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Risk Management and the Role of Off-farm Income

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  • Freshwater, David
  • Jette-Nantel, Simon

Abstract

The majority of farm households in OECD countries earn more off-farm income than farm income, even including government payments. While this is a well recognized fact its implications for risk management have not been well recognized. Current efforts to reform farm support have focused on the variability of farm household income and largely ignored the variability of total farm household income. Since it is common for farm households to allocate labor and capital across both farm and non-farm opportunities, it is also likely that their attitude to risk in farming can best be understood by seeing farm risk and return in a household portfolio of income. This approach immediately leads to farm risk being less problematic the more diversified the portfolio and the less positively correlated farm risk is with other income risks. A secondary implication is the possibility that supposedly risk adverse farmers are reluctant to but actuarially fair insurance because they have already reduced farm risk by engaging in off-farm income, so they must be paid to further reduce risk beyond heir desired level.

Suggested Citation

  • Freshwater, David & Jette-Nantel, Simon, 2011. "Risk Management and the Role of Off-farm Income," Staff Papers 120184, University of Kentucky, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:ukysps:120184
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.120184
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Freshwater, David, 2007. "Measuring Farm Net Income To Better Achieve Policy Objectives," Staff Papers 42315, University of Kentucky, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    2. Dimitri, Carolyn & Effland, Anne & Conklin, Neilson C., 2005. "The 20th Century Transformation of U.S. Agriculture and Farm Policy," Economic Information Bulletin 59390, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    3. Unknown, 2004. "Proceedings of the OECD/PACIOLI Workshop on Information Needs for the Analysis of Farm Household Income Issues," Report Series 29112, Wageningen University and Research Center, Agricultural Economics Research Institute.
    4. Gardner, Bruce L, 1992. "Changing Economic Perspectives on the Farm Problem," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 30(1), pages 62-101, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Freshwater, David, 2012. "Complexity and Obsolete Data Concepts: Canadian Farm Policy, and the Changing Structure of Agriculture," Staff Papers 119473, University of Kentucky, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    2. de Mey, Yann & Wauters, Erwin & van Winsen, Frankwin & Vancauteren, Mark & Van Passel, Steven & Lauwers, Ludwig H., 2012. "From total farm to household risk: implication for risk management," 123rd Seminar, February 23-24, 2012, Dublin, Ireland 122470, European Association of Agricultural Economists.

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    Keywords

    Agricultural and Food Policy; Agricultural Finance; Farm Management; Risk and Uncertainty;
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