Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 2
Overview and Brief History
2.1
Introduction
In recent decades, there has been an increasing consensus regarding the challenges
of applying statistics to agricultural surveys (Benedetti et al.
2010
). Although
agriculture is assuming a more marginal economic role in western countries, if
measured in terms of the percentage contribution to a country
s GDP, it is essential
'
to many people
s livelihoods.
Agricultural development is also fundamental for monitoring issues relating to
poverty, food security, and environmental sustainability. Monitoring agricultural
resources is crucial to those countries where population growth is leading to an
increase in agricultural production. The prompt availability of updated information
is important for policy makers, who need to develop, promote and ratify structural
and functional programs in the agricultural sector.
Pertinent agricultural statistics address all the requirements outlined above. The
term
agricultural statistics
includes statistics on agricultural products, forestry,
fisheries, livestock, and food safety. The definition includes consideration of land
use, and the culture of a living organism through more than one life cycle and
ownership (Everaers
2010
). Different research areas are acknowledged in agricul-
tural statistics: sample surveys, experiment design, and biometrical techniques,
amongst others. For a comprehensive review of statistical methods in agriculture
see Benedetti et al. (
2012
).
When specifying the purposes of an agricultural sample survey, it is necessary to
outline some common terms that are typically used in the agricultural sector (FAO
1996
). An
agricultural holding
is an economic production unit under a single
management that is involved in agricultural production activities. A
holding parcel
is any piece of land entirely surrounded by other land, water, road, or forest that
does not form part of the holding. A parcel may consist of one or more fields
adjacent to each other. A
field
is a piece of land in a parcel, which is separated from
the rest of the parcel by easily recognizable demarcation lines, and on which a
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