12 Facts About Agricultural economics

Agricultural economics is an applied field of economics concerned with the application of economic theory in optimizing the production and distribution of food and fiber products.

Agricultural economics began as a branch of economics that specifically dealt with land usage.

Agricultural economics today includes a variety of applied areas, having considerable overlap with conventional economics.

Agricultural economics arose in the late 19th century, combined the theory of the firm with marketing and organization theory, and developed throughout the 20th century largely as an empirical branch of general economics.

Today, the field of agricultural economics has transformed into a more integrative discipline which covers farm management and production economics, rural finance and institutions, agricultural marketing and prices, agricultural policy and development, food and nutrition economics, and environmental and natural resource economics.

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Since the 1970s, agricultural economics has primarily focused on seven main topics, according to Ford Runge: agricultural environment and resources; risk and uncertainty; food and consumer economics; prices and incomes; market structures; trade and development; and technical change and human capital.

Agricultural economics economists have contributed to understanding how households make choices between purchasing food or preparing it at home, how food prices are determined, definitions of poverty thresholds, how consumers respond to price and income changes in a consistent way, and survey and experimental tools for understanding consumer preferences.

Agricultural economics research has addressed diminishing returns in agricultural production, as well as farmers' costs and supply responses.

Development Agricultural economics is broadly concerned with the improvement of living conditions in low-income countries, and the improvement of economic performance in low-income settings.

International Association of Agricultural economics Economists is a worldwide professional association, which holds its major conference every three years.

Substantial work in agricultural economics internationally is conducted by the International Food Policy Research Institute.

Graduates from agricultural and applied economics departments find jobs in many sectors of the economy: agricultural management, agribusiness, commodities markets, education, financial sector, government, natural resource and environmental management, real estate, and public relations.