Class formation and commodity chains in the making of regional monocultures: Agrarian reform from above and below in Mexico's henequen and cotton zones

This paper analyses the rise and fall of two regional monocultures in Mexico: the henequen zone in the southern state of Yucatán and the cotton‐growing area of La Laguna. Both regions experienced a dramatic expansion of commodity production between 1870 and 1910, but their key crops came to be cultivated under different labour regimes: debt peonage in the case of henequen and wage labour in the case of cotton. The process of class formation that unfolded in each region culminated in the 1930s in different kinds of crises. In Yucatán, a political struggle between hacienda owners and the federal government resulted in an agrarian reform “from above.” In La Laguna, class conflict between rural wageworkers and the landed bourgeoisie forced an agrarian reform “from below.” These previously distinct labour regimes converged in subsequent decades, however, as rural producers became de facto wageworkers on state‐organized and state‐administered production units known as collective ejidos. Ultimately, changes in the global markets for cotton and henequen, combined with the inability of the Mexican state to reconcile the political logic of agrarian clientelism with shifting commodity chain dynamics, resulted in the collapse of these regional monocultures in the late 20th century.     

新疆棉农残膜回收行为影响因素及实证研究*——基于棉农的调研数据

［目的］为响应农业农村部“农业绿色发展五大行动”，加强农业面源污染防治，缓解新疆棉田残膜危害，基于新疆棉农的问卷调查研究棉农的残膜回收行为。［方法］采用描述性统计和Logistic回归模型分析影响新疆棉农残膜回收行为的因素。［结果］（1）新疆农用地膜回收率低，地膜污染形势严峻。（2）棉农对残膜危害认知缺乏，对残膜回收的间接价值认识不足，影响新疆残膜回收效率。（3）残膜回收的成本收益是影响棉农残膜回收行为的关键因素，其他如棉农年龄、种棉年限、对残膜危害的认知等自身特征，以及农户劳动力数量、政府对残膜污染的关注程度等因素对棉农的残膜回收行为有重要影响。［结论］网络及电视广播等现代媒体对棉农的残膜危害认知水平有较大影响，棉农更愿意采用成本更节约的焚烧、堆地的残膜处理方式。因此提出引导棉农残膜回收、提高棉田残膜回收效率的对策建议。     

“寡头”市场结构、贸易媒介与贸易商品定价——分析框架及基于棉花贸易史的案例研究

中国在贸易中面临"寡头"地位确立与定价权缺失共存的困境,通过提出一个引入贸易媒介环节的三分法贸易商品定价框架对此进行解释。贸易商品定价受到"寡头"国家/政府政策作用于贸易媒介市场结构程度的影响,还依赖于出口国/进口国的微观市场结构状况。贸易媒介通过与生产者和消费者的定价博弈选择使其利润最大化的买卖价格,政府政策/私人保护通过影响贸易媒介市场结构间接影响贸易商品定价。利用典型的英美棉花贸易"双寡头"案例,通过价格变动的相对弹性、转嫁系数和Granger因果检验三种方法定量分析了英美棉花贸易的定价博弈,计量结果与三分法分析结果完全符合,为论文提出的分析框架提供了例证支持。     

A Question of Integrity: Variants of Bt Cotton,Pesticides and Productivity in Pakistan

Bt cotton remains one of the most widely grown biotech crops among smallholder farmers in lower income countries, and numerous studies attest to its advantages. However, the effectiveness of Bt toxin, which depends on many technical constraints, is heterogeneous. In Pakistan, the diffusion of Bt cotton occurred despite a weak regulatory system and without seed quality control; whether or not many varieties sold as Bt are in fact Bt is also questionable. We utilise nationally representative sample data to test the effects of Bt cotton use on productivity. Unlike previous studies, we invoke several indicators of Bt identity: variety name, official approval status, farmer belief, laboratory tests of Bt presence in plant tissue, and biophysical assays measuring Bt effectiveness. Only farmer belief affects cotton productivity in the standard production model, which does not treat Bt appropriately as damage‐abating. In the damage control framework, all Bt indicators reduce damage from pests. Biophysical indicators have the largest effect and official approval has the weakest. Findings have implications for impact measurement. For policy‐makers, they suggest the need, on ethical and productivity grounds, to improve variety information and monitor variety integrity closer to point of sale.     

