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Accelerated Productivity Growth Offsets Decline in Resource Expansion in Global Agriculture—Rapid increases in agricultural commodity prices during 2006-08 raised concerns that agricultural productivity growth may not be keeping up with increasing demand for agricultural commodities. ERS has developed a new index of total factor productivity (TFP) in global agriculture to provide a more comprehensive understanding of longrun sources of agricultural output growth. ERS research shows that the average rate of growth in global agricultural TFP has accelerated in recent decades and accounts for an increasing share of growth in agricultural production. Faster TFP growth has offset declining growth in agricultural land, labor, and other resources, although TFP growth across countries and global regions remains unevenly distributed. (August 2010)
Science, Technology, and Prospects for Growth in U.S. Corn Yields—Recent increases in inflation-adjusted crop prices have sparked renewed interest in the potential for continued increases in crop yields, particularly since increases in crop yields could affect food security, bioenergy production, and the Nation's response to global climate change. Although market forces and biological factors influence corn yields, research investments have been the driving force behind increasing corn yields in the past. Continued scientific advances could accelerate the rate of growth in corn yields, but achieving a nationwide yield of 300 bushels per acre by 2030 would require a tripling of the projected growth rate, and would be historically unprecedented. (November 2009)
U.S.
Public Agricultural Research: Changes in Funding Sources and
Shifts in Emphasis, 1980-2005—Over
the years, proposals have recommended shifting the focus of
public agricultural research from applied to basic research,
and giving higher priority to peer-reviewed, competitively
funded grants. This report focuses on the way public agricultural
research is funded in the United States and how changes in
funding sources over the last 25 years reflect changes in the
type of research pursued. (March 2009)
Technology,
Larger Farm Size Increased Productivity on U.S. Hog Farms—U.S.
hog production has shifted rapidly to fewer and larger operations
that specialize in a single phase of production and use production
contracts. Substantial productivity gains for hog farms, particularly
specialized hog-finishing operations, have resulted in reduced
costs of production and contributed to lower prices for hogs
at the farm gate. Technological innovation and increasing farm size each explain
about half the gains in hog farm productivity between 1992 and 2004. (April 2008)
Economic Returns to Public Agricultural
Research—The
U.S. agricultural sector has sustained impressive productivity
growth over the last several decades. The Nation's agricultural
research system, including Federal-State public research as well
as private-sector research, has been a key driver of this growth.
Economic analysis finds strong and consistent evidence that investment
in agricultural research has yielded high returns per dollar
spent. These returns include benefits not only to the farm sector
but also to the food industry and consumers. (September 2007)
Productivity Growth in U.S. Agriculture—Innovation and changes in technology have been a driving force for gains in productivity growth in U.S. agriculture. USDA's Economic Research Service has developed annual indexes of agricultural inputs, outputs, and total factor productivity (TFP) for 1948 through 2004. American agriculture relies almost entirely on productivity growth to raise output. By lowering the cost of agricultural commodities, productivity growth benefits not only farmers but also food manufacturers and consumers. (September 2007)
Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators, 2006 Edition—These chapters describe trends in resources used in and affected by agricultural production, as well as the economic conditions and policies that influence agricultural resource use and its environmental impacts. Each of the 28 chapters provides a concise overview of a specific topic with links to sources of additional information. Chapters are available in HTML and pdf formats. (July 2006)
Government Patenting and Technology Transfer—This report examines the use of intellectual property rights in Federal technology transfer, focusing primarily on the Agricultural Research Service (ARS). ARS uses patenting and licensing when a technology requires additional development by a private sector partner to yield a marketable product. Licensing revenue is not a major motivation. Greater use of patenting and licensing by ARS has not reduced the use of traditional instruments of technology transfer such as scientific publication. The structure of licensing agreements affects technology transfer outcomes. Mutually advantageous revisions to license terms may at times maintain the incentives through which private companies distribute the benefits of public research. (March 2006)
Crop Genetic Resources: An Economic Appraisal—Crop genetic resources are the basis of agricultural production. However, crop genetic resources are largely public goods, so private incentives for genetic resource conservation may fall short of achieving public objectives. Access to diverse genes, needed to reduce vulnerability to pests and diseases, may be affected by international agreements. (May 2005)
Have Seed Industry Changes Affected Research Effort?—The unprecedented growth in U.S. agricultural productivity over the past 70 years owe much to a series of biological innovations embodied in major crop seeds, in particular cotton, corn, soybeans, and wheat. These innovations are the result of the investment of considerable time and money into plant breeding research and development (R&D). However, the seed sector has changed: seed R&D has moved from being predominately public to predominately private, innovation protection is now pervasive, and the private seed industry has become highly concentrated. This article examines the extent of this shift in R&D from the public to the private domain and whether or not the shift is positively or negatively affecting research effort, and potentially agricultural productivity growth. (February 2004)
Agricultural Research and Development: Public and Private Investments Under Alternative Markets and Institutions—
Empirical studies indicate high economic returns from the public's investment in agricultural research. Yet, even as society is placing broader demands on the research system, taxpayer support for public agricultural research is unlikely to increase. Stronger ownership rights for intellectual property have increased incentives for private investment in agricultural research, but key elements still require direct public support. The USDA is developing new mechanisms to build a more effective public-private partnership in agricultural research. (May 1996)
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