An empirical examination of the dynamics of varietal turnover in Indian wheat

An empirical examination of the dynamics of varietal turnover in Indian wheat PDF Author: Vijesh Krishna
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 32

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Book Description
This paper addresses the challenge of increasing the rate of varietal turnover to prevent depreciation of improved cultivars over time. It examines the supply of and demand for improved cultivars of wheat in India to illustrate this challenge in a unique manner, combining national-level data on breeder seed production with primary data on cultivar adoption. The analyses show that the rate of varietal turnover for wheat has slowed in India from an average of 9-10 years a decade ago to 13-14 years in 2010. By focusing on a sample of farmers and villages in Haryana, where seed and information networks are relatively well developed, the study finds that wheat farmers still prefer cultivars that were released 9-10 years ago.

An empirical examination of the dynamics of varietal turnover in Indian wheat

An empirical examination of the dynamics of varietal turnover in Indian wheat PDF Author: Vijesh Krishna
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 32

Get Book

Book Description
This paper addresses the challenge of increasing the rate of varietal turnover to prevent depreciation of improved cultivars over time. It examines the supply of and demand for improved cultivars of wheat in India to illustrate this challenge in a unique manner, combining national-level data on breeder seed production with primary data on cultivar adoption. The analyses show that the rate of varietal turnover for wheat has slowed in India from an average of 9-10 years a decade ago to 13-14 years in 2010. By focusing on a sample of farmers and villages in Haryana, where seed and information networks are relatively well developed, the study finds that wheat farmers still prefer cultivars that were released 9-10 years ago.

The Globalization of Wheat

The Globalization of Wheat PDF Author: Marci Baranski
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press
ISBN: 0822989069
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
In The Globalization of Wheat, Marci R. Baranski explores Norman Borlaug’s complicated legacy as godfather of the Green Revolution. Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his role in fighting global hunger, Borlaug, an American agricultural scientist and plant breeder who worked for the Rockefeller Foundation, left a legacy that divides opinions even today. His high-yielding dwarf wheat varieties, known as miracle seeds, effectively doubled and tripled crop yields across the globe, from Kenya to India and Argentina to Mexico due to their wide adaptation. But these modern seeds also required expensive chemical fertilizers and irrigation, both of which were only available to wealthier farmers. Baranski argues that Borlaug’s new technologies ultimately privileged wealthier farmers, despite assurances to politicians that these new crops would thrive in diverse geographies and benefit all farmers. As large-scale monocultures replaced traditional farming practices, these changes were codified into the Indian wheat research system, thus limiting attention to traditional practices and marginal environments. In the shadow of this legacy, and in the face of accelerating climate change, Baranski brings new light to Borlaug’s role in a controversial concept in agricultural science.

New Horizons in Wheat and Barley Research

New Horizons in Wheat and Barley Research PDF Author: Prem Lal Kashyap
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9811644497
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 847

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Book Description
This book outlines comprehensive information on the global trends, policies, research priorities and frontier innovations made in the research domain of breeding, biotechnology, biofortification and quality enhancement of wheat and barley. With contributions by international group of leading wheat and barley researchers, this book offers data-based insights along with a holistic view of the subject and serve as a vital resource of information for scientists engaged in breeding future high-yielding biofortified varieties. It catalogs both conventional as well as modern tools for gene identification and genome editing interventions for enhancing the yield, grain quality, disease and pest resistance, nutrient-use efficiency and abiotic stress tolerance. The prospects of processing high quality wheat end-products with long term storage and high nutritional quality are also discussed. This book is of interest to teachers, researchers, molecular breeders, cereal biochemists and biotechnologist, policymakers and professionals working in the area of wheat and barley research, food and cereal industry. Also, the book serves as an additional reading material for the undergraduate and graduate students of agriculture and food sciences. National and international agricultural scientists, policy makers will also find this book to be a useful read. Volume 2 of New Horizons in Wheat and Barley Research covers topics in crop protection and resource management.

The impact of shocks on gender-differentiated asset dynamics in Bangladesh

The impact of shocks on gender-differentiated asset dynamics in Bangladesh PDF Author: Rakib, Muntaha
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 40

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Book Description
Assets are an important means of coping with adverse events in developing countries but the role of gendered ownership is not yet fully understood. This paper investigates changes in assets owned by the household head, his spouse, or jointly by both of them in response to shocks in rural agricultural households in Bangladesh with the help of detailed household survey panel data. Land is owned mostly by men, who are wealthier than their spouses with respect to almost all types of assets, but relative ownership varies by type of asset. Controlling for unobserved heterogeneity across households and looking at changes within, rather than between, households, we find that weather shocks such as cyclones adversely affect the asset holdings of household heads in general, while predicted external events lead to assets of both spouses being drawn down. The results, furthermore, suggest that jointly owned assets are not sold in response to shocks, either due to these assets being actively protected or due to the difficulty of agreeing on this coping strategy, and that women’s asset holdings and associated coping strategies are shaped by their lower involvement in agriculture.

