Input-Output Relationships in Milk Production
1943; Volume: 25; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.2307/1231721
ISSN2163-6257
AutoresDavid L. MacFarlane, Einar Jensen, John W. Klein, Emil Rauchenstein, T. E. Woodward, Ray H. Smith,
Tópico(s)Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis
Resumot 5, U, S, DEP1', OF AGRlCUUl'UHE needed, FOI' exumple, wheat kernels plac('d in a properly prepared ~V~(•dbed in It normal HeaSOI1 will develop into a wlwat crop; dairy • cows properly housed, fed, and cared for' will produce mIlk; beef cattle Imd hogs will prodllct' beef and pork.These physicttl pro ('esses ure the fllndam(,lltal prOC('sses, The people of the world are fed and clotlll'd with thil1g-S, not with money, But as model'll economiC' life is organized on n specialized and commercia lizpd basis, there is a.lsoIt mOnebll'Y side to all produetioll and it is the de('iding fol'(,t', The matel'ial elements IISI'lI al'p' ()wlwd by someone, Before production ('all begin, the input elements must lx' hOllght or tlwir serviees II1Ui:>t Lw hin'd, Mm;t' thil\lrs Ilre produced to be sold for money, To sell they must be mllrkl•tahlp, Only producers of Inal'ketable cOlllmodities or ~ITi('es ('lllI stay in busi ness, Su;:cess in l)l'oduction depends Ilpon the ability so to organ ize productive proC'l'sses that the money l'l'tlll'll-thut is. the difft'r'l'nee between tIlt' cash outlays for inputs and the receipts for outputs-becomes the largest possible. INl~UT-OUTI'UT UELATIONSHIPS IN GENERALThe prodllction prOC'l'SS mlly be organiz('d in several ways.By m:ing mol'l.' mllchinpr',V, requit'(,IIlt'nts for lU1I11I111 labor may be reduced.Tl'Iletol.'pOWl'l' may bp substituted fol' horse power, wholly til' iii pUTt.To U certain ('xtent.gmin and r'(Hlghage may be substI tuted for eHch other in feeding livestock.TIH' producer' must select rtmn the many diiferpnt alteJ'l111l'iV('S that or'ganization which pays best.'lVhut pays best nt an,V givt'11 tinl(' d('pellcls upon tIll' response in physical output to till' changl's in tIl(' ~:'l'od\\ctiol1 process, and upon the changing prices of the various iT,putS Ilnd outputs.There fore, in actual production he is confl'(!ntcd constantly with the pl'oblem: How much does it pay to use I How many lIIen 01' mil" dlines 1 How IIIlI('h il'rtili:-;er ~ How mt ch fl'('d 1 Many ever'yday pr'oblems of IllalHlgl'll1l",t can be decided without rl'S('1I 1'(')1.TIll' dl'vl'iopll1l'nt (If a new nwdlOd of prodliction often r'('I)I't'st'nb; not just a small stl'P, but It great stride forward.For example. in harvesting ~mudl gl'ain, 11 gr'ain binder-in itself u result of much input-output ('ngilll'ering research-saves so much human lautH' that its lISI.' has paid exccedillg-Iy well.not only in the Amerieas and in Austl'alia.where the cost of labor is high.but also in north westel'll Etll'o(>l' ",her'(' wugt'R of agl'leultll nil lubol'(,l's :Ire consider ably lowet'.The cost of gUIll'Cling against certain livestock diseases ('ollstitull's so Iowan insurance premium against serions losses that its profitableness is nt'vel' in doubt.Many technical innovutions are of similar nuture.Cureful observation and experience SUffiCl' to show whether the new method will pay.But numer'ollS vitally important pr'oduction problems on farms al-; well us in faetories cannot be solYl'C1 h\' (lI'dinar), observatio.n and ('xp{'r'ience.In(Jut-outputr•t'seareh is r'('~uirt'd.FI'()Jll the appear all(,(' of t.1lt' stulld of It crop of COl'll ()I' cotton it is not possible to know whether with nOl'll1l1J pri(~es it would pay to use not only 200 pounds of superploosphat(' pel' a('1'(, but e\'PIl 400 pounds.A fal'mer mI')' easily IISl' twi('(' as much.()J' ollly hal f as mu('h.as is pl'ofitablp, HI' mlLy yelLi' after yel!,!' speud 1lI0ney for fertilizer thut does not pay its • • , " • INP(J'l'-OUTPU'l' HELATIONSHIPS lK MILK PHODUCTION way; or, as is more often the case, he may miss th(' increased ret.m'mi that could be obtained by heavier applications, Numerous problems of the same general nature arise repeatedly in the growing of crops and the raising of livestock, To what d('grce, for example, shonld practices be chang-ed when prices changp and certain factors become scarce and expensive in relation to others~ Systematic exp('rimentntion is n('('d('cl to obtain an answer to these problems quiddy, accurately, and at small cost.Both technical and economic analyses Ilre needed, but the tI,~.chnicall'('sl'al'ch must be of a special kind, It must fUl'l1ish physical data (hat will show how soon will be encountl'rec1 and how serious will b(' tIl(' effects of the law of diminishing-returns, These