Analysis on the Impact of Cattle Fattening Technology on Farmer Households in Atabae Timor-Leste

Agriculture is one of the priority sectors in Timor-Leste. Introducing new agriculture technology is crucial to enhance agricultural production. Practicing cattle fattening can increase beef cattle body weight and generate income to the beef cattle farmers. As farmers face problems including agricultural production decline, lack of forages and information and weather unfavourable. The study’s purpose was to examine the impact of adoption of cattle fattening technology on farmer households in Atabae administrative post, Bobonaro municipality in Timor-Leste. There were 200 beef cattle farmers households where randomly selected in four villages in Atabae. It consisted of 65 farmers practicing cattle fattening and 135 farmers non-practicing cattle fattening. Face to face interviews used structured questionnaire. Statistical analysis such as t-test and descriptive analysis were used to examine impact adoption of cattle fattening technology by farmers and factor constraints of cattle production and the solutions of it. The results indicated the average value of cattle and profit were significant different from zero and it is associated with practicing of cattle fattening. The average of labour used on cattle activities, the average of cattle sold, and total cost spent on cattle were not significant different from zero. The percentage of farmers said that factors constraints cattle production were shortage of water and forage (53%) and spend time on culture ceremony and lack of capital (33%). The number of farmers said that they collected water from river, feed cattle with sago and forage (55.3%) and cultivated forage (23.4%). This finding contributes information to the farmers, traders, and Timorese government to continue implementing cattle fattening activities as it enhances farmers’ income and developing cattle production.

An Evaluation of the Introduction of Modified Cropping Practices in Yunnan Province,China,Using Surveys of Farmers’ Households

Problems associated with land degradation are serious in China. Sloping land in South China has experienced a decline in crop productivity by 30-60% due to soil erosion and it has been predicted that most topsoil will be lost within the next 100 years if current erosion rates continue. Considering these situations, an agro-environmental research and development project （Sustainable Highland Agriculture in South-East Asia- SHASEA） was conducted in a catchment in Yunnan Province, China, to address the objectives of increasing crop productivity in sustainable and environmentally-friendly ways. A range of cropping practices was developed and implemented in a rural upland catchment （Wang Jia）. At the end of the project, farmers were surveyed to evaluate project effectiveness. All farmers from Wang Jia Catchment, who were involved in project implementation, were surveyed. A sample of farmers working in an adjacent catchment （not associated with the project） was surveyed for comparative purposes. Farmers had different perceptions of the cropping practices employed. Contour cultivation was preferred and likely to be adopted. Others practices such as straw mulching and intercropping were seen as less appropriate and unlikely to be adopted. Polythene mulch was recognized as effective, but likely to be adopted only if financial returns were favourable. The availability of relevant information had an important impact on the extent of technology testing by farmers and their willingness to adopt the practices in the future.

Research on Factors Influencing Fertilizer Application of Farmer Households in Anhui Province

Known as the " food of grain",chemical fertilizer plays a very important role in increasing the output of agricultural products. In the meantime,its negative externalities such as soil and water environment pollutions as well as the quality and safety hazards caused to agricultural products have been revealed gradually. Taking 126 farmer households in 5 counties( districts) of Anhui Province as samples,the fertilizer application behaviors of farmer households are analyzed. Research shows that farmers applying fertilizer are generally older in age with relatively lower degree of education,inveterate farming habits and small area of cultivation. Besides,the farmer households wish to receive training and guidance on techniques of fertilization,but very few of them have attended the trainings on agricultural technology. Moreover,the individual characteristics and family factors of farmer households have a significant impact on their fertilizer application behaviors. And the degrees of impact are also different for the fertilizer applying behaviors in different stages. Therefore,improving the educational level of farmer households,strengthening the training and promotion of agricultural techniques and accelerating land transfer among farmer households will play a fundamental role in regularizing the fertilizer application behaviors of farmer households and improving the quality and safety of agricultural products.

Empirical Analysis on Rural Financial Development and Farmers' Income Increase in China

The growth of farmer＇s incomes is cIoseIy reIated to rural finance. The research analyzed the dynamic reIationship of rural financial deveIopment, efficiency and farmer＇s incomes based on VAR modeI, and the resuIts indicated that the ex-pansion of rural finance wouId stimuIate farmer＇s incomes in a Iong term, and the growth of rural financial efficiency significantIy improves farmer＇s incomes in a short term, instead of a Iong term. Hence, it is necessary to introduce more credit funds and social funds to rural areas, deepen rural financial system reform and acceIerate use rate of Ioan capital and enhance guidance for farmers and township enterprises in use of Ioan capitals.

