Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Jan HRON Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Economics and Management, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Author-Name: Tomas MACAK Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Economics and Management, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Title: Synergistic effect in the management of agricultural production Abstract: Generally, when a certain type of agricultural production is optimized, an interaction is said to exist between two factors when the response (the yield of agricultural production) at the different levels of one factor is affected by the level of the other factor present. Thus, the combined effect of the two factors is not simply the sum of their separate effects, but either more than this sum (synergistic interaction) or less than this sum (antagonistic interaction). A 3 factor interaction between the factor f1, f2, and f3 occurs when the nature of the interaction between f1 and f2 is different at the various levels of f3. Higher order interactions can be similarly defined but these become increasingly more difficult to interpret. A disadvantage of this approach is that it explores each of the agricultural sub-process unrelated to the follow-up sub-process (e.g., this approach optimizes the process of fertilization without links to the crops distribution process and unrelated to the price optimization). This is because each sub-process has a different response unit that is the subject of optimization. Therefore, it is appropriate to investigate the interaction of agricultural production in its integrated form, through a universal response of variables (e.g., in the form of utility from the response). This new approach is introduced in the paper. Thus, the objective of the paper is to present a new method for the formal determination of synergistic effects of the agricultural enterprises management. Keywords: antagonistic effects, food production, input output model, interaction Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 489-495 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/92/2013-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/92/2013-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0001.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:92-2013-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Stanislava LIŠKOVÁ Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech Republic Author-Name: Pavel TOMŠÍK Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech Republic Title: Competency-based approach to human resources management Abstract: The paper deals with the competency approach to human resources management. The approach is seen as one of the possibilities to effectively manage work performance. The paper focuses on defining the term competency, components of competency, types of competencies, and on identification of competencies. The paper also focuses on the competency models, their types, approaches to them, and the procedures of their creation. Finally, the paper summarizes the possibilities of the use of the competency approach in various spheres of management of human resources, and it describes the connection of the competency approach with the strategic management. Keywords: competencies, competency models, creation, identification, measuring Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 496-504 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/68/2013-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/68/2013-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0002.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:68-2013-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Martin ZIEGELBÄCK Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics and Social Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences - BOKU, Vienna, Austria Author-Name: Gregor KASTNER Author-Workplace-Name: Institute for Statistics and Mathematics, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, Title: Arbitrage hedging in markets for the US lean hogs and the EU live pigs Abstract: The paper describes an attempt to gain insight into the relationship between cash and futures markets for US lean hogs and EU live pigs, and the opportunity of arbitrage hedging. In doing so, the authors use newer methods of threshold cointegration analysis for time series from 1999 until 2008. Besides the existence of a long-run equilibrium, asymmetric price adjustments can be demonstrated. This is especially the case for the EU live pigs, where price variations of the basis are higher and exhibit lower standard deviation. The results also perfectly show that cash prices follow the futures market more than the other way round. Furthermore, a grid search has revealed that the residual-based threshold in either market is near zero and therefore coherent with economic interpretation. Thus, at least theoretically, arbitrageurs in those markets are able to exploit the price differences between the two markets and reap no-risk monetary benefit. Hence, the results are in line with the statement that "speculating the basis" generates a better return. Keywords: futures market, pig market, risk management, threshold cointegration analysis Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 505-511 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/14/2013-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/14/2013-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0003.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:14-2013-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: T. Weldesenbet Author-Workplace-Name: Agricultural Policy and Budget Section, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic, Bratislava, Slovak Republic Title: Asymmetric price transmission in the Slovak liquid milk market Abstract: The divergence in liquid milk price trends has raised concern about the efficiency of the milk market price transmission in Slovakia. The paper provides empirical evidence on the price transmission among the producer, wholesale, and retail markets of liquid milk in Slovakia, using the monthly data from 1993 to 2010. The empirical analysis is based on the Granger causality and the Johansen cointegration tests and on the asymmetry tests (Houck approach and error correction model approach). The causality test results show that the changes in producer prices cause changes in the wholesale and retail prices; there is a feedback from the retail to producer prices. Moreover, the direction of causality between the wholesale and retail prices flows in both directions. The long-run elasticities of price transmission are, as expected, greater than the short-run elasticities. The cointegration results indicate that the wholesale and producer prices as well as the retail and producer prices are cointegrated, but there is no evidence of cointegration between the wholesale and retail prices. The results of an asymmetric error correction models suggest that the price transmission in the Slovakian liquid milk market is asymmetric both in the short- and long-runs. Keywords: cointegration, elasticity, error correction, milk, price asymmetry Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 512-524 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/150/2012-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/150/2012-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0004.