Abstract:
Farm size has been identified as a significant determinant of resource use
efficiency, household food security and choice of improved agricultural
methods. However, empirical literature is replete with controversies
concerning the exact nature of this relationship. This study examined the
relationship between farm size, efficiency, ploughing technology and
household food security among maize farmers in three districts of the
Northern Region of Ghana by addressing some of the methodological
weaknesses in existing studies with respect to the use of cross-sectional
dataset and skewed preferences for the two-stage estimation procedure.
Employing a three-year balanced panel dataset on 787 households, the study the examined the relationship between farm size and efficiency. With the same
sample, the study also investigated the relationship between farm size and
choice of ploughing technology using the multinomial probit regression
model, and the association between form size and household food security
using a probit regression model. Empirical results indicate that there is a
significant positive relationship between farm size and efficiency. It was also
established that farm size had a significant positive influence on choice of
ploughing technology whereas there was no statistically significant
relationship between farm size and household food security. Findings from
this study have implications for designing land consolidation initiatives and
public policies on improving household food security through the adoption of
fertiliser and fostering participation in social network as well as livestock
production.
