Public R&D Investment and Cost Structure in Italian Agriculture 1960-1995

This article deals with the role of public research in Italian agriculture during the period 1960 to 1995. A short-term specification of the GL cost function capable of accommodating quasi-fixed factors and variable returns is employed. Temporary equilibrium and scale economies are investigated with special emphasis on methodological implications of R&D stock and;consistency of the estimated model with microeconomic theory. Confronting the relevant shadow and rental price the model provides evidence on the topics of under (over) investment and the rationale driving public research expenditure in agriculture A formal test for the induced innovation hypothesis, the calculation of the internal rate of returns and TFP growth decomposition are also considered.