Competitiveness of Main Crops in Mazandaran Province: Application of Mathematical Programming Model

Authors

• H. Rafiee
• Gh. Peykani Machiani
• Zh. Daneshvar Ameri

Abstract

The role of agriculture sector is important in earning foreign exchange. To sell products in international market, they must be competitive. This study investigates comparative advantage in Mazandaran province, by using common indices and linear programming method in 2006-2007. In the process, dollar and euro were used. The results of linear programming showed that among crops which had comparative advantage, rice, irrigated yam, irrigated and rain fed barley, rain fed soy been, irrigated tomato and rain fed lentil were in optimum model. Most limited factor of production was land. The results indicated that adding one hectare to irrigate and rain fed land, would increase, net social profit by 25 and 18.5 million Rials, respectively. Sensitivity analysis for outputs and inputs was done individually. Estimation of model by using dollar showed similar results with euro. Finally, based on the results, development of rice and oilseeds was recommended. JEL Classification : C61,E23, N50
 

Keywords

• Comparative Advantage
• Crops
• Linear programming model
• Mazandaran Province

20.1001.1.20086407.1390.3.9.5.0

---

References

1. Agriculture Jihad Organization of Mazandaran. 2008. ProjectAdministration and Planning.

2. Al-Shareef. A. 2008. Comparative Advantages of Syrian Barley.Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, National

Agriculture Policy Center, Working Paper No 39.

3. Costinot. A. 2008. Elementary Theory of Comparativeadvantage, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and NBER.

4. Daneshvar Kakhaki, M. Dehghanian, S. Hatef, H. and A, A,Sarvari. 2007. Investigation of irrigated and rain fed wheat inMashhad Plain, Journal of sciences and Agricultural Industries.1: 45-51.(in Persian)

5. Fang. C. Beghin. J C. 2000. Food Self-Sufficiency, ComparativeAdvantage, and Agricultural Trade: A Policy Analysis Matrixfor Chinese Agriculture, Working Paper 99-WP 223.

6. Forghani, H. and Kiani abari, M. 2005. An evaluation of therelative advantage of production and export of flowers andplants in selected provinces. Journal of Social and HumanSciences.(in Persian)

7. Human, T. and Hosseini, M. 2003. Calculating domesticresources cost of agricultural products in east Azarbayijan,Journal of Trade Studies, 27:91-107.(in Persian)

8. Julai, R. 1993. Investigation of citrus production in Farsprovince (Jahrom county), Graduated Thesis, Tarbiat ModaresUniversity, Department of Agriculture. Tehran. (in Persian)

9. Karbasi, A. Karim koshte, M. and Hashemitabar, M. 2005.Investigation of comparative advantage of the cotton productionin Golestan province, Journal of Agriculture Economics andDevelopment, 50: 29-53. (in Persian)

10.Lee J. 1995. Comparative Advantage in Manufacturing asAmerican Determination of Industrialization: The Korean case,World Development, 23: 1195-1214.

11.Mastres. W. A. Winter-Nelson A. 1995. Measuring theComparative Advantage of Agricultural Activities: Domestic 

resource cost and social cost benefit ratio, American Journal ofAgricultural Economics, 77: 243-250.

12.Ministry of Agriculture Jihad. 2008. Project Administration andPlanning.

13.Mohammadi, D. 2005. Calculating Farm and garden productscomparative advantage in Fars province. Fifth Biennial

Conference of Agricultural Economics, Karaj, Iran, September2005. (in Persian)

14.Najafi, B. and Mirzaie, A. 2003. Comparative advantage of farmcrops in Fars province of Iran, Journal of Trade Studies, 7: 35-50. (in Persian)

15.Perkins F C.1997. Export Performance & Enterprise Reform in

, Coastal Province. Journal of Development and CulturalChange, pp. 501- 539.

16.Pirasteh, H. and F, Karimi. 2006. A comparative advantage inanalysis crop production a case study of Isfahan Province.Journal of Agriculture and Development, 53:39-68. (in Persian)

17.Rafiee, H. 2008. Investigation of oil seed comparative advantagein Mazandaran province using linear programming, MSc thesis,University of Tehran, Department of Agricultural Economic,Tehran.

18.Rahmani, R. 1999. Determination of comparative advantage inKhuzestan’s Major crops . Center of Khuzestan’s AgriculturalResearch, Final report of Research project.

19.Research Institute of Planning and Agricultural Economics.2008. Investigating comparative advantage of selected

agricultural products, Tehran.20.Research Institute of Planning and Agricultural Economics.2008. Project Administration and Planning.

21.Shahnooshi, N. Dehghanian, S. Ghorbani, M. and Azarinfar, Y.2007. Analyzing crop and cereal comparative advantage inKhorasan province, Journal of Natural Resource and AgricultureScience, 4: 125-141. (in Persian)

22.Shahabuddin Q. and Dorosh P. 2002. Comparative Advantage inBangladesh Crop production, International Food PolicyResearch Institute, No. 47, Washington D.C. 

23.Shajie Y. 1997. Comparative Advantage and CropDiversification: a Policy Analysis for the Thai Agriculture,

Journal of Agricultural Economics, 48:211-222.

24. Zhong, F. Zhigang, Xu. and Fu, Longbo. 2002. RegionalComparative Advantage in China's Main Grain Crops, ACIARChina Grain Market Policy Project Paper No.1. pp: 1-19.