Economics of Agriculture

THE VALORIZATION OF AGROPASTORAL PRODUCTS AND BY-PRODUCTS. CASE OF THE WILAYA OF NÂAMA (WESTERN ALGERIA)

Ahmed Toufik Youcefi , Marouf Abderrazak — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The present work aims to design an approach of valorization of agropastoral products and by-products in the wilaya of Naâma (West Algeria). The analysis of the surveys carried out on 364 breeders reveals that lamb production is characterized by a high economic value with a share 85 % of sold products in total production, followed by «Milk» with a rate of 24%. The rate of wool shows that this resource is classified as a low-value by-product since 77% of producers are unable to sold their fleeces. The skin is classified as a by-product without significant value, since only about 03% of breeders sold their product. Our approach of valorization of this production is initiated in a broad conception that integrates several actors. The SWOT matrix for the valorization of agro-pastoral products highlights the internal strengths and strengths and external opportunities offered, identifying internal weaknesses to resolve them while limiting external threats.

OPTIMISING INVESTMENT IN THE ENERGY SECTOR IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN SOUTH EAST EUROPE

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

In this paper we are researching the optimality of developing counties for investing in their energy sector as a way of diversifying portfolio by applying the multicriteria decision making model There are multiple quantitative and qualitative criteria that can be considered when finding the adequate market for investment, other than its natural potential, such as the level that its energy sector is developed, legal framework that surrounds this sector, market openness of the observed economy, ease of investment and market liquidity. The four sources of the energy sector that are considered are oil, gas, coal and renewable energy sources. Even though the renewable energy sources aren’t sufficiently exploited, the countries that have high potential could provide significant financial profits by exploiting them.

DOES ECONOMIC INDICATORS OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM PRESENT A PROMISING TREND OF RURAL DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT? ATTITUDES OF VOJVODINA RURAL RESIDENTS

Sanda Nastić, Aleksandra Vujko, Miloš Dragosavac — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

To be considered sustainable, tourism in rural destinations should provide long-term economic benefits and have a push-up effect on the population’s determination to engage in sustainable tourism. Also, sustainable tourism must reduce the negative effects of business activities on the natural environment and improve the quality of life as well as the standard of living of the local population. In order to check the impact of sustainable tourism on the development of rural destinations, economic indicators of sustainability are most often used, as measurable indicators of sustainable development. In the paper, we examined the attitudes of 421 local residents using the TIAS scale, in 17 Vojvodina villages. Only those who declared that they are involved in the tourism economy were taken for further analysis. It was concluded that positive economic indicators of sustainable development are “wind in the sails” of the development of rural destinations, and that sustainable tourism is a desirable economic activity in the villages of Vojvodina to whom more and more residents are turning, especially women as of very sensitive category.

IMPACT OF OIL SHOCKS ON THE OIL, AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD INDUSTRY - QUANTILE AND OLS REGRESSION

Sanja Bakić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This paper determines the impact of Brent oil shocks on the price of shares of companies from the oil, agricultural and food industries that includes the period of the COVID-19 pandemic. For this purpose, they use a quantile regression approach and compare its findings with a standard Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model. Moreover, in this research they use quantile regression, which enables them to analyze different quantiles of share prices of companies from the oil industry, the agricultural industry, and the food industry. They observe three different periods - a period of recession, a normal period and a period of expansion. Finally, empirical evaluations using quantile regression and OLS models show us that shocks from the oil market are more pronounced in companies from the oil industry compared to companies from the agricultural and food industries. The findings of this research provide important information for investors, economic policy makers, and other parties.

THE INFLUENCE OF FACTORS ON THE COSTS OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF LOANS IN BUSINESS OF AGRICULTURAL FARMS AND MEDIUM-SIZED AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISES

Jelena Lutovac, Aleksandar Djokić, Nebojša Borojević — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The application of the use of different types of loans in the real organization of agricultural production in Republic of Serbia was the focus of the authors of the study. The goal of the research was to determine the existence of legality based on the analysis of 7 factors affecting the loans of agricultural farms and medium-sized agricultural enterprises, namely: limit, repayment delay, efficiency, average exchange rate, possibility of repayment, increase in production, currency, as well as the overall score of all analyzed factors as well as the total score. Using the t test (Table 1), the authors found that there are significant differences in the evaluation of all 7 analyzed factors (p<0.0005*). In addition, the authors determined that there are significant differences in the evaluation of the use of three types of loans (p<0.0005*) by agricultural farms and medium-sized agricultural enterprises in the Republic of Serbia.

