Strategy factors as drivers and restraints on dairy farm performance: evidence from Sweden.

摘要

This paper explored how factors that are potential driving and restraining forces on farm strategy affect farm performance, in terms of economic, technical and allocative input and output efficiency. By assuming some inputs as given in the short run (capital and farmer labor) both long and short run input efficiency scores were calculated. A model of how strategy driving and restraining forces affect farm performance was developed. Three levels of potential driving and restraining forces were identified: external-operational environment, internal environment and micro-social environment. The model was detailed with specific factors, and those of especially the last two types of environments were used as explanatory variables in Tobit regressions, where the dependent variables were data envelopment analysis efficiency scores. We found that several of the strategy factors were important for farm performance. For example, several geographic locations (external-internal environment) were driving forces for economic and technical efficiency. Differences in soil and climate may be reasons, as well as potential differences in business culture. When the internal environment was considered, size of fields, distance to fields, bunker silo and tower silo were found to be driving forces for farm performance, whereas quality of forage machinery and a high focus on dairy production were found to be restraining forces. In the micro-social environment, discussing dairy production with someone was a driving force whereas co-farmers were restraints..