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Technology Adoption and Technical Efficiency: Organic and Conventional Dairy Farms in the United States
C. D. Mayen1, J. V. Balagtas2 and C. E. Alexander2
Abstract
We compare productivity and technical efficiency of organic and conventional dairy farms in the United States.
We address self-selection into organic farming by using propensity score matching and explicitly test the hypothesis that organic and conventional farms employ a single, homogeneous technology.
Utilizing the 2005 Agricultural Resource Management Survey on Dairy Costs and Returns Report (ARMS) data, we reject the homogeneous technology hypothesis and find that the organic dairy technology is approximately 13% less productive. However, we find little difference in technical efficiency between organic and conventional farms when technical efficiency is measured against the appropriate technology.
Source
American Journal of Agricultural Economics (2010) 92: 181-195
DOI: 10.1093/ajae/aap018
Author Locations and Affiliations
(1) Department of Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Business, New Mexico State University
(2) Department of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University
Posted May 2011