The impact of soil conservation and output diversification on farm income in Central American hillside farming

Abstract

This article analyzes the determinants of farm income among hillside farmers participating in natural resource management projects in El Salvador and Honduras. The farm income function was evaluated using a system of equations in which income is determined simultaneously by the farmer's decision to adopt soil conservation technologies and by the level of diversification (number of agricultural activities) on the farm. The database used comes from surveys administered to 678 beneficiaries of these projects during 2002. The econometric results suggest that all the variables related directly to land use (i.e., output diversification, soil conservation practices and structures, and the adoption of forestry systems) have a positive and statistically significant association with farm income. Also, farmers who own land enjoy higher farm incomes than those who do not. The results indicate that when investing in natural resource management projects, governments and multilateral development agencies should pay close attention to output diversification, land tenure, and human capital formation as effective instruments in increasing farm income. Copyright 2006 International Association of Agricultural Economists.

Creating a typology of tobacco farms according to determinants of diversification in Valle de Lerma (Salta-Argentina)

“…Farmers in Cluster 1 are much better educated and, in some cases, they have another work in addition to the work in the farm. According to the literature, a more educated farmer will be in better conditions to pick up information regarding different crops and production activities (Bravo-Ureta et al, 2006;Minot et al, 2006). In contrast, off-farm work farm may prevent farmer to be involved in new and different activities (Birthal et al, 2006).…”

“…Both clusters have a good availability of suitable land, this being higher for Cluster 1. Availability of land may encourage diversif ication (Benin et al, 2004;Bravo-Ureta et al, 2006). Ownership of the land would encourage diversification of crops (Bravo-Ureta et al, 2006).…”

“…There is empirical evidence in current literature that the area of land has a positive effect on diversification (Benin et al, 2004;Bravo-Ureta et al, 2006). The larger the area of land, the more motivated a farmer will be to devote part of it to introduce diversification.…”

“…The shared use of inputs like labour, machinery and equipment led to cost savings in Dutch vegetable firms (Oude Lansink, 2001). Apart from scope economies, current literature reveals empirical evidence that suggests that diversification influences farmers' income positively (Bravo-Ureta et al, 2006). By building scenarios, Hengsdijk et al (2007) found that diversif ication emerged as the most encouraging option to improve per capita income in traditional rice farms, compared to intensification, land expansion and exit from agriculture.…”

“…Empirical data reveal very positive effects of land tenure on output diversification in Central America, suggesting that owners grow a wider variety of production items (Bravo-Ureta et al, 2006). A person who relies on rented land to produce will be limited in the decisions regarding land management (Caballero, 2001).…”