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Technical efficiency and technological gap of New Zealand dairy farms: a stochastic meta-frontier model

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  • Nan Jiang
  • Basil Sharp

Abstract

The New Zealand North and South Island dairy farms differ in terms of climate, soil type and farming history. Using stochastic frontier models, an unbalanced panel of 1,294 dairy farms for the period between 1998/99 and 2006/07 is employed to test the hypothesis that the two regions share the same technology (The New Zealand dairy season runs from 1 June to 31 May each year). Results indicate heterogeneity in production technology across farms located in different islands. A meta-frontier model proposed by Battese et al. (J Product Anal 21:91–103, 2004 ) and O’Donnell et al. (Empir Econ 34:231–255, 2008 ) is therefore used to calculate the technological gap and compare on-farm technical efficiency. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

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  • Nan Jiang & Basil Sharp, 2015. "Technical efficiency and technological gap of New Zealand dairy farms: a stochastic meta-frontier model," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 44(1), pages 39-49, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jproda:v:44:y:2015:i:1:p:39-49
    DOI: 10.1007/s11123-015-0429-z
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    3. Ligia Alba Melo-Becerra & Antonio José Orozco-Gallo, 2015. "Eficiencia técnica de los hogares con producción agropecuaria en Colombia," Documentos de trabajo sobre Economía Regional y Urbana 227, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    4. Wanglin Ma & Kathryn Bicknell & Alan Renwick, 2019. "Feed use intensification and technical efficiency of dairy farms in New Zealand," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 63(1), pages 20-38, January.
    5. Maria Martinez Cillero & Michael Wallace & Fiona Thorne & James Breen, 2021. "Analyzing the Impact of Subsidies on Beef Production Efficiency in Selected European Union Countries. A Stochastic Metafrontier Approach," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 103(5), pages 1903-1923, October.
    6. Anastasiadis, Simon & Kerr, Suzi, 2012. "Mitigation and Heterogeneity in Management Practices on New Zealand Dairy Farms," 2012 Conference, August 31, 2012, Nelson, New Zealand 136039, New Zealand Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
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    8. Wanglin Ma & Alan Renwick & Kathryn Bicknell, 2018. "Higher Intensity, Higher Profit? Empirical Evidence from Dairy Farming in New Zealand," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 69(3), pages 739-755, September.
    9. Soliman, Tarek & Djanibekov, Utkur, 2018. "Assessing dairy farming eco-efficiency in New Zealand: A two–stage data envelopment analysis," 2018 Annual Meeting, August 5-7, Washington, D.C. 274374, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    10. Asante, Bright O. & Temoso, Omphile & Addai, Kwabena N. & Villano, Renato A., 2019. "Evaluating productivity gaps in maize production across different agroecological zones in Ghana," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    11. Walheer, Barnabé, 2018. "Aggregation of metafrontier technology gap ratios: the case of European sectors in 1995–2015," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 269(3), pages 1013-1026.
    12. Elizabeth Ahikiriza & Jef Meensel & Xavier Gellynck & Ludwig Lauwers, 2021. "Heterogeneity in frontier analysis: does it matter for benchmarking farms?," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 56(2), pages 69-84, December.
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    14. Artur Wilczynski & Ewa Koloszycz & Michal Switlyk, 2020. "Technical Efficiency of Dairy Farms: An Empirical Study of Producers in Poland," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(1), pages 117-127.
    15. Binlei Gong & Robin C. Sickles, 2021. "Resource allocation in multi-divisional multi-product firms," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 55(2), pages 47-70, April.
    16. Villano, Renato & Asante, Bright Owusu & Bravo-Ureta, Boris, 2019. "Farming systems and productivity gaps: Opportunities for improving smallholder performance in the Forest-Savannah transition zone of Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 220-227.
    17. Lungelo P. Cele & Thia Hennessy & Fiona Thorne, 2023. "Regional technical efficiency rankings and their determinants in the Irish dairy industry: A stochastic meta‐frontier analysis," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 39(3), pages 727-743, July.
    18. Ligia Alba Melo-Becerra & Antonio José Orozco-Gallo, 2017. "Technical efficiency for Colombian small crop and livestock farmers: A stochastic metafrontier approach for different production systems," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 47(1), pages 1-16, February.
    19. Chisom Ubabukoh & Katsushi S. Imai, 2021. "Are Farmers “Efficient but Poor”? The Impact of Crop Choices on Agricultural Productivity and Poverty in Nigeria," Discussion Paper Series DP2021-17, Research Institute for Economics & Business Administration, Kobe University, revised Jun 2022.
    20. Chi‐Chuan Lee & Tai‐Hsin Huang, 2019. "What Causes The Efficiency And The Technology Gap Under Different Ownership Structures In The Chinese Banking Industry?," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 37(2), pages 332-348, April.
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    22. Gabriel A. Sampaio Morais & Felipe F. Silva & Carlos Otávio de Freitas & Marcelo José Braga, 2021. "Irrigation, Technical Efficiency, and Farm Size: The Case of Brazil," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-21, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Meta-frontier model; Stochastic production frontier; NZ dairy farming; D24; L23; Q12; Q16;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • L23 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Organization of Production
    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets
    • Q16 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - R&D; Agricultural Technology; Biofuels; Agricultural Extension Services

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