The decision making of organic and conventional agricultural producers
Abstract
The main objective of this research was to describe and understand the decision making of organic and conventional farmers so
that we could understand why, or why not, they grew organic products. Organic production was self defined by the farmers themselves not by us as experts. We did
not examine whether actual organic standards were being followed. A majority of organic
farmers had their organic status certified by Bio-Gro NZ (the organisation formerly known as the New Zealand Biological Producers and Consumers Association) providing certification in conformity with the basic standards of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). Therefore organic farming is defined as any land use which uses organic techniques. It includes agricultural and horticultural land uses and thereby includes both farmers and growers. However, for ease of reading, this report uses the words agriculture and farmer and they should be taken to include horticulture and growers.
This report provides a review of literature on farmers’ decision making with respect to
organic farming. It then introduces and explains the method adopted in this study, namely, the ethnographic decision tree approach. The results are presented in terms of what they tell us about understanding both organic and conventional farmers’ thinking about organic production. Finally, the conclusion discusses the results, compares them with the existing literature, makes some general observations and considers the policy implications.... [Show full abstract]
Keywords
decision making; farm management; organic farming; organic horticulture; organic agriculture; Canterbury; organic and conventional farming practices; public opinionFields of Research
0701 Agriculture, Land and Farm ManagementDate
1996-06Type
MonographCollections
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
The potential for commercial organic sheep farming in the South Island
Richardson, Allan (Lincoln University. Faculty of Commerce. Kellogg Rural Leaders Programme., 1997)The organics industry in New Zealand is experiencing rapid growth with $20 million of organic products exported in the year to June 1997, a 67% increase on the year before. Kiwifruit and processed vegetables from Heinz ... -
Organic livestock farming : main issues and management strategies implemented by farmers : case studies in Canterbury, New Zealand : a dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Applied Science at Lincoln University
Revertera, Miguel N. A. (Lincoln University, 2001)The aims of this study were to identify a) the main issues faced by some organic livestock farmers, b) the management strategies adopted by them to deal with those issues and c) the economic incentives associated with ... -
The potential for expansion of the organic industry in New Zealand : a contingent valuation of consumers WTP for organic produce
Saunders, Caroline M. (Lincoln University. Commerce Division., 1999-09)This paper examines the past and current development of the organic industry in New Zealand. Organic farming in New Zealand has changed and grown rapidly over the last 10 years. This has mainly been due to the development ...