Is the share of agricultural maintenance research rising in the United States?

• Published in: Food policy 2013-02, Vol.38, p.126-135
• Main Authors: Sparger, John Adam, Norton, George W., Heisey, Paul W., Alwang, Jeffrey
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural maintenance research; Agricultural policy; Agricultural production; Agricultural productivity; Agricultural research; Agronomy; Appropriations and expenditures; Climate change; Deterioration; Expenditures; Federal funding; Finance; Funding; Global warming; Government policy; Insects; Investments; Knowledge; Knowledge management; Maintenance; Pathogens; Policy; Production; Productivity; Research & development expenditures; Trends; U.S.A; United States
• ISSN: 0306-9192; 1873-5657
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2012.11.004

► Maintenance research is measured to assess how much is performed and why. ► Forty percent of US agricultural research is now devoted to maintenance. ► Ignoring maintenance research can lead to underestimating research benefits. ► The need for maintenance research is likely to grow as climate change accelerates. ► Percent maintenance research declines as state-provided research funding declines. Public research is a major contributor to agricultural productivity growth, but if research investments are not maintained, agricultural productivity can decline over time. Maintenance research replaces deteriorated research knowledge to forestall a productivity decline. Knowledge of the magnitude of maintenance research can facilitate a more complete assessment of the value of agricultural research programs. Trends in maintenance research and sources of change in those trends are investigated. Results indicate that overall, about 40% of US agricultural research is devoted to maintenance, up from about a third 25years ago. A model is developed and estimated to explain maintenance research expenditures. Research funding, climatic conditions, insect and pathogen control, and agricultural production choices influence maintenance research expenditures. Increased reliance on out-of-state funding sources may skew agricultural research away from maintenance research, while climate change may increase the need for such research.