Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture

Despite small landholdings, a high degree of land fragmentation, and rising labor costs, agricultural production in China has steadily increased. If one treats the farm household as the unit of analysis, it is difficult to explain the conundrum. When seeing agricultural production through the lens o...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Zhang, Xiaobo, Yang, Jin, Reardon, Thomas
Formato: Capítulo de libro
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Food Policy Research Institute 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142768
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author Zhang, Xiaobo
Yang, Jin
Reardon, Thomas
author_browse Reardon, Thomas
Yang, Jin
Zhang, Xiaobo
author_facet Zhang, Xiaobo
Yang, Jin
Reardon, Thomas
author_sort Zhang, Xiaobo
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Despite small landholdings, a high degree of land fragmentation, and rising labor costs, agricultural production in China has steadily increased. If one treats the farm household as the unit of analysis, it is difficult to explain the conundrum. When seeing agricultural production through the lens of the division of labor, the puzzle can be easily solved. In response to rising labor costs, farmers outsource some power-intensive stages of production, such as harvesting, to specialized mechanization service providers, which are often clustered in a few counties and travel throughout the country to provide harvesting services at competitive prices. Through such an arrangement, smallholder farmers can stay viable in agricultural production.
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publishDate 2020
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publisherStr International Food Policy Research Institute
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spelling CGSpace1427682025-11-06T04:15:55Z Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture Zhang, Xiaobo Yang, Jin Reardon, Thomas agricultural production fertilizers supply balance policies surveys technology farmers labour agriculture harvesters smallholders farm equipment harvesting agricultural mechanization pesticides remuneration rural areas governance Despite small landholdings, a high degree of land fragmentation, and rising labor costs, agricultural production in China has steadily increased. If one treats the farm household as the unit of analysis, it is difficult to explain the conundrum. When seeing agricultural production through the lens of the division of labor, the puzzle can be easily solved. In response to rising labor costs, farmers outsource some power-intensive stages of production, such as harvesting, to specialized mechanization service providers, which are often clustered in a few counties and travel throughout the country to provide harvesting services at competitive prices. Through such an arrangement, smallholder farmers can stay viable in agricultural production. 2020-11-01 2024-05-22T12:11:01Z 2024-05-22T12:11:01Z Book Chapter https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142768 en https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293809 https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293823 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2021.102095 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Zhang, Xiaobo; Yang, Jin; and Reardon, Thomas. 2020. Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture. In An evolving paradigm of agricultural mechanization development: How much can Africa learn from Asia?, eds. Xinshen Diao, Hiroyuki Takeshima, and Xiaobo Zhang. Part Two: Early-Adopter Asian Countries, Chapter 2, Pp. 71-96. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293809_02.
spellingShingle agricultural production
fertilizers
supply balance
policies
surveys
technology
farmers
labour
agriculture
harvesters
smallholders
farm equipment
harvesting
agricultural mechanization
pesticides
remuneration
rural areas
governance
Zhang, Xiaobo
Yang, Jin
Reardon, Thomas
Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture
title Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture
title_full Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture
title_fullStr Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture
title_full_unstemmed Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture
title_short Mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in Chinese agriculture
title_sort mechanization outsourcing clusters and division of labor in chinese agriculture
topic agricultural production
fertilizers
supply balance
policies
surveys
technology
farmers
labour
agriculture
harvesters
smallholders
farm equipment
harvesting
agricultural mechanization
pesticides
remuneration
rural areas
governance
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142768
work_keys_str_mv AT zhangxiaobo mechanizationoutsourcingclustersanddivisionoflaborinchineseagriculture
AT yangjin mechanizationoutsourcingclustersanddivisionoflaborinchineseagriculture
AT reardonthomas mechanizationoutsourcingclustersanddivisionoflaborinchineseagriculture