Farm size and greenhouse gas emission: Do large farms in China produce more emissions?

Abstract

Farms are key to agricultural advancement and carbon emission reduction. Understanding the influence of farm size on emissions is vital for eco-friendly farming. Our study used an econometric model with instrumental variable adjustments to examine the effect of farm size on greenhouse gas emissions, revealing an inverted U-shaped relationship. The findings revealed that emissions increased with farm size until a peak and then decreased. We identified an optimal farm size range (0.45 km² to 0.58 km²) for lower emissions, where the farm size maintaining the lowest greenhouse gas emissions per unit area was 0.58 km², while the lowest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per capita occured at a farm size of 0.69 km². Reducing emissions intensity per unit area is easier than reducing GHG emissions per person. Policymakers should prioritise promoting the expansion to moderately sized farms as a means of achieving emission reduction targets rather than solely increasing the number of farms. Overall, these insights offer policymakers novel approaches for ecological farm planning and the transition toward a low-carbon agriculture sector.