Discussion of the Set of Agricultural Policies:
Increased Output Prices, Reduced Input Costs
and Improved Technology
 Among the different types of agricultural policies, agricultural
economists and government policy makers have most consistently
recommended increases in output prices for small food producers
in order to stimulate an increased level of food production. This
has been given first priority in most cases. At times the results
have been disappointing. While price incentives appear to be
necessary, they do not appear to be sufficient for eliciting addi-
tional production.
 The regional analysis revealed some interesting results and sug-
 gests some priorities for stimulating food production. Increased
 prices paid to small food crop farmers affect total output only up
 to a level dictated by physical and technical constraints. That is,
 there is a limit to the extent to which higher output prices will
 stimulate additional production. The crude tool technology
 which has been passed from generation to generation (use of
 hand hoe, machetes) in the traditional setting, creates a major
 physical constraint upon the supply responsiveness of food crop
 producers and limits their production capacity. The most com-
 mon bottlenecks of land preparation, weeding and harvesting
 have always translated into incomplete task performance, poor
 seedbed preparation, a physical burden to producers solely
 dependent on hand labor, and low food productivity for small
 farmers. Ironically, labor bottlenecks, given crude tool
 technology, constrain the supply responsiveness of farmers in
 some so-called labor surplus economies.
 The combination of hand labor and rudimentary tools con-
 strains the responsiveness of small farmers to price increases.
 Hence, high priority needs to be given to breaking the
 labor/technology bottleneck in a development strategy. Price
 policy alone will not suffice.
 Reduced input costs in the form of subsidies will have substan-
 tial long term benefits given the extent and the level of farm im-
 plements used in farming operations. To the extent that the ac-
 cess to improved farm implements can be significantly improved,
 greater input availability and price incentives may facilitate in-
 creased food production among small farmers.

 Conclusion and Recommendations
 The study has indicated that little or no additional food pro-
 duction is likely to be forthcoming in the short run due to labor
 (farm energy) shortages for key activities during the crop year in


some food crop producing regions. Due to the traditional nature
of small food crop producers and the environment in which they
work, there is no single policy which is necessary and sufficient to
bring about increased food production. However, a strategized
approach toward sustained increases in food production from
small farmers should focus on the introduction of bottleneck-
breaking technology which will perform better than the crude
tool technology now being used in much of traditional
agriculture. The dominant use of hand labor as a source of farm
energy via the hand hoe, bush knife, etc., indicates the need for
small scale, hand operated, power driven farm implements.
Among other countries, South Korea has made rapid strides with
this approach (Chung, 1983). Only after doing this will increased
output prices and reduced input costs have dramatic impacts on
the level of food production from the rural agricultural sector. A
similar approach is likely to be necessary in implementing
agricultural policies affecting the small farming systems in the
Caribbean countries. That is to say, other policies probably
should be preceded by improved, bottleneck-breaking tech-
nology. Continual neglect of this major constraint, to the extent
it exists in the food crop subsector of the Caribbean as it does in
the African country analyzed, will limit development. The other
policies which require attention in formulating a development
strategy include such things as input procurement, institution
building, marketing and storage, natural resource use, education
and communications, physical infrastructure, population growth,
and the overall question of rural employment.








References
 1. Chung, M.N. 1983. Review of Korean small farm economy with special em-
phasis on farm size questions. Ph.D. dissertation presented to the Graduate School,
University of Missouri, Columbia, MO.
 2. Courier. May-June, 1983. The Caribbean Food Corporation. Africa-
Caribbean-Pacific European Community, Vol. 79.
 3. Kigoda, M.A. 1984. Incentives for food crop production in Tanzania: with
special reference to the Mbeya Region. Ph.D. dissertation presented to the Graduate
School, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO.
 4. Mellor, J.W. 1962. The process of agricultural development in low income
countries. Journal of Farm Economics XLIV(3).


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