creators_name: Firth, Chris
editors_name: Powell, Jane
editors_name: et al., 
type: conference_item
datestamp: 2006-05-02
lastmod: 2009-08-20 14:32:11
metadata_visibility: show
title: The use of gross and net margins in the economic analysis of organic farms
ispublished: pub
subjects: knowledge
subjects: 2farmecon
full_text_status: public
keywords: Colloquium of Organic Researchers; COR; gross margins, net margins, farm business analysis, economic efficiency, management accounts
abstract: This paper was presented at the UK organic research 2002 of the Colloquium of Organic Researchers (COR).
In order to assess the technical and economic efficiency of conventional farm businesses a variety of management techniques have been developed. These include gross and net margin analysis and full cost accounting. This paper reviews their effectiveness in organic farming systems and finds that all of the techniques can be useful in helping to assess the economic efficiency of individual enterprises within an organic farming business, although they have their limitations. Organic systems require the integration of a number of usually complementary enterprises and therefore gross and net margins for particular enterprises taken out of the rotational or whole farm context can be misleading. Consequently it is important that any economic investigation of an organic system also includes whole farm economic analysis. 
date: 2002
date_type: published
publication: Proceedings of the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference
publisher: Organic Centre Wales, Institute of Rural Studies, University of Wales Aberystwyth
pagerange: 285-288
refereed: never
referencetext: Cormack W J; Elliot J (1994) Conversion to organic arable production, 1990-1993, ADAS Terrington, Norfolk 
Barnard C S; Nix J S (1979) Farm Planning and Control, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 
Firth C; Lennartsson M L (1999) Economics of organic fruit production in the UK, HDRA, Ryton, Coventry 
HDRA (2000) Conversion to organic field vegetable production, 1996-2000, HDRA Ryton, Coventry 
HDRA (2001) Combinable peas: an evaluation of the feasibility of organic production. Report for PGRO 
Lampkin N; Measures M (Eds) (1994, 2001). Organic Farm Management Handbook, Organic Farming Research Unit, Institute of Rural Studies, University of Wales. Organic Advisory Service, Elm Farm Research Centre., Aberystwyth, Newbury. 
Leake A R (1999) A report of the results of CWS Agriculture’s Organic Farming Experiments 1989-1996, Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England p73-81 
MAFF (1980) An Introduction to farm business management, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and ADAS.  

citation: Firth, Chris (2002) The use of gross and net margins in the economic analysis of organic farms. UK Organic Research 2002 Conference, Aberystwyth, 26-28 March 2002. In: Powell, Jane and et al., (Eds.) Proceedings of the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference, Organic Centre Wales, Institute of Rural Studies, University of Wales Aberystwyth, pp. 285-288.
document_url: http://orgprints.org/8290/1/firth_margins_economic_analysis.pdf