Creation of "Regional Characteristic" in Planning and Design of Farmers' Residential Area at the South of Lower Reaches of the Yangtze River

After analysis of location feature of the south of lower reaches of Yangtze River and its construction of urban and rural integration,the paper pointed out harmonious combination between natural and artificial factors had been neglected in planning and design of farmers' residential area at the south of lower reaches of Yangtze River,"regional characteristic" losing,residential area in the form of "city community" and buildings in European style.In view of these problems,relevant planning and design thoughts and methods had been proposed as to how to create "regional characteristic" from the perspective of planning,architecture and landscape design.It discussed with emphasis the importance of construction base type and combination of environment with residential area construction;inspirations and design methods obtained from traditional architectures;and the content of landscape overall planning and specific design.It was hoped to enlighten designers to shoulder social and historical responsibility,make exploration unremittingly,and construct beautiful homelands for people.

Agricultural Policy, Climate Factors and Grain Output: Evidence From Household Survey Data in Rural China

This paper estimates a stochastic frontier function using a panel data set that includes 4 961 farmer households for the period of 2005-2009 to decompose the growth of grain production and the total factor productivity （TFP） growth at the farmer level. The empirical results show that the major contributor to the grain output growth for farmers is input growth and that its average contribution accounts for 60.92% of farmer’s grain production growth in the period of 2006-2009, whereas the average contributions sourced from TFP growth and residuals are only 17.30 and 21.78%, respectively. The growth of intermediate inputs is a top contributor with an average contribution of 44.46%, followed by the planted area （18.16%）, investment in fixed assets （1.05%）, and labor input （-2.75%）, indicating that the contribution from the farmer’s input growth is mainly due to the growth of intermediate inputs and that the decline in labor inputs has become an obstacle for farmers in seeking grain output growth. Among the elements consisting of TFP growth, the contribution of technical progress is the largest （32.04%）, followed by grain subsidies （8.55%）, the average monthly temperature （4.26%）, the average monthly precipitation （-0.88%）, the adjusted scale effect （-5.66%）, and growth in technical efficiency （-21.01%）. In general, the contribution of climate factors and agricultural policy factor are positive and significant.

Vegetable production under COVID-19 pandemic in China: An analysis based on the data of 526 households

The COVID-19 pandemic had an enormous impact on the vegetable supply chain in China.Effective evaluation of the pandemic’s influences on vegetable production is vital for policy settings to enhance the security of vegetable supply.Based on first-hand data from 526 households,we explored regional differences in different types of loss and potential factors affecting the severity farmer households suffered during the pandemic.The results underline that sales contraction and price volatility in the context of interruption of supply chain dominate the total losses during the pandemic.Such losses differ across provinces and are more substantial in provinces with stricter confinement measures.Farmer households’participation in local market and modern marketing methods helps mitigate the negative effects of the COVID-19 shock,while labor hiring and facilities adoption in production widen the losses due to the shortage in the workforce.In the future,the vegetable industry practitioners and relevant government departments should work together to coordinate the development of short and long supply chains and strengthen the stability and security of the vegetable supply chain.

The Impact of China's Fiscal Expenditure in Agriculture on Farmer's Income

Based on the account of the vital role which the national finance played in supporting agriculture,the thesis presents the current situation of financial support for agriculture in China,in terms of the limited scale and irrational structure of financial support expenditure in agriculture.On the basis of the brief introduction of the current level of Chinese farmers' income,the thesis discusses the effects of scale and irrational structure of financial support expenditure in agriculture on the farmers' income,according to the related data of financial support expenditure in agriculture and rural per capita net income.The results indicate that the calculating regression equation has a remarkable explanation power,reflecting the positive role of financial support expenditure in agriculture played by national finance in increasing the farmers' income.As regards the structure of financial support expenditure in agriculture at present,according to the proportion from high to low,the expenditure primarily consists of three parts from high to low in sequence as follows:productive expenditure and funds for public undertakings,capital construction expenditure,and rural relief expenditure plus science and technology funds.Such sequence deviates from the marginal production effects of financial support expenditure in agriculture and the correlation of farmers' income,which demonstrates the severe irrationality of the structure of financial support expenditure in agriculture.Corresponding countermeasures are put forward as follows:on one hand,we should continue intensifying the efforts to support agriculture financially in order to form a regular increase mechanism;on the other hand,we should adjust and optimize the structure of financial support expenditure in agriculture,and further crystallize the investment flows.