PUBLIC – PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP IN THE FUNCTION OF SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS OF ECONOMIC ENTITIES IN AGRICULTURE

Vesna Miletić, Ljiljana Dušan Rajnović, Aleksandar Jovičić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

In the global competition in agriculture, countries must allocate considerable financial resources in order to create preconditions for the continuous development of agriculture. Bearing in mind the unfavorable competitive position, the low investment rating, insufficient foreign direct investments, the Republic of Serbia can see its development opportunity in the application of public-private partnership in agriculture. Cooperation models are conditioned by investor plans and regulations created by the state. The mutually significant and complex relationship between the private and public partner beside economic and legal aspects, also acquires significant social and political dimensions. That is why through public-private partnership operations, there is an opportunity to improve the operations of economic entities. The authors conducted a survey of business entities in the territory of Srem, analyzed a successful case and concluded that the mentioned partnership can lead to an improvement in the competitiveness of business entities in the field of agriculture.

ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY OF INVESTMENTS IN THE GROWING OF MEDICINAL HERBS AND SPICES

Lana Nastić, Marko Jeločnik, Jonel Subić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

Medicinal herbs are important for human nutrition and industrial processing. The main goal of research is assessment of economic effectiveness of investments in seedlings production and establishment of plantation under mentioned crops. Analysis involves data from the coal mine complex in Pljevlja (Montenegro), while implies dynamic methods such are Net Present Value, (Modified) Internal Rate of Return, and Payback Period. Although research results favored the seedlings production, determined crossover rate indicates some opposite conclusions. Inconsistency in conclusions according to Net Present Value and Internal Rate of Return occurs only for certain range of discount rate. Research also implies sensitive analysis of crossover rate according to changes in volume of invested assets. So, management could make appropriate decisions towards the investments in medicinal plants production. Derived results suppose that investment in production of medicinal herbs seedlings is economically more effective for all discount rates above the crossover rate (6.08%).

DETERMINANTS OF CAPITAL STRUCTURE IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM LISTED COMPANIES

Miloš Grujić, Željko Vojinović, Zoran Đuričić, Srđan Šuput — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This study investigated the capital structure of 18 publicly traded agricultural companies over a 10-year period (2012-2022), specifically focusing on short-term debt to total liabilities (SHTDTL). Employing a dataset of 121 observations, the strategic financing decisions of these firms in the Republic of Srpska’s stock market were analyzed. The study examines the impact of various factors, including total debt to total equity (TDTC), tangible assets (TOA), company size (CS), current assets ratio (CR), current assets to total assets (CAA), return on equity (ROE), and return on assets (ROA), on capital structure choices. Results reveal that TOA, CAA, and ROE significantly positively influence the short-term debt ratio, while CS and ROA have a significant negative impact. This research sheds light on the financial decision-making of agricultural enterprises, offering insights that can inform their financing strategies and improve financial performance.

FOOD IMPORT, FOOD PRICE INFLATION, WAGES AND AGRICULTURAL EMPLOYMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA

Thomas Habanabakize, Mulatu Fekadu Zerihun — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

Agricultural industry plays a significant role in the South African economy, specifically in creating jobs. However, this sector is facing significant challenges owing to economic and social unrest. Within the application of both Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) and Error Correction Model (ECM) on time series data from 2010q1 to 2021q4; this paper assessed the effects of food imports, inflation, and real wage on agricultural employment in South Africa. The results from bounds testing indicated that food imports, inflation and real wage stimulate longterm disruptions in agricultural employment. However, short-run results indicated that agricultural employment is only affected by the real wage. Based on these findings, this study suggests a policy that incorporation of both inflation rate and real wages policy to improve employment in the agricultural industry. Additionally, easing the import of food products that are complements to domestic agricultural products should be another strategy to increase the number of people employed in the agricultural industry.

ROBOTIC SYSTEMS IN FOOD AND BEVERAGE PREPARATION FACILITIES: KEY IMPLICATIONS FOR LEADERS AND HUMAN RESOURCES

Jelena Lukić Nikolić, Pero Labus — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0200

The aim of this paper is to examine and analyze the use of robotic systems in facilities for food and beverage preparation. The research was conducted using a specially designed questionnaire, which was completed by 219 respondents working in food and beverage preparation facilities during 2023. The data analysis applied descriptive statistics, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Levene’s test, MannWhitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis H test. Research results showed that more than 60% employees in food and beverage preparation facilities consider that robotic systems perform routine and simple tasks (67.12%), allow employees to focus on more complex tasks (66.67%), are faster and more efficient (61.93%), provide significant cost savings (64.68%), and do not fear that a robotic system will replace them (76.71%). The obtained results could serve as a basis for leaders and human resource managers in facilities for food and beverage preparation when considering the implementation of robotic systems.