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:150-2012-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Ilir KAPAJ Author-Workplace-Name: Institute of Computer Applications and Business Management in Agriculture, Hohenheim University, Stuttgart, Germany Author-Name: Ana MANE Author-Workplace-Name: Economy and Agribusiness Faculty; Agricultural University of Tirana, Albania Title: Assessing the situation of food and beverage enterprises regarding the implementation of the quality management systems (Case of Tirana/Albania) Abstract: The purpose of the study is to examine the current situation in the food processing sector in Tirana/Albania regarding the quality management systems and the availability of information regarding quality and safety of the food and beverage products, in decision-making for improving the quality of the products. The specific goal of the study is to provide information for policy-makers in the field of agro-industry (food industry), on one hand, and on the other hand, also to provide some information, related to the quality assurance systems (QA), for the managerial staff of food industry enterprises to help them in orienting their decisions towards improving the quality management. A stratified random sampling was applied for selecting the sample of enterprises 35 out of 120 (official number from the Ministry of Agriculture Food and Consumer Protection in Albania) with the number of employees more than four. We constructed a questionnaire and a face to face interview was conducted for gathering the data. A descriptive statistics and regression methodology was used for the study in order to present and describe a picture of the food and beverage industry in Tirana district. We draw a general conclusion that there is an association between applying the quality management standards and operational markets. The test analysis shows that there is a significant association between applying the quality management standards and operational markets, the Fisher's exact test 0.001 < 0.05. Only a small percentage of enterprises (around 23% out of 35 included in the survey) have established the quality management systems in Tirana, while 77% do not apply these standards, despite the source of information gathering that all enterprises orient their production towards the consumer preferences. Keywords: food and beverage industry, processing enterprises, quality and safety standards Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 525-530 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/112/2012-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/112/2012-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0005.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:112-2012-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Selebogo LESHORO Author-Workplace-Name: SouthAfrican Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), Pretoria, South Africa Author-Name: Temitope L.A. LESHORO Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics, University of South Africa (UNISA), Pretoria, South Africa Title: Impacts of literacy rate and human development indices on agricultural production in South Africa Abstract: Agriculture is an important sector in South Africa, and the impact that education and human development would have made in this sector via non-white small scale farming was limited through biased policies of the apartheid era. Due to apartheid laws, South Africa found itself with high levels of unskilled labour force. This study seeks to find the impacts of literacy rate and human development indices on agricultural production using Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Bounds Test approach to co-integration. A long run relationship among the variables, agricultural production (agriculture GDP), literacy rate and human development indices were found. Literacy rate has a positively significant effect on agricultural production in the long run while Human Development Index has a positive and significant impact in the short run. This indicates that the apartheid regime fell short in recognizing the positive effect of education in the agricultural sector by denying a descent education to the majority of non-whites which were farm labourers or small scale farmers. This study provides some policy recommendations. Keywords: agricultural productivity, apartheid, bounds test, education Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 531-536 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/35/2013-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/35/2013-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0006.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:35-2013-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: PI Jiancai Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics, School of Business, Nanjing University, Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, China Title: An organizational economics approach to the existence of sharecropping Abstract: The paper provides a new explanation for the existence of sharecropping in agriculture from the perspective of organizational economics. Similar to a multinational enterprise's decision of whether to enter a joint venture or to choose a wholly owned subsidiary, we can see sharecropping as a joint venture and a fixed rent contract as a wholly owned subsidiary when we stand in the tenant's position. Our analysis shows that when the landlord has a strong enough comparative advantage in exerting one type of effort, he/she tends to choose the share contract. Keywords: share contract, fixed rent contract, bargaining power Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 537-541 Volume: 59 Issue: 11 Year: 2013 DOI: 10.17221/127/2012-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/127/2012-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-201311-0007.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:59:y:2013:i:11:id:127-2012-AGRICECON