effects may show up as a deeiin(' in output perman due to l'x('essive overtime; or they may show up in poorer utili:mtion of feed at heavy feeding levels, or in small('l' incl'l'ases in yields from additional units of fertihzer, 'Vith suell te('hnical information, togetlll'r with prices for cost fadors and products, the most l'('onomi('al l1Il'thod of production und('r vl1l'ying-{'irclllllstanCl's ('nn he IplIl'Ill'd and how far it pays to go as conditions ('hnnge, As It rule. it is fairly pasy to obtain large crop yil'lds hy tIll' layish liSP of fertilizers, hut a fal'llwr must ask: Does it pay?input-outPIlT information will pnabl{' prodllCP1'l'l to select the most e('onOllli(' P1'II('( i{'('s under chnnging price conditions, end thus to inc'I'l'Hs(' their Y1(' t-1'ell1l'ns, ' '1'11(' oi>j('d of input-output I'Psl'lll'('h in farming then is to furnish more a('el1l'lItl' lind {'ompll'tl, basic knowl{'dge of how yield pl'r n('1'{" production I1l'l' animal, or quality of product, is aifect{'d by changl's in Ilwtlwds of pl'o(llldion anelmtes of applieation of the input elemeilts and to Ilsc('rtain by economic analysis how the relationships affect ol'glln izat iOIl alld adjustnwnt of produC'tion, Expl'l'ience has shown that tIll' kind of trchniC'al information needed {'nn hl'st bl' pl'oyidrd if ('ontl'oll('d l'xIWriments are planned from the lwginning, by eC'Ollomists lInel te('hnologists working together, 'Thnt was the WHy till' plan for this IH'{'s{'nt study of milk production wus work(>(1 onto TIll' input-output l'xlWrinll'nts reported in this buI l('tin ,wr(' IIIHll'I'tn kl'n jointly by (11(' BUl'l'au of AgTicultural Eco.nomics lind thl' BllI'l'lIll of DlIil'Y Industry, Tlll'Y wprl' designed to lI1l'lISlll't' tIl{' I'l'SPOIlS{' of dairy cows to It wholp sl'Y'ieR of rutes of teedin lT , KllO\\'iug th('sl' l'l'spnnsps, i(mll h{' nsc'(,I-tain('d how tIll' economic limit will shift Ilnd('1' changing ('onditions of pricl', INPPT-OUTPllT HELATIONSHIPS IN MILK PnODl'CTION Tn milk production.fPNI accounts t'OI' about 40 to 50 percent of all thi' ,('OfitS: lahor amounts 10 a~ollt '10 Pl'y'ct>nt: and use of huildinp:s and ('(1 111 pl\H~n!, IHll'chasl' of bl'l'echng sto('k.n:•t:(,l'lnary fees.and other costs makl' up t;,(' t'('St.It is natuml, tlll'rctol'l', that input-output stIHlil'8 in milk production should be ('olH'l'l'Iled first with the relationship b('tw(,l'll fl'ed inputs nnd milk output.How can thr I1)(I8t important ('ost fnctOl" th(' f{'('d j bpst b(' econo mized ~ How much do('s it pity to chll nge the ('stnblished feeding prac ti('('s if tlll' r('la t-ionsh i p hl'hn'PIl Iwi('('s of fl'l'd and prices of milk should 1)(' substantially ail('I'('(1'/ 'To nns\\'l'l' these questions we must know with sufficient accuracy whnt basic physical reIlltionships ar(' 'l'ECfu'aC~\L BULLETl" 8 i.5, U. S. UEP'l'.OI<' AGRICULTUHE Although profit-and-loss statements have sometimes been included 111 the reports, only a few inYl'stigations have been dl'signed • specifieally to learn the most economical quantity of feed to use, and these im•cstiglltions have bet'll toncl'l'Iled mostly with ascertaining thl' l'ffcct on production of fl'cdillg gl'Uin in addition to roughage as compared with feeding roughage a.lone in the :tHaifa-growing regions of the 1V('f-;t (4,5.i. 8, 11,1;2).'rhe Bmcau of Dail'Y Industry at its Huntley.Mont., Field Station (8) found I hat 82 percent as much milk was produced by cows fed rou~hag(' alOl1(' as by cows fed rOl\ghage and a limited lunonnt of gram.III retu1'Ils (l\'CJ' cosl of feed.Ht the actual prices prl'vailing at the time the ('xpl'l'iment was condllcted the fel'ding of rOllghage and II limited amount of gra in (1 pOllnd to (i pounds of B.5 pereent milk) proved II little more profit'ablc than the feeding of roughage alone.'VeRt.The fceding-standards ill\'('sfiglltiOlIR haY!:' beell :limed al establish ing how much feed, on the average, it is desirable to give to cows • • " • , 16 TECH:r:..'ICAL BULLETIN 815, U. S. DEP'l'.OF AGRICULTURE nutrients associated with gains and losHes therefore should be taken into account only once for the entire period.'" 'I'h(, rOllgbnf(c f['d per cow might be nrbltrnrlly Cllt do\nl below tbe nmoullts nctllnlly ('011$11111['<1 III tllJ~ l'l<Ilt'rIUWllt hy thp rows that WPI',' (('d most h('nyll)' 011 grnill, Bllt Ulull'r most l'ir['UIll~tnlll'('s It, would 1I0t pnr to go DIllch low(~r hN'lI\lSC the hl'nvily f."d rows In tltn ('''J!I'I'luwnts Wl'r!' app,'oa!'hlll!(1l rongllll!(('lutak" so low that It prO\'lded 110 more thnn WIIS needed to insure a"lIluRt mineraI 1I1Id ,'l!lIl11ln deticlencicti,
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