REVIVAL OF THE HOTEL INDUSTRY: THE IMPACT OF FOOD WASTE REDUCTION ON SERBIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPECTS

Tamara Gajić, Dragan Vukolić, Mirjana Penić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

Food waste represents a global issue with serious economic, environmental, and social implications. This study investigates the impact of food waste on the economic stability of hotels and restaurants in the Republic of Serbia using a structural modeling approach. The survey included 136 managers across 30 hotels in various cities and mountainous regions of the Republic of Serbia. Results indicate a high awareness of the food waste issue and identify key factors affecting the economic stability of these enterprises. Although no significant link was found between biodiversity, climate, and environment, as well as economy with economic stability, a positive relationship between social environment and economic stability was discovered. This research model provides a deeper understanding of the factors shaping food waste management practices in hotels and restaurants, thereby offering guidelines for enhancing the economic stability of these sectors.

PROFITABILITY OF ORGANIC FARMING OF SPELT IN THE CLIMATE CONDITIONS OF SERBIA

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This research focuses on assessing the general profitability of organically produced spelt. Spelt is an ancient grain that has experienced a resurgence in Serbia in the late seventies of the previous century, due to its exceptional nutritional value and high compatibility with organic farming. Field experiments were conducted in northern Serbia over four years, applying further financial analysis. The main goal of the research is to identify and quantify the costs, benefits, and general profitability of organic production of spelt in the climatic conditions of Serbia. Results indicate that organically produced spelt is economically profitable, primarily due to its significantly higher market price compared to conventionally produced spelt. Given climate change concerns, promoting the cultivation of climateresilient crops, like spelt, becomes crucial. Organic spelt cultivation could play a significant role in adapting crops to climate change, emphasizing the need for activities that mitigate negative environmental impacts.

APPLICATION OF FUZZY METRICS IN CLUSTERING PROBLEMS OF AGRICULTURAL CROP VARIETIES

Andrijana Stamenković, Nataša Milosavljević, Nebojša Ralević — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The problem of image-based detection of the variety of beans, using artificial intelligence, is currently dealt with by scientists of various profiles. The idea of this paper is to show the possibility of applying different types of distances, primarily those that are fuzzy metrics, in clustering models in order to improve existing models and obtain more accurate results. The paper presents the method of variable neighborhood search, which uses both standard and fuzzy t-metrics and dual fuzzy s-metrics characterized by appropriate parameters. By varying those parameters of the fuzzy metric as well as the parameters of the metaheuristic used, we have shown how it is possible to improve the clustering results. The obtained results were compared with existing ones from the literature. The criterion function used in clustering is a fuzzy metric, which is proven in the paper.

KEY FACTORS OF PROMOTING INNOVATIVE PERFORMANCE IN AGRIBUSINESS SMEs: PROJECT AN EMPIRICAL METHOD

Biljana Ilić, Sunčica Stanković, Bojana Ostojić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The main goal of the research is to determine the effects of the selected factors (organization culture, organization learning, market orientation and innovation culture) on the innovation performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in agribusiness. The Structural Equation Modeling method was used to test the research hypotheses. The results showed that the selected factors are significant determinants of innovative performance. In addition, the relationship between organizational culture and innovation performance, as well as organizational learning and innovation performance, was found to be fully mediated, and the relationship between market orientation and innovation performance was found to be partially mediated by innovation culture. Small and medium-sized businesses should be empowered in the globalized and fiercely competitive market of today by fostering product innovation, investing in the development of human resources and technology, and broadening their market reach. These initiatives are essential to enhancing their marketing plans and successfully taking on competitors.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFECTS ON FRESHWATER ABSTRACTION FROM THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

Water scarcity is a growing concern across the globe due to climate change and demands for increased economic development. This paper analyses the relationship between economic development and freshwater abstraction in order to investigate its European impact. The analysis focuses on a total of 19 European countries, including 18 EU member states and one candidate, from 2007 to 2018. Using a panel dataset, the impact of a diverse selection of indicators of economic development (per capita GDP, the Human Development Index - HDI, water productivity and volume of international trade) on freshwater abstraction, our analysis finds that all explanatory variables are significant for cross-country variations except for international trade. To maintain scope, the analysis is limited to economicdevelopment indicators themselves, excluding the effects of climate change and the availability of water resources.