Agricultural production structure,market conditions and farmers’nutritional intake in rural China

Nutrition poverty alleviation is an effective measure to improve the nutritional status of economically disadvantaged individuals,fundamentally improving their health and reducing poverty.Based on the Entitlement Theory and using the China Health and Nutrition Survey(CHNS)data,this paper examines the relationship between farmers’nutritional intake,production structure and regional market conditions.Results show that farmers with diversified production have better nutritional intake than those who specialize.Furthermore,the correlation between regional market conditions and nutritional intake varies between economically disadvantaged and non-economically disadvantaged households.Market conditions significantly influence the carbohydrate and fat intake of economically disadvantaged households and are positively associated with the dietary structure and nutritional intake of non-economically disadvantaged ones.Moreover,income is positively correlated with the nutritional intake of non-economically disadvantaged households but not with economically disadvantaged ones.

The Current Situation and Development of Grain Storage Technologies and Facilities for Chinese Farmers

In China, the quantity of farmer＇s grain storage covers about 40% of the total grain yield every year. While, the losses of farms＇ grain storage are up to 8%, which is due to the lack of grain storage facility and technology. The losses of farmer＇s grain storage could reach nearly 20 million tons every year. In this paper, the current situation and development of grain storage technology and facility for Chinese farmers were presented. And a series of policy and research work for reducing the losses of farms＇ grain storage was introduced. The large scale farmers are now developing quickly in China, the new storage warehouse and mechanized facility should be developed adaptively. So, the new storage technology and policy to meet the need of large scale farmers were also introduced in this paper.

The Function,Future and Support Elements of Farmer Cooperative Economy Organization

The nature of farmer cooperative economy organization( known as FCEO) determines the fact that the economic effects of farmer cooperative economy organization are as important as its social effects. Many experts,however,now would only focus on its economic function, and either neglect or weaken its social influence. Therefore,this paper introduces the theoretical foundation of the farmer cooperative economy organization,and studies the nature of cooperative economics. Based on those typical cases,the future of cooperative organization and four supporting elements were put forward in this paper.

Study on Influence of Farmers' Relational Network on Their Undertaking Process

We elaborate relevant theories of farmers' relational network,including the Differential Model of Association,the Strength of Weak Tie,Strength of Strong Tie and Favor and Face.The farmers' relational network in the Differential Model of Association can be divided into three layers:strong tie,weak tie and irrelative relationship according to Granovetter theory.These three layers have deep influence on opportunity selection during the undertaking,financing and enterprise development.With rational knowledge of these layers,farmers may exploit undertaking resources.On the basis of these,we made detailed analysis on farmers' selection of relations in the opportunity selection,financing and enterprise development stages.

A Study of Farmers' Rationality Based on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

In this paper,on the basis of analyzing farmers' dominant position in society and explanation of farmers' rationality,we make use of Maslow's hierarchy theory of needs to divide farmers' needs into three levels in accordance with the different stages: survival needs,interpersonal harmony and social responsibility,which are the needs hierarchies for farmers to satisfy themselves. We combine Maslow's hierarchy theory of needs and farmers' rationality and confirm that farmers do have rationality and it is in a dynamic condition.

Professionalization of Farmers Is the Key to Solution of China's Rural Issues

There are essential differences between the current status of farmers in China and "farmer" as a profession; this disparity remains to be a barrier to agricultural modernization. Since reform and opening up, changes in social economic structure have prompted the professionalization of farmers. To realize this trend and promote this transformation will be of significant importance to Chinese agricultural modernization.

Interests of Livestock Activities within Agroforestry Systems in Guadeloupe: Stakeholders’ Opinions and Farmers’ Perceptions

The Valab project (Integrated Ecosystemic value-enhancement of the Guadeloupean Forest Agrobiodiversity) is a participatory action research that aims to explore the feasibility of diversification activities within the forest understorey. In the exploratory phase of the project, we studied stakeholders’ opinions on the positive and negative impacts of introducing livestock activities within a forest environment, as well as breeders’ constraints or motivations for setting up livestock units within agroforestry systems in the private forests of Guadeloupe. To establish a diagnosis of the current situation, 51 stakeholders (St) and 49 farmers (Fr) were interviewed on their perceptions, opinions, motivations and preferences. Forty-one percent of the St has had a generally positive appreciation of livestock activities, while on the opposite 31% have had a resolutely negative posture depending on their area of expertise. Their views on the possible positive effects or negative interactions between livestock and agroforestry activities were analysed in order to suggest possible approaches for the authorities or associations. Unanimously, the farmers replied that their motivations followed economic strategies: for self-consumption or sale. But their decision-making processes were also non-economic. Many of them (36% Fr) gave importance to their activity in the construction of their identity, whether it was through a desire to perpetuate traditions or to maintain family activities. The main constraints identified were natural constraints (61% Fr), including topography, climate and predators. While 28% of Fr notified their motivations for environmental protection. Another constraint was of a technical nature (44% Fr) since farmers asked for more technical references or support services. Further researches are required to study the interactions between animals and the undergrowth by describing their respective ecosystem services in order to enhance their positive interactions.

