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Do small and equally distributed farm sizes imply large resource misallocation? Evidence from wheat-maize double-cropping in the North China Plain

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  • Chen, Minjie
  • Heerink, Nico
  • Zhu, Xueqin
  • Feng, Shuyi
Abstract
The egalitarian allocation of agricultural land and small operational farm sizes in rural China raise questions about the implications for overall productivity given that there exists potentially large heterogeneity in farm-level productivities. This paper examines to what extent land and capital are misallocated in a region in the North China Plain that is characterized by small and relatively equally distributed farm sizes. Using a survey data set collected from wheat-maize double-cropping farms, we find that the dispersion in farm-level total factor productivities is small, and the quantified gains in aggregate agricultural output (productivity) by reallocating factors from less productive to more productive farms are moderate compared to the findings in the previous literature. The estimated output (productivity) gains range from 7% for within-village reallocation to 10% for between-village reallocation in the region. We argue that these findings are largely explained by the high-level use of hired machinery services among smallholders in the region.

Suggested Citation

  • Chen, Minjie & Heerink, Nico & Zhu, Xueqin & Feng, Shuyi, 2022. "Do small and equally distributed farm sizes imply large resource misallocation? Evidence from wheat-maize double-cropping in the North China Plain," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:112:y:2022:i:c:s0306919222001191
    DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2022.102350
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Shouhong Xie & Jizhou Zhang & Xiaojing Li & Zhe Chen & Xiaoning Zhang & Xianli Xia, 2023. "Impact of Farmer Participation in Production Chain Outsourcing Services on Agricultural Output Level and Output Risk: Evidence from the Guanzhong Plain, China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-18, December.
    3. Sheng Dai & Timo Kuosmanen & Zhiqiang Liao, 2024. "Economic growth of cities: Does resource allocation matter?," Papers 2410.04918, arXiv.org.
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    5. Liu, Yan & Chen, Minjie & Yu, Jianyu & Wang, Xiaobing, 2024. "Being a happy farmer: Technology adoption and subjective well-being," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 221(C), pages 385-405.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Resource misallocation; Smallholders; Machinery services; Agricultural productivity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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