Manitoba, given efficient sized farms, and to estimate the income and employment and the distribution of both with this organization. To deal with these objectives, an efficient farm size was determined by using the survivor approach. It was assumed that the farms so determined were of efficient size for the present study. Then a multiregional linear programming model was developed in order to determine the optimal organization. Two soil types, all the crop districts of Manitoba and nine crops were included in the model. The crops were wheat, oats, barley, flaxseed, rapeseed, rye, sunflowers, potatoes and sugarbeets. Restraints were specified with regard to the availability of land of each soil type, maximum and minimum production of each crop, and the minimum amount of metabolized energy required at the crop district level. Minimum demand constraints were also placed on each commodity at the provincial level. The optimum organization for crop production was defined as that combination of activities which maximized net income...