THE ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF CROP ROTATION SYSTEMS: EVIDENCE FROM THE LITERATURE

摘要: Agricultural sustainability requires that the individual farm firm be competitive and profitable while simultaneously enhancing environmental quality natural resource base upon which agricultural economy depends. The reliance of conventional agriculture systems on purchased inputs external to presents possible challenges long-term system. Crop rotation are one cropping system alternative can reduce agriculture's dependence through internal nutrient recycling, maintenance productivity land, breaking weed disease cycles. Decision criteria choose among competing crop include impact soil fertility, quality, profitability. However, most comparative economic analysis work reviewed for this paper considered only profitability as a criterion rank systems. Most research is focused around target foundation When corn crop, performance continuous vs. grown in showed neither consistently more than another. Corn yield Michigan does respond favorably diversity. Wheat tends outperform wheat both terms income risk. Sugar beet prices hold key determining ranking sugar beet-based rotations. Potato rotations potato Future studies addressing need consider benefits/costs off site accrue society. Keywords: sustainability, inputs, rotations, analysis,