A dynamic bio-economic model is used to show that, without technological and policy intervention, soil nutrient balances, income and nutrition could not be substantially or sustainably improved in a highland area of Ethiopia. Although cash incomes could rise from a very low base by more than 50%...

Replaced with revised version of paper 07/24/11.

Models of agricultural economics typically operate at an annual basis or in a static equilibriumframework where inputs, outputs and their prices may change considerably. Production dynamics,however, imply that models relying on spatial and temporal aggregation do not capture the effects...

The demand for dairy products shifted during the past decade to items with less fat. This, along with a dairy surplus, has led to a generic advertising campaign by the industry. Consumers have responded by increasing dairy product purchases, while changes in the provisions of the dairy support...

Models of agricultural economics typically operate at an annual basis or in a static equilibrium framework where inputs, outputs and their prices may change considerably. Production dynamics, however, imply that models relying on spatial and temporal aggregation do not capture the effects of...

This paper examines the theoretical and practical aspects of natural resource use in the poor tropics given limited technological and policy intervention. Results show that if farmers were to reallocate their land use activities based on land suitability, and utilize between 10-20% of their farm...

Crop rotation effects and constraints are major determinants of farmers’ crop choices. Crop rotations are also keystone elements of most environmentally friendly cropping systems. The aim of this paper is twofold. First, it proposes simple tools for investigating optimal dynamic crop acreage...

Sclerotinia rot is a disease caused by the fungus Sclerotinina sclerotiorum which affects a wide range of crops and causes major yield and economic losses. Crop rotation is an important strategy for minimising losses. A dynamic programming (DP) model was developed to study the trade-offs between...

Sclerotinia rot is a disease caused by the fungus Sclerotinina sclerotiorum which affects a wide range of crops and causes major yield and economic losses. Crop rotation is an important strategy for minimising losses. A dynamic programming (DP) model was developed to study the trade-offs between...

Environmental weeds are plants that invade natural ecosystems and are considered to be a serious threat to nature conservation. Environmental weeds have been implicated in the extinction of several indigenous plant species, and they also threaten ecosystem stability and functional complexity....