Financial Management in New Types of Agricultural Businesses——A Case Study of Farmer's Cooperatives in Weixian County

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China( CPC),with the help of state policies,the new types of agricultural businesses have been flourishing. As one of the important forces of new types of agricultural businesses,the farmer's specialized cooperatives grow up rapidly in the development of the rural economy because of their characteristics which are consistent with the current rural economy. financial management is the core of the operation of farmer cooperatives,which directly affects the long-term sustainable development of cooperatives. Through the survey and analysis of the financial management of many farmers' cooperatives in Wei County,Hebei Province,this paper puts forward the deficiencies in the existing financial management of cooperatives. It also brings some reasonable suggestions to regulate and improve the financial management of cooperatives,in order to enhance the market competitiveness of farmers' cooperatives and realize better sustainable development of farmers' cooperatives.

Study on the Influence of Farmer Social Capital on Cooperative Supply Willingness of Agricultural Disaster Reduction Public Goods——Based on the Investigation on 515 Farmers

Based on social capital theory,related factors of three dimensions( structure dimension,cognition dimension and relation dimension) of farmer social capital are taken as independent variables,and famer's willingness to cooperatively supply agricultural disaster reduction public goods is taken as dependent variable. Taking 515 farmers in 27 villages of Hubei Province as investigation objects,the influence of farmer social capital on cooperative supply willingness of agricultural disaster reduction public goods is explored by Logistic regression model. Research results show that social solidarity,common value concept,social trust and reciprocal content have positive impact on farmer's willingness of cooperative supply,while annual household income,number of agricultural disaster reduction public goods and social network have negative impact on farmer's willingness of cooperative supply.

A Brief Analysis of Development of Tibetan Farmers＇ and Herdsmen＇s Economic Cooperatives--A Case Study of Nagqu Area

Through on-the-spot survey and research on the actual situation of agricultural cooperatives and the conditions of production and living of farmers and herdsmen in Nagqu,Tibet,going through a lot of literature,this paper studies and analyzes the development of local cooperative organizations of farmers and herdsmen,understands the actual benefits of cooperative organizations to farmers and herdsmen,aims to increase the income of farmers and herdsmen,and thus puts forward the main problems and measures on agricultural cooperatives in Nagqu area,in order to offer some suggestions for farmers and herdsmen to get rid of poverty through the conclusion of the study.

集体经营性建设用地入市农户满意度影响因素研究——基于Logistic-ISM模型的分析

农户满意程度可以反映政策改革成效,探究农户集体经营性建设用地入市满意度影响因素,有助于评价政策实施效果,同时对提升农村发展和农民幸福感也有一定的现实意义.采用问卷调查和访谈的方式,选取重庆市大足区作为研究区域,基于Logistic模型确定农户满意度的影响因素,结合ISM模型分析各影响因素之间的层次关系,对农民的政策实施满意度影响因素进行实证分析.研究结果显示:(1)针对入市实施效果,绝大部分农户持满意态度,不满意的地方集中在收益分配不及时和环境污染方面;(2)家中是否有村干部、生态环境变化情况、是否参与表决、分配公平性、入市实际收益、程序透明性、入市风险存在情况、对入市土地所有者的认知对入市农户满意度有显著影响.其中对入市土地所有者的认知、入市风险存在情况、入市实际收益为表层直接因素,中层间接因素有生态环境变化情况、是否参与表决、分配公平性以及程序透明性,家中是否有村干部为深层根源因素.应进一步完善土地产权制度,明晰入市到期后土地权属问题;健全监督管理机制,建立集体经营性建设用地入市单位的产业目录和准入标准制度;完善收益分配机制,制定集体土地入市指导性分配意见;将村集体负责人纳入政府基层领导队伍体系,提高程序透明性.

外出务工经历对农户创业绩效的影响--基于CHFS2019的实证分析

【目的/意义】通过实证分析外出务工经历对农户创业绩效的影响,以促进农户的高质量创业,推进返乡创业的可持续发展,助力乡村振兴战略目标的实现。【方法/过程】基于2019年中国家庭金融调查(CHFS)数据,运用OLS模型和中介效应模型,考察外出务工经历对农户创业绩效的影响。【结果/结论】研究发现:(1)外出务工经历能够显著提升农户的创业绩效;(2)家庭社会资本在外出务工经历影响农户创业绩效过程中发挥部分中介作用;(3)外出务工经历对农户创业绩效的影响存在初始投资规模差异和地区差异,外出务工经历能够显著提升大规模投资项目的创业绩效,而且只对东部地区的农户创业绩效的提升具有显著的正向作用。据此提出鼓励外出务工人员返乡创业;加强返乡创业者的创业培训;提升返乡创业公共服务供给水平等建议。