Production Risk and the Evolution of Varietal Technology

A Just-Pope production function is used to estimate the effect of genetic improvement on the first two moments of wheat yield for the period 1950–86. The model characterizes the green revolution as the culmination of an era in which wheat breeders achieved rapid increases in yield potential accompan...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of agricultural economics 1995-02, Vol.77 (1), p.1-7
Main Authors: Traxler, Greg, Falck-Zepeda, Jose, Ortiz-Monasterio R., J.I., Sayre, Ken
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agricultural economics
Agricultural production
Agricultural research
Breeding
Crop science
Crops
Developing countries
Econometrics
Economic models
Food crops
genetic improvement
Green revolution
Hypotheses
Just-Pope production function
LDCs
Nitrogen
post-green revolution
Production functions
Q120
Q160
Random variables
Statistical discrepancies
Sustainable agriculture
technical change
Technology
Time series
Wheat
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Description
Summary:A Just-Pope production function is used to estimate the effect of genetic improvement on the first two moments of wheat yield for the period 1950–86. The model characterizes the green revolution as the culmination of an era in which wheat breeders achieved rapid increases in yield potential accompanied by higher yield variances. To date, the post-green revolution has been an era of slower mean yield growth, but of relatively rapid improvement in yield stability. Overall, the analysis indicates steady progress in producing “better” varieties; successive releases have improved either stability, mean yield, or both.
ISSN:0002-9092
1467-8276
DOI:10.2307/1243883