The commercialisation of subsistence farms: Evidence from the new member states of the EU

For selected regions of five EU Member States (Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovenia), this paper examines the determinants of the commercialisation of (semi)subsistence farms. While subsistence farming has become an important feature of the EU, there is a lack of evidence on its spatial distribution, importance and reasons for persistence. The analysis utilises cross-regional survey data and qualitative interviews. Results suggest the absence of a subsistence poverty trap driven by either farmer perceptions or transactions costs although capital endowment appears to play a significant part. On the other hand the degree of market engagement depends on access costs, which vary with location, households’ productive assets, specialisation, and risk propensity. Implications for land use policy are discussed.     

Agriculture and the city: A method for sustainable planning of new forms of agriculture in urban contexts

Contemporary cities are threatened by urban development decreasing the overall environmental quality and fragmenting natural and agricultural landscapes. As a result of this fragmentation the number of Non Urbanized Areas (NUAs) present in urban contexts is dramatically decreasing. These areas include cultivated land, Abandoned Farmlands, Grassland, Woods and Shrubs that are often located at the peri-urban cities’ fringes. Among NUAs, farmlands and other forms of urban and peri-urban agriculture provide all three major categories of ecosystem services, provisioning, regulating and cultural services. Recently, New Forms of Urban Agriculture (NFUA) have gained increasing attention from researchers for their promising multifunctionality. Incorporating NFUA into the urban environment will thus improve the sustainability of cities, taking advantage of the multiple benefits and services they can provide.This paper presents a method for the characterisation of NUAs in terms of their physical, ecological and social features. These areas are analysed with different criteria and related indicators structured according to a GIS-based Multi Criteria Suitability Model. The proposed model checks the suitability of transformation of the NUAs toward NFUA, thereby enhancing their ecological and social function as well as accessibility and overall connectivity. Different scenarios of spatial configurations for NFUA have been explored with a sensitivity analysis on the values of used indicators. The method was tested for the municipality of Catania, south Italy, an urban context characterised by a relevant shortage of public green spaces and services.     

Leisure in Living Local through Food and Farming

This article reflects on aligning leisure research with the local foods movement while placing the local foods movement into the larger framework of sustainability and the fields of leisure and recreation. The local foods movement has persisted during difficult economic times; growth in local foods venues and young people endeavoring to establish small-scale sustainable farms continues to flourish. Given the history of leisure research and its continued success alleviating participation barriers and constraints, the need for leisure researchers to focus on local food systems is imperative and timely. This essay highlights the notion of leisure in living through local foods and the serious leisure aspects of small-scale sustainable agriculture. This article also encourages leisure researchers to explore and assess the relationships between the local foods movement and small-scale farming as embedded in the larger framework of sustainability.     

农业剩余转化与动态发展牵扯:以工补农新机制解析

"以工补农"不能单纯地从同情"三农"态度出发研究"单向的以工补农",而应从深入剖析工业化过程中的工业和农业互动关系出发,积极探索"双向的以工补农"机制。从工业化过程中工农互动机制中寻找到一个"以工补农"机制的新视角,通过构建基于工业化的"农业剩余转化"模型,重点分析工业化过程中的农业剩余转化和农业深化发展动态关系的"以工补农"机制。在工业化过程中,要根据工农关系不同阶段的特征,采取不同的工农互动关系调节方法,即不同的"以工补农"策略,促进工业和农业互动协调发展。     

涉农供应链时间竞争的基本障碍分析

在传统的农业技术条件和涉农供应链管理模式下,典型的涉农链在时间竞争的强化与柔性机制的建立上面临诸多局限和障碍：（1）横亘于涉农供应链两类制造业之间的“速度陷区”.（2）“刚性点阵”.（3）“弱刹车机制”.（4）异构性问题.（5）时间竞争工具的有限性.（6）涉农供应链特殊的物流路径特征模式.上述诸因素综合作用形成了现实中两种常见的涉农链时间反应模式：弱反应模式和高成本反应模式.而现代供应链管理理念指导下涉农供应链时间竞争追求的却是-种有效反应模式.建立涉农供应链时间竞争的有效反应模式是一个复杂艰巨的过程.     

中国农产品进出口与农业产业安全预警分析

农业产业安全是指农业的生存与发展不受到外来势力根本威胁的状态.本文采用农业产业安全评价指标体系与预警界限对农业产业安全进行预警分析,在预测中国农产品进出口额及粮食供需状况的基础上,对本世纪初中国农业产业安全度的情况进行了估算.     

中国城乡社会救助项目绩效评价研究——基于筹资水平的横向公平性分析

近30年来,我国社会经济体制逐步转型,新贫困群体出现。我国政府在20世纪90年代后对原有社会安全网框架进行了修补,建立起一套常规性社会救助项目,其绩效备受关注。横向公平性指标集中体现了社会救助的公平价值取向,超越了以往的经验型研究,是社会政策评估的新范式。文章以横向公平性为标准,以2003～2005年民政及各省统计年鉴数据为经验材料,对我国城乡社会安全网项目筹资水平的绩效做出评估,并为我国社会安全网项目的进一步发展提供经验证据。     

创新培训理念、培育新型农民的几点思考——基于河南省326个农户劳动时间利用情况的调查

以河南省HA市、HB县和HC县①34个村的326个农户调查数据为基础,探讨了当前农村劳动力培训中存在的问题,针对如何培育新型农民,提出创新培训理念、细分培训对象,使培训由政府主导的"强制型"向"诱致型"转变。     

落实和完善涉农税收政策的思考

推进社会主义新农村建设,是"十一五"规划纲要的内容之一。通过分析涉农税收存在的主要问题,结合当前新情况、新要求,提出既要落实好现有的各项涉农税收政策,又要不断完善涉农税收政策,以便更好地发挥税收杠杆调节作用,促进社会主义新农村建设。     

农业税改对东营农村经济影响分析

自实施农业税制改革以来,山东省东营市认真贯彻国家各项农业税制改革政策,于2005年全部免除农业税,大力加强财政支农和金融支农力度,有力地促进了社会主义新农村建设。本文从东营市入手深入调查研究了我国农业税制改革对该市农村经济所带来的积极影响与负面作用,并进一步分析了金融、财政在支持“三农”过程中所存在的问题,最后提出了对策、建议。