?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.title=TECHNICAL+EFFICIENCY+IN+ORGANIC+AND+CONVENTIONAL+FARMING%3A+EVIDENCE+FROM+ITALIAN+CEREAL+FARMS&rft.creator=Madau%2C+Fabio+A.&rft.subject=+Farm+economics&rft.description=A+stochastic+frontier+production+model+was+applied+to+estimate+technical+efficiency+in+a%0D%0Asample+of+Italian+organic+and+conventional+cereal+farms.+The+main+purpose+was+to+assess+which+production+technique+revealed+higher+efficiency.+Statistical+tests+on+the+common+production+function+model+suggested+that+the+two+cultivation+methods+might+lie+on+different+frontiers.+Separate+analyses+of+two+sub-samples+(93+and+138+observations+for+organic+and+conventional+farms%2C+respectively)+found+that+conventional+farms+were+significantly+more+efficient+than+organic+farms%2C+with+respect+to+their+specific+technology%0D%0A(0.902+vs.+0.831).+Analysis+also+estimated+that+efficiency+plays+a+crucial+role+into+the%0D%0Afactors+affecting+productivity+in+the+organic+process.+Some+policy+implications+can+be%0D%0Adrawn+from+these+findings.&rft.date=2007-01&rft.type=Journal+paper&rft.type=NonPeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Forgprints.org%2F14138%2F1%2FMadau2007.pdf&rft.identifier=Madau%2C+Fabio+A.+(2007)+TECHNICAL+EFFICIENCY+IN+ORGANIC+AND+CONVENTIONAL+FARMING%3A+EVIDENCE+FROM+ITALIAN+CEREAL+FARMS.+Agricultural+Economics+Review%2C+8+(1)%2C+pp.+5-21.&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Forgprints.org%2F14138%2F