IMPACT OF DIGITAL MARKETING ON THE PERFORMANCE OF COMPANIES IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR OF SERBIA

Branko Miodrag Mihailović, Katica Radosavljević, Vesna Popović, Anton Puškarić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This paper explores the impact of digital marketing on the business operations of companies in the agricultural sector of Serbia. Accordingly, the research objective is to determine critical success factors of digital marketing channels in companies within this sector. Given the stated research objective, the following general hypothesis has been formulated: digital marketing channels such as effective presence on social media, website quality, online sales and search engine optimization have a significant positive impact on the business performance of companies in the agricultural sector in Serbia. Successful implementation of these types of digital marketing channels by companies is expected to lead to increased visibility, engagement of the target audience, and improved sales. Consequently, the results of empirical research provide more insightful perspectives on the state of this field, identifying specific aspects of digital marketing that significantly contribute to the business performance of companies in the agricultural sector of Serbia.

LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AS THE BASIS FOR THE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE AGRARIAN POLICY IMPLEMENTATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Ratko Ljubojević, Slobodan Petrović, Andrija Blanuša — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The development of modern democratic states implies respect for the principle of subsidiarity, which means bringing down decisions and their execution to the local level. The decisions regarding the use of agrarian potential in the Republic of Serbia are still under the jurisdiction of the central government authorities, which contributes inadequately to the overall stability and development of agriculture in modern geopolitical correlations. The goal of this paper is to point out to the necessity of understanding the need to enable as much as possible the authorities at the local self-government level of the Republic of Serbia to implement the strategic goals of agrarian policy while improving permanently their agricultural capacities. Based on the research on the opinions of relevant state and local authorities and on empirical and theoretical arguments, the authors support this claim and provide a new perspective for the content of agrarian policy, as well as the development of the rich agricultural potential that the Republic of Serbia has at its disposal.

CULTURAL TOURISM IN RURAL AREAS: MAPPING RESEARCH TRENDS THROUGH BIBLIOMETRIC AND CONTENT ANALYSIS

Marijana Seočanac, Nataša Đorđević, Danijela Pantović — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The main objective of this paper is to perform a detailed analysis of the scientific literature on cultural tourism in rural areas through a bibliometric study of the papers indexed in the Web of Science database. The bibliometric analysis was carried out using performance analysis and science mapping techniques. Authors’ keywords and KeyWords Plus were analyzed using RapidMiner software, and VOSviewer software was employed to create category maps and visualize the evolution of keywords. Content analysis of influential publications was used to show the evolution of knowledge and discover the most current issues. The results show the evolution of publications on cultural tourism in rural areas and identify the most influential journals, articles, authors, institutions and countries, as well as the most important research topics in the field. The paper concludes with recommendations for future bibliometric studies and offers guidelines for further research on cultural tourism in rural areas.

GASTRONOMY TOURISM AND THE PERCEIVED IMAGE OF SERBIAN NATIONAL CUISINE: STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING OF THE MAIN DETERMINANTS

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

Positioning and differentiation of Serbian cuisine among other ethnic cuisines can be the means to include Serbian gastronomy in heritage and cultural tourism. This paper’s significance lies in its comparative analysis, specifically examining the impacts of taste and quality of food, food service quality, and the authenticity of national food. The goal is to identify the primary factors influencing the perceived image of Serbian national cuisine, ultimately leading to the successful development of gastronomic offerings. The research was conducted on a sample of 217 respondents. Data were collected using the survey method. Respondents expressed their level of agreement with questionnaire items on a seven-point Likert scale. Reliability, validity, and model fit were assessed in the data analysis. A structural equation modeling was used to test causal relations between the latent variables. The research results emphasize the taste and quality of food as the main driver of the perceived image of national cuisine.

THE EU STATE AID REGIME IN AGRICULTURE –LEGAL ASPECT

Nina Maksimović Sekulić, Maja Kovačević, Radislav Jovičić — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0100

State aid to certain economic sectors in the European Union was an acceptable model until the establishment of the single market in 1992. The EC acknowledge that the allowance is imputable to the MS and that it constitutes State aid. In the light of the foregoing, the Commission concludes that the measures at issue in the present case constitute State aid (Article 107(1) TFEU).”Special rules on provision of state aids were created as secondary law rules by the EU Council and EU Commission”. State aid to promote the economic development of the agricultural sector is part of the wider framework of the “Common Agricultural Policy” (“CAP”). This paper analyzes EU state aid regulation in the agriculture sector, with special focus on the provisions of the “Agriculture Block Exemption Regulation” – ABER. The paper also analyzes agricultural aid, which must be notified to the EC as being authorized under the “Agriculture Guidelines”.