Source: USDA/ERS submitted to NRP
DIMENSIONS OF STRUCTURAL CHANGE IN AGRICULTURE
Sponsoring Institution
Economic Research Service/USDA
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
USDA INHOUSE
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0406331
Grant No.
(N/A)
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Jan 1, 2003
Project End Date
Dec 31, 2006
Grant Year
(N/A)
Program Code
[(N/A)]- (N/A)
Recipient Organization
USDA/ERS
1800 M STREET NW
WASHINGTON,DC 20036
Performing Department
ECONOMIC RESEARCH SERVICE
Non Technical Summary
Periodic reports update key indicators of structure, organization, and financial performance of U.S. family farms.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
0%
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
60160303010100%
Knowledge Area
601 - Economics of Agricultural Production and Farm Management;

Subject Of Investigation
6030 - The farm as an enterprise;

Field Of Science
3010 - Economics;
Goals / Objectives
Agricultural structure covers several elements, including the distribution of farm sizes, the diversification of farm operations, linkages between resource ownership and farm organization, and business relationships among farms and with agribusinesses. One of the branch's key tasks is fundamental description: the development of appropriate data to define the elements of structure, to measure those elements, and to summarize changes in structure through time.
Project Methods
Analyses rely extensively on ARMS, the ERS farm typology, and Census of Agriculture data to generate descriptive statistics and track the behavior and performance of farms and farm operators over time.

Progress 10/01/07 to 09/30/08

Outputs
Hoppe and Korb released their report on Million Dollar Farms in the New Century, while MacDonald and McBride released their summary report on the Transformation of US Livestock Agriculture. The Hoppe/Korb report traced the shift of production to farms with at least $1 million in sales, and isolated their commodity orientation as focused around fed cattle, dairy, and fruits and vegetables. The MacDonald-McBride report described the shifts toward larger operations with tighter contractual relationships, assessed the driving forces behind those shifts, and analyzed the impacts of the transformation on productivity, prices, and environmental outcomes.

Impacts
The Transformation report was printed and distributed widely among industry stakeholders. Excerpts from the report appeared in trade publications; charts were sent to extension requesters for use in presentations; and MacDonald based his keynote address to the National Institute of Animal Agriculture on the report.

Publications

  • Bruce Marion and James M. MacDonald, 2008, "Agriculture", Structure of American Industry, 12th edition, James Brock (Eds.), Pearson Prentice Hall.


Progress 10/01/05 to 09/30/06

Outputs
Hoppe and Banker released a Family Farm Report and an associated brochure in 2006, and (along with O'Donoghue and Korb) completed the manuscript for the 2007 Report (with about 50% new material). Hoppe, Banker, and MacDonald completed an Economic Brief and a book chapter detailing the shift of commodity production to larger farms along with the resultant shift of government commodity payments to larger farms and more affluent households. Finally, Hoppe and Krob published a report (ERR 21) on U.S. Farm Exits over the 1978-97 period.

Impacts
Material from the reports noted above appeared in the 2006 Economic Report of the President, the American Farm Bureau's report on the future of agriculture, the Secretary's Farm Bill white papers, and numerous media outlets.

Publications


    Progress 10/01/04 to 09/30/05

    Outputs
    Project staff completed a Family farm report in 2005. They then produced the material for a revised (shorter) Family Farm report, and an associated brochure, to be released in 2006. Hoppe, Banker, and MacDonald also completed work on the effects of structural change on the distribution of commodity payments, to be released in an ERS economic brief, and a book chapter covering that material plus further evidence on structural change. Project staff contributed to three Amber Waves findings and a data feature during 2005, and presented briefings on changing farm structure to a wide variety of audiences.

    Impacts
    (N/A)

    Publications