The impact of climate change on labour demand in the plantation sector: the case of tea production in Sri Lanka

Limited opportunities for crop switching and lengthy preharvesting periods make the plantation sector particularly vulnerable to climate change. Surprisingly, however, the economic consequences of climate change on plantation crops are seldom analysed. Drawing on a unique primary panel data set from a representative cross section of 35 tea estates in Sri Lanka over the period 2002–2014, this study implements a structural model of estate profit maximisation to estimate the elasticity of labour demand with respect to different components of weather. Results indicate a negative relationship between labour demand and rainfall in the south‐west monsoon, the north‐east monsoon and the second inter‐monsoon. A positive relationship is found between labour demand and rainfall in the first inter‐monsoon. Overall, predicted changes in rainfall by 2050 are anticipated to reduce labour demand by approximately 1,175,000 person‐days per year across Sri Lanka's tea plantation sector. This is likely to have considerable social and welfare implications, particularly for the Indian Tamil women who comprise the majority of the sector's workforce.     

Knowledge diffusion and agricultural development

Low agricultural productivity remains the primary source of poverty in the developing regions and yet little is known about the influence on agricultural productivity of domestic and international accumulated R&D knowledge and the channels through which this knowledge is transmitted internationally. Following a large scientific literature, this article argues that R&D and R&D knowledge spillover are ecozone‐specific and, therefore, are transmitted internationally through ecozones, where ecozones are the broadest biogeographic division of the earth's land surface. Using data for a panel of 88 countries, it is shown that international knowledge spillovers are ecozone‐specific and have been an important contributing factor behind the marked widening of the income gap between developed and developing countries since 1983.     

The Potential for Cross‐Compliance in Canadian Agricultural Policy: Linking Environmental Goals with Business Risk Management Programs

Environmental cross‐compliance links agricultural program payments to producer commitments to achieve agri‐environmental policy goals. The objective of this study is to determine the feasibility of using cross‐compliance to achieve environmental goals in a Canadian policy context. While Canadian policy makers have flirted with cross‐compliance, with the exception of phosphorus regulations for Quebec hog farms, they have never adopted this approach. The potential for effective cross‐compliance depends on producer participation, producer compliance with regulations, environmental performance, and overall welfare implications. This study reviews the application of cross‐compliance in the United States and EU with regard to the potential application to Canadian agriculture. Policy options are considered which link current business risk management (BRM) programs to alternative environmental regulations (wildlife habitat preservation, nutrient management plans, and beneficial management practices for nutrient management). In general, individual Canadian agricultural support program do not provide sufficient incentives for farmers to participate in cross‐compliance. However, if support programs are combined, it is better to link programs that redistribute income with environmental programs than to link agriculture programs that already address specific market failures.     

Welfare impacts of import controls on Botswana's horticulture

Botswana has, for the past two decades, used import controls (permits) to regulate horticultural imports, and thereby promote economic diversification through import substitution. This article estimates import demand equations to capture the impact of import controls on horticultural imports (oranges, potatoes, and onions) into Botswana, using data for 1974 to 2001. Parameter estimates are used to compute nominal protection rates (NPRs) and welfare effects. Model‐generated NPRs are estimated at 191%, 75%, and 109% for oranges, potatoes, and onions, respectively. Imports of oranges, potatoes, and onions declined by 32%, 29%, and 35%, respectively, due to the implementation of import controls. Over time consumer losses and quota rents rose while producer gains declined. Net social losses also increased, implying that import controls became increasingly burdensome. It is argued that import controls have not been very effective in promoting import substitution. The study is important for the trade liberalization debate in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and within the Southern African Development Community (SADC), where import permits and other nontariff barriers are pervasive, have proliferated, and are a major hindrance to intraregional trade.     