目标价格改革试点对棉花市场的影响分析

[目的]通过分析棉花目标价格改革试点工作实施前后3年内(2011~2016年)棉花生产和需求变化情况,研究新疆目标价格改革对棉花市场的影响。[方法]运用3年滑动平均法,比较分析了棉花目标价格改革试点工作前后我国棉花产业的市场变化。[结果]自2014年棉花目标价格改革试点工作全面启动以来,生产方面:全国棉花种植结构日趋合理,新疆棉花种植优势明显,棉花市场价格形成机制初步建立,棉农利益得到了保护;市场需求影响方面:棉花价格逐步回归市场,国内外棉价差显著缩小,棉纺织企业经营状况趋于好转,棉花产业正在转型升级,但棉花市场整体需求不旺。[结论]试点工作取得了阶段性成效,但同时在信息化进程、棉花产业发展模式、生产力提升等方面暴露出一些问题亟待解决;下一步应进一步完善相关政策体系、加快棉花产业升级、加强科技创新,并推进信息化建设。     

Ecosystem impacts of pesticide reductions through Bt cotton adoption

This article examines the ecosystem impacts of transgenic Bt cotton technology resulting from reduced chemical pesticide use. Employing unique panel data from smallholder farmers in India, negative environmental and health effects of pesticide use are quantified with the environmental impact quotient (EIQ), with and without Bt technology. An environmentally sensitive dynamic production function is estimated, treating the environmental risk of pesticide toxicity as an undesirable output in the production process. Negative externalities are significantly lower in Bt than in conventional cotton. The reduction in EIQ through Bt technology adoption has increased from 39 per cent during 2002–2004 to 68 per cent during 2006–2008. Bt adoption has also contributed to higher environmental efficiency. Environmental efficiency is influenced by the quality of Bt technology: high‐quality Bt seeds are associated with higher environmental efficiency than lower‐quality seeds.     

中国棉花种植成本收益的演变

棉花是国家重要战略储备物资,历年棉花的播种面积、产量及价格,对棉花市场造成巨大影响,也影响着棉花产业的健康发展。研究棉花种植成本的变动,直接关系到棉农的经济收益。为对我国棉花种植收益的演变进行探析,文章基于1990~2013年中国棉花种植成本收益数据,运用趋势分析与比较分析法,对我国棉花种植成本收益的变化趋势进行研究。研究发现:(1)我国棉花种植成本由1990年265.63元/667m~2,增加到2013年2 177.5元/667m~2,增加了1 911.87元/667m~2,增长了7.2倍,年均增长率9.58%;(2)成本利润率由1990年的最大值102.87%,下降到2013年-9.87%的最低值,未来提高棉花成本利润率压力较大;(3)棉花出售价格变量与棉花种植的长期平均成本变量对棉花成本利润率影响显著,未来我国棉花种植是否能够获利,价格将成为关键影响因素。研究结论:(1)我国棉花种植成本收益正处于"高投入,低产出",规模报酬递减阶段;(2)棉花出售价格变量与棉花种植的长期平均成本变量,是影响我国棉花成本利润率关键变量,且棉花出售价格变量的影响更显著。研究建议:(1)完善我国棉花价格市场形成机制,避免棉花市场价格出现剧烈波动;(2)通过优化棉花生产环节,降低棉花生产成本;(3)贯彻落实国家生产补贴政策,使补贴资金及时、足额发放到户。     

两种有色植物染色的尝试

柑橘皮和黑莓都是天然植物染料,橘皮染色的性质相对于黑莓染色稳定,橘皮和黑莓等植物类染色原料染色是环保的染色方式,能减少环境污染,节省能源,相对合成染料非常廉价。可能有些种类容易褪色,但是值得推广的染色方式。     

棉花价格暴涨暴跌对棉纺织企业及银行信贷资金的影响——基于纺织工业基地咸阳的个案分析

纺织产业是咸阳市支柱产业之一,其生产经营情况对咸阳市整体经济发展及银行信贷资金安全意义重大。棉花作为咸阳纺织产业的主要原材料,2010年以来的价格大幅波动对棉纺织企业造成了巨大影响,所形成的风险应引起企业经营者及银行的高度重视。