Farmers’ preferences for climate-smart agriculture

Farmers’ preferences for climate-smart agriculture PDF Author: Taneja, Garima
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 44

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Book Description
This study was undertaken to assess farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for various climate-smart interventions in the Indo-Gangetic Plain. The research outputs will be helpful in integrating farmers’ choices with government programs in the selected regions. The Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) was selected because it is highly vulnerable to climate change, which may adversely affect the sustainability of the rice-wheat production system and the food security of the region. Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) can mitigate the negative impacts of climate change and improve the efficiency of the rice-wheat-based production system. CSA requires a complete package of practices to achieve the desired objectives, but adoption is largely dependent on farmers’ preferences and their capacity and WTP. To assess farmers’ choices and their WTP for the potential climate-smart technologies and other interventions, we used scoring and bidding protocols implemented through focus group meetings in two distinct regions of Eastern and Western IGP. We find that laser land leveling (LLL), crop insurance, and weather advisory services were the preferred interventions in Eastern IGP. Farmers preferred LLL, direct seeding, zero tillage, irrigation scheduling, and crop insurance in Western IGP. Through the bidding approach, farmers implicitly express their WTP for new technologies that could transform current agricultural practices into relatively low-carbon and more productive farming methods. But actual large-scale adoption of the preferred climate-smart technologies and other interventions would require access to funding as well as capacity building among technology promoters and users.

Migration, local off-farm employment, and agricultural production efficiency

Migration, local off-farm employment, and agricultural production efficiency PDF Author: Yang, Jin
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 24

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Book Description
This paper studies the effect of local off-farm employment and migration on rural households’ technical efficiency of crop production using a five-year panel dataset from more than 2,000 households in five Chinese provinces. While there is not much debate about the positive contribution of migration and local off-farm employment to China’s economy, there is an increasing concern about the potential negative effects of moving labor away from agriculture on China’s future food security. This is a critical issue as maintaining self-sufficiency in grain production will be critical for China to feed its huge population in the future. Several papers have studied the impact of migration on production and yield with mixed results. But the impact of migration on technical efficiency is rarely studied. Methodologically, we incorporate the correlated random-effects approach into the standard stochastic production frontier model to control for unobservable that are correlated with migration and off-farm employment decisions and technical efficiency. The most consistent result that emerged from our econometric analysis is that neither migration nor local off-farm employment has a negative effect on the technical efficiency of grain production, which does not support the widespread notion that vast-scale labor migration could negatively affect China’s future food security.

How does climate change alter agricultural strategies to support food security?

How does climate change alter agricultural strategies to support food security? PDF Author: Thornton, Philip K.
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 49

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Book Description
The purpose of the paper is to identify how climate change affects how we should approach the process of transforming agricultural systems (including crops, livestock, fisheries and forestry) to support global food security and poverty reduction in a sustainable way. We also identify implications for FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) and CGIAR priorities.

The impact of cash and food transfers: Evidence from a randomized intervention in Niger

The impact of cash and food transfers: Evidence from a randomized intervention in Niger PDF Author: Hoddinott, John F.
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 32

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Book Description
There is little rigorous evidence on the comparative impacts of cash and food transfers on food security and food-related outcomes. We assess the relative impacts of receiving cash versus food transfers using a randomized design. Drawing on data collected in eastern Niger, we find that households randomized to receive a food basket experienced larger, positive impacts on measures of food consumption and diet quality than those receiving the cash transfer.

Importance of rice research and development in rice seed policies

Importance of rice research and development in rice seed policies PDF Author: Takeshima, Hiroyuki
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 44

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Book Description
First, this paper shows that rice varietal development in Nigeria has been lagging behind that of other developing countries in Asia and Latin America, due partly to insufficient investment in domestic rice R&D. The paper then illustrates using a household model simulation that impacts of certain policies, such as the seed subsidy, may be greater (smaller) if they are applied to good (poor) varieties. The paper concludes by discussing key policy implications and future research needs.

Market interdependence and volatility transmission among major crops

Market interdependence and volatility transmission among major crops PDF Author: Gardebroek, Cornelis
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 44

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Book Description
This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the dynamics of volatility between the corn, wheat, and soybean markets in the United States. Volatility interactions across markets, if they exist, may lower the effectiveness of diversification strategies to mitigate price risks and should be taken into account when analyzing the pricing behavior of different agricultural commodities. We follow a Multivariate Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (MGARCH) approach to evaluate the level of interdependence and volatility transmission across these major crops on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.