A Meta‐Analysis on the Elasticity of Demand for Pesticides

There is an increasing policy interest in pesticide taxation schemes as a measure to reduce harmful effects of pesticide use. The effectiveness of such tax depends, however, on the price elasticity of demand for pesticides. Moreover, information on these demand elasticities and their determinants is of crucial relevance for policy‐making and normative modeling approaches. In this article, we present a meta‐analysis based on studies that have estimated pesticide demand elasticities in Europe and North America. Our meta‐analysis reveals that the own‐price elasticities of demand for pesticides are, with a median of ?0.28, significantly smaller than zero, but also significantly larger than ?1, i.e. to be inelastic. We find that the demand for pesticides for special crops is less elastic than that for arable and grassland. In addition, the demand for herbicides is more elastic than for other pesticides. Studies that consider only short‐term horizons and little flexibility for farmers to adjust to price changes generate significantly less elastic pesticide demands. The results also indicate that more recent studies identify lower pesticide price elasticities of demand. Furthermore, we find that peer‐reviewed studies tend to find more inelastic results compared to grey literature.     

The role of planning in achieving indigenous land justice and community goals

This paper suggests that the capacity of indigenous groups to engage effectively in a range of planning activities is crucial to achieving land justice and community goals. This argument is relevant in the face of long-standing tensions between indigenous peoples residing in post-settler societies and nation-states such as Australia, Canada, and New Zealand over questions of land and natural resource use. The paper argues that effective planning is crucial for (i) protecting indigenous interests by engaging the planning activities of the state, (ii) the successful acquisition of lands through legal land claim processes, and (iii) helping indigenous communities achieve their goals by implementing effective community-based planning processes.     

Sending Farmers Back to School: The Impact of Farmer Field Schools in Indonesia

This paper evaluates the impact of farmer field schools, an intensive participatory training program emphasizing integrated pest management. The evaluation focuses on whether program participation has improved yields and reduced pesticide use among graduates and their neighbors who may have gained knowledge from graduates through informal communications. The study utilizes panel data covering 1991–99 in Indonesia. The analysis, employing a modified "difference-in-differences" model, indicates that the program did not have significant impacts on the performance of graduates and their neighbors. Several plausible explanations for this outcome are discussed, and recommendations for improvements are suggested.     

The Marine Environment: Fencing the Last Frontier

Fisheries resources contribute a valuable source of protein to the world's food supply. While there is much promise for continued production gains from aquaculture and terrestrial sources, the marine fisheries sector faces a number of critical current policy junctures. Since extension of jurisdiction to 200 miles in 1976, there have been dramatic changes in the opportunity for coastal nations to rationally manage formerly open access marine resources. While more spatially encompassing management has brought physical yield close to full biological potential, much of the potential economic yield from fisheries is still squandered. An important issue is whether the future potential of marine resources will be guided by an expansion of private property rights or by an expansion of bureaucratic regulatory structures. New monitoring, information, and enforcement technology is making it increasingly possible to zone the ocean and implement measures that mimic terrestrial property systems. At the same time, there is opposition to privatizing marine resources by groups who view them as public resources. The outcome of the tussle between the forces supporting and opposing property rights creation will largely determine the extent and kinds of values that will be generated from marine resources around the world in the next decade.     

Measuring rural consumers’ willingness to pay for quality labels using experimental auctions: the case of aflatoxin‐free maize in Kenya

Aflatoxins are a common health hazard in tropical countries, especially in rural areas. New methods to reduce aflatoxin levels in food staples, as well as cheaper test methods, are being developed, but consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for these improvements is unknown. A survey was conducted with a representative sample of rural consumers (1,344 in total, 63% women) in all major maize‐production zones of Kenya. The survey included an experimental auction with maize products of different qualities. The results showed that many rural consumers were aware of aflatoxins, but few understood their health risks. Respondents were willing to pay a premium for maize tested for aflatoxins and labeled, but asked a high discount for maize that was visibly contaminated with moldy grain. The premium was higher for respondents with education and in regions with aflatoxicosis outbreaks. Knowledge of aflatoxins substantially reduced the overall WTP, but did not increase the WTP for tested maize. Welfare analysis indicates that mandatory testing would result in substantial benefits if the cost of testing can be lowered to below the premium.