Volume 124 - Issue 1

This paper aims to present central concepts of Evolutionary Institutionalism and to highlight analytical elements that may be useful for studies in agricultural economics. To this end, the study carried out a literature review based on the main references of institutional and evolutionary economics. The main analytical contribution of Evolutionary Institutionalism to agricultural economics lies in understanding economic relations from the perspective of human behaviour. Individuals become central to the analysis of the rural world, since they establish habits, behaviour patterns, and rules of conduct that, when interacting collectively, produce institutions. Thus, it is from the active role of the individual that rural dynamics emerge and consolidate an institutional environment and prevailing social structures. It is possible to point out some specific themes that emerge as potential applications of this line of thought: a) the analysis of the development trajectory of and institutional changes affecting different rural sectors; b) the role of habits, traditions and behavioural trends; c) power relations in agricultural markets; d) the evaluation of public policies for agriculture; e) innovation and technology as determinants of the evolution of routines, and f) the institutions “behind” the new relations of food production and consumption.

This paper contributes to the existing literature on geographical indications and, in particular, on the economic analysis of vegetables bearing a Protected Geographical Indication label. This study deals with the niche topic of methodologies that may be used to select ideal foreign markets for the Radicchio Rosso di Treviso. The aim is to suggest an adequate investigative methodology for identifying the foreign countries that are most suitable targets for promotional strategies. The specific analysis considers many variables, chosen with a view to selecting eligible markets, and ultimately draws up a consistent ranking of the five best nations. To determine the most promising country, the Overall Market Opportunity Index (OMOI) method has been used. This focuses on the most relevant indicators for each of the seven categories used to assess their appeal. The findings show that Denmark can be the best market for focusing the segmentation strategies of the Treviso Radicchio. After this, policy and business implications are addressed and opportunities for future research into emerging related issues are suggested. Strengthening the ranking analysis methodologies used for selecting target markets for the companies that produce Made in Italy luxury foods can also help improve such companies’ competitive profile on international markets.

Social enterprises have both economic and social motivations. This hybridity also determines their business model: these companies survive economically in a sometimes very competitive market by fulfilling their main objectives to achieve their social mission. In Hungary, the number of social enterprises within the catering industry is minimal; however, the para-gastro movement collects companies with catering or food processing activities that employs disabled and/or disadvantaged workers. This paper investigates the three most prominent members of the Hungarian para-gastro movement that consider sourcing inputs via short food supply chains as an opportunity. Based on a mixed methods approach, we can conclude that these enterprises must face all the industry’s difficulties, and their unique circumstances might make their operations even more difficult. Taking into account the support these enterprises have received in pursuit of their social goals, the opportunities provided by the short food supply chains can help them only if they are also able to find a niche market where solvent demand can accept the specialties of local sourcing.

Changes in climate conditions are expected to significantly alter food production patterns and increase food price volatility, leading to challenges for food and nutrition security. Thus, this paper aims to investigate the extent to which climate factors contribute to the volatility of maize price in Benin, using monthly data from 7 markets. To this end, an autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity in mean (ARCH-M) model is estimated. Mean and variance equations of monthly maize price are specified as functions of temperature, rainfall of the growing season and a set of control variables including a policy variable and the international price of maize with an ARCH(1) term in the variance equation. The findings from the mean equation suggest that rainfall has a negative effect on maize prices. Moreover, the estimation results from the variance equation indicate that rainfall and temperature are negatively associated with price volatility. Therefore, the findings indicate that climate change will affect maize price volatility.

This study examines the impact of access to bank and non-bank credit on rice productivity and output. It employed the coarsened exact matching (CEM) model and qualitative methods for primary data on a purposive sample of 450 rice farmers across three Local Government Areas of Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Pre-matching results suggest that access to non-bank credit and access to total credit significantly affected labour productivity and output, while access to bank credit significantly affected output. However, the post-matching results show that access to all three categories of credit has no significant effect on either output or capital, labour, and total factor productivity. This study therefore recommends that for an improved production and productivity yield among rice farmers in the state, policies should focus on the issues of improved quality of education and constraints in accessing loans/credits.