Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
transaction costs and the lack of information about them (Lerman and Shagaida
2007
).
The use of renewable energies in the Indian agricultural sector was a step
towards sustainable farming production (Radulovic
2005
).
Organic farming in India has increased in popularity, considering its contribu-
tion towards ecological, economic, and social sustainability (Purushothaman
et al.
2013
).
In the twentieth century the agricultural policy in China from the second War
until the 1970s was based upon fixed prices with conditions for some farms to
increase their grain. After the 1970s the agricultural policies improved the food
markets and rural economic growth. In the twenty-first century the policy reforms
positioned the sector in the market place, with the Chinese government supporting
the production of grain at a low price, promoting the industry in detriment to
agriculture. These policies maintain many famers within the sector at an income
below that obtained in urban regions (Hurt
2010
).
The most important determinant of grain output growth for farmers is the input
growth, followed by productivity growth. Within the input growth is the interme-
diate input growth the most important variable after the planted area, the invest-
ment, and labor input. Between the elements of productivity, the greatest
importance comes from technical progress, grain financial support, climate condi-
tions, scale effects, and technical efficiency, respectively (Yong-fu et al.
2013
).
Genetically modified agricultural production (Morse et al.
2006
), the increased
presence of supermarkets (D'Haese and Huylenbroeck
2005
), the climate (Moeletsi
et al.
2013
), and water management (Hassan and Thurlow
2011
) are questions that
are raised in rural areas and in the agricultural sector in South Africa.
3 Data Description
The following figures show the evolution of the agricultural value added and other
related variables, from the diverse areas of society, from 1961 until 2012, for the
BRICS countries (World Bank
2014
).
The statistical information reveals that indeed the reality of these countries is
very different on several different levels, which means that the challenges facing
each one will be singular and the strategies for the future on all levels, and namely
for the agricultural sector, must and will be specific and adjusted to their personal
needs.
The percentage of agricultural land across the different countries, from 1961 to
2011, was greater in South Africa and India and lower in Russia (Fig.
6.1
). Brazil
also lacked a great weight of land in the farming sector (about 30 %). The
deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon for construction and to obtain land for
agriculture has alerted some Brazilian fields in society.
On the other hand, in the period 1990-2011, Brazil had the higher proportion of
area with forest (about 60 % in recent years), and South Africa the lowest, as well as
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