Resource base as a determinant of cropping patterns. Economics Department Occasional Paper no.14

Abstract

This report describes how a region's natural resources, the level of technology, relative commodity prices, and market infrastructure determine the cropping pattern of an area. Farm level resources are separated into two categories: (1)those for which utilization ismore or less rigidly determined by ownership and (2)those where accessibility to and utilization of the resource isnot determined by ownership. The first category includes resources such as land, while the second includes such things as labor, bullocks, and farm equipment. The topics discussed include the impact of: major resource investments, canal irrigation, tractorization, and cross sectional analysis of resource differences. Within the resource base, the land types, irrigation, and rainfall play the most important roles. These basic resources, together with the availability of crop varieties, markets and the relative prices of commodities determine the comparative advantage of different crops and crop mixes on the various soil types and also the rate of return to investment inimprovement of the resource base. Massive resource transformations which alleviate major constraints such as those indicated by canal irrigation and tractorization overshadow the impact of other resource differences and can lead to shifts incropping patterns inparticular directions for farms indifferent categories. Such resource improvements orient the cropping patterns towards high value crops and tend to reduce the importance of mixed crops. Introduction of new varieties tends to change patterns of comparative advantage of different crops and may lead to shifts incropping patterns as well as investment incentives for other capital items