Using the choice experiment method in the design of breeding goals in dairy sheep

Authors:
Ragkos, A.
Abas, Z.
Type: Journal Article
Journal title: Animal
Year of publication: 2015
Subject:
farming systems
Description:
Market failures are the main cause of poor acknowledgement of the true impact of functional sheep traits on the management and economic performance of farms, which results in their omission from the breeding goal or the estimation of non-representative economic weights in the breeding goal. Consequently, stated-preference non-market valuation techniques, which recently emerged to mitigate these problems, are necessary to estimate economic weights for functional traits. The purpose of this paper is to present an example of the use of a choice experiment (CE) in the estimation of economic weights for sheep traits for the design of breeding goals. Through a questionnaire survey the preferences of sheep farmers are recorded and their marginal willingness to pay (MWTP) for 10 production and functional traits is estimated. Data are analysed using random parameter logit models. The results reveal unobserved preference heterogeneity for fertility, adaptability to grazing and resistance to disease, thus highlighting that these traits are appreciated differently by farmers, because their needs are diverse. Positive MWTP is found for Greek breeds, high milk production and lambs with low fat deposition, for which there is high demand in Greek markets. On the other hand, MWTP for the cheese-making ability of milk is negative, stemming from the fact that sheep milk prices in Greece are not formulated according to milk composition. In addition, farmers seem to understand differences between udder shapes and attribute different values to various types. This application of the CE method indicates that communication channels among farmers and breeders should be established in order to enhance market performance and to provide orientation to the design of breeding programmes. Non-market valuation can be used complementarily to market valuation techniques, in order to provide accurate estimates for production and functional traits.
 

Related Resources

Support for Farmers' Cooperatives; Case Study Report Cebeco

Provider: 
Subject: 
agricultural development
cooperatives
agribusiness and cooperatives
farming systems
cooperative farming

Support for Farmers' Cooperatives -Case Study Report -Internationalisation of Second-tier Cooperatives: The Case of Conserve Italia, Italy

Provider: 
Subject: 
policies
agricultural policies
cooperatives
agribusiness and cooperatives
farming systems
cooperative farming

Αξίες και προκλήσεις στον τομέα της αιγο-προβατοτροφίας. Ποιες είναι οι προοπτικές για την ανάπτυξη δικτύων συνεργασίας;

Provider: 
Subject: 
products
animal products
agricultural policies
legislation
agricultural and rural legilslation
agricultural practices
farming systems
sustainable agriculture

Land and political power; agrarian and rural reform in Colombia

Provider: 
Subject: 
farming systems
agricultural policies
rural development
Collected from: 

Strategies for national agricultural development: Horizon-2010, one-day national workshop, Samoa. Technical cooperation programme

Provider: 
Subject: 
agricultural development
agricultural development
farming systems
agricultural policies
Collected from: 

Methods of micro-level analysis for agricultural programmes and policies: A guideline for policy analysts

Provider: 
Subject: 
policies
agricultural policies
farming systems
Collected from: 

AGRERI Library

Support for Farmers' Cooperatives; Case Study Report Cebeco

Provider: 
Subject: 
agricultural development
cooperatives
agribusiness and cooperatives
farming systems
cooperative farming

Support for Farmers' Cooperatives -Case Study Report -Internationalisation of Second-tier Cooperatives: The Case of Conserve Italia, Italy

Provider: 
Subject: 
policies
agricultural policies
cooperatives
agribusiness and cooperatives
farming systems
cooperative farming

Αξίες και προκλήσεις στον τομέα της αιγο-προβατοτροφίας. Ποιες είναι οι προοπτικές για την ανάπτυξη δικτύων συνεργασίας;

Provider: 
Subject: 
products
animal products
agricultural policies
legislation
agricultural and rural legilslation
agricultural practices
farming systems
sustainable agriculture

External Library

Land and political power; agrarian and rural reform in Colombia

Provider: 
Subject: 
farming systems
agricultural policies
rural development
Collected from: 

Strategies for national agricultural development: Horizon-2010, one-day national workshop, Samoa. Technical cooperation programme

Provider: 
Subject: 
agricultural development
agricultural development
farming systems
agricultural policies
Collected from: 

Methods of micro-level analysis for agricultural programmes and policies: A guideline for policy analysts

Provider: 
Subject: 
policies
agricultural policies
farming systems
Collected from: