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Open research questions in Agricultural Economics and Policy

127 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 1,659 Agricultural Economics and Policy papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • methodological tensions delimiting what can be inferred from the literature. the energy dimension is operationalized differently across studies, limiting cross-study comparability. a lack of a fully specified quantitative link between CAP measures, energy cost structure, and farm income resilience.

    Energy Use, Costs and Economic Resilience of EU Agriculture: The Role and Potential of CAP Eco-Schemes in Reducing Energy Intensity · 2026 · DOI

  • Development of a unified analytical framework that integrates energy indicators, CAP instruments, and economic/resilience outcomes, - Further research on the energy effects of policy instruments, - Investigation of the quantitative link between CAP measures, energy cost structure, and farm income and resilience

    Energy Use, Costs and Economic Resilience of EU Agriculture: The Role and Potential of CAP Eco-Schemes in Reducing Energy Intensity · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in the existing literature, which often relies on questionnaire-based evaluative indicators of farm performance. The paper notes that these indicators may be conceptually related to respondents' assessments of policy support, land-transfer fairness, and local planning. The study seeks to address this limitation by using an objective financial indicator to assess farm performance.

    What Drives Moderate-Scale Operation Performance in Family Farms? A Dual Perspective of Factor Endowments and Policy Perception · 2026 · DOI

  • Further research is needed to examine the relationships between factor endowments, policy perceptions, and farm performance. The study suggests that separating the measurement of explanatory conditions from that of performance is integral to identifying the scope of the framework.

    What Drives Moderate-Scale Operation Performance in Family Farms? A Dual Perspective of Factor Endowments and Policy Perception · 2026 · DOI

  • Ensuring environmental integrity and value for farmers in the Buyers' Club. Avoiding the treatment of CRCF certificates as interchangeable and offsetting use cases. Preventing the Buyers' Club from distracting from improving the Common Agricultural Policy or from deploying future mandatory climate policies.

    The Do's and Don'ts of a Buyers' Club: Recommendations for an EU Buyers' Club for Carbon Farming · 2026 · DOI

  • Voluntary approaches will be insufficient to deliver the necessary scale and speed of agricultural mitigation. The Buyers' Club should not distract from improving the Common Agricultural Policy or from deploying future mandatory climate policies.

    The Do's and Don'ts of a Buyers' Club: Recommendations for an EU Buyers' Club for Carbon Farming · 2026 · DOI

  • Lack of data on EAS in Canada. Limited evidence on EAS economic impacts in Canada. Inability to present a clear economic case for extension services.

    EAS for Economic Development—What is Missing in Canada and How Can CAREE Help? · 2026 · DOI

  • Quantifying the economic benefits of EAS in Canada. Identifying which EAS models are most economically effective within Canadian agricultural contexts.

    EAS for Economic Development—What is Missing in Canada and How Can CAREE Help? · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to examine the progressivity of NTP and its impact on poverty reduction. Prior studies have shown that rising Farmers' Terms of Trade do not always translate into lower farmer poverty.

    The Progressivity of Farmers’ Terms of Trade in Accelerating Fiscal Policy for Poverty Alleviation Programs in Gorontalo Province · 2026 · DOI

  • The federal government's support for CMAs was limited and failed to provide the necessary working capital. The creation of the Federal Intermediate Credit Banks in 1923 failed to address the credit needs of CMAs.

    Accommodating Agriculture within US Capitalism: Cotton, Cooperatives, and Intermediate Credit in the Early Twentieth Century · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research could explore the impact of the federal government's support for CMAs on the agricultural sector. Further study could examine the development of cooperative marketing associations in other sectors.

    Accommodating Agriculture within US Capitalism: Cotton, Cooperatives, and Intermediate Credit in the Early Twentieth Century · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of research on the use of Common Agricultural Policy funds by churches and religious organizations in Poland. The exact area of land owned by the Church is unknown.

    Churches and religious organisations as beneficiaries of the Common Agricultural Policy in Poland · 2026 · DOI

  • Regional disparities in investment activity, - Differences in investment patterns among farm types, - The need for strategic planning in investment decisions

    Investing in agriculture: structural and financial determinants of farminvestment activity in Poland · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research should seek to disentangle whether farm-level innovation is being driven primarily by external policy incentives or by endogenous, entrepreneurial motivations. The study highlights the need for further research on the impact of climate change adaptation and ESG requirements on agricultural investment.

    Investing in agriculture: structural and financial determinants of farminvestment activity in Poland · 2026 · DOI

  • Balancing economic growth and environmental improvement. Reducing emissions while increasing agricultural productivity. Addressing the need for tailored technology and productivity investments.

    Agricultural Decoupling in EU Transition Economies: Evidence from Tapio Elasticity Analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in the literature regarding the relationship between agricultural growth and emissions in transition economies. The research highlights the need for a decoupling approach to address the balance between economic growth and environmental improvement.

    Agricultural Decoupling in EU Transition Economies: Evidence from Tapio Elasticity Analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in understanding the determinants of agricultural total factor productivity in Türkiye. The sector has faced multiple risks resulting from issues like climate change and rural-urban migrations.

    Agricultural Total Factor Productivity in Türkiye: An ARDL Analysis of Macro-Institutional Drivers · 2026 · DOI

  • The existing literature on the effectiveness of financial instruments for promoting resource efficiency in the agricultural sector is limited. There is a need for a comprehensive assessment of modern mechanisms for financial support of environmentally oriented management practices.

    Financial instruments for promoting resource conservation in the agricultural sector · 2026 · DOI

  • Future studies can investigate the impact of climate-smart technologies on agricultural productivity. Research can focus on developing strategies for transitioning the sector from subsistence to commercially oriented production. Studies can examine the effects of regional trade agreements on agricultural growth and economic development.

    Effect of Agriculture Sector Performance on Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Application of Panel CS-ARDL · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in understanding the effect of agriculture performance on economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa. Prior studies have not fully addressed the structural challenges facing the agriculture sector in SSA.

    Effect of Agriculture Sector Performance on Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Application of Panel CS-ARDL · 2026 · DOI

  • Further research is needed to assess the environmental and landscape implications of different olive-growing systems. Studies should investigate the applicability of intensive and SHD systems in heterogeneous Mediterranean areas. Research should focus on the economic sustainability of olive-growing systems in relation to perennial crops.

    How Much Does Landscape Preservation Cost? Income Gap and Policy Benchmarks for Mediterranean Olive-Growing Systems · 2026 · DOI

  • The economic viability of traditional olive groves is uncertain due to their persistent income disadvantage. The applicability of highly mechanised systems may be limited in heterogeneous Mediterranean areas. The economic advantages of intensive systems need to be assessed jointly with environmental and landscape implications.

    How Much Does Landscape Preservation Cost? Income Gap and Policy Benchmarks for Mediterranean Olive-Growing Systems · 2026 · DOI

  • The proposed farm-level approach will be extended to other EU member states to test the robustness and consistency of the findings. Avenues for future research are discussed, including the potential to investigate the impact of CAP payments on farm structural change and agricultural labour levels in other EU member states.

    Ex-post impact of first- and second-pillar CAP payments on farm structural change · 2026 · DOI

  • The academic literature on ex-post analysis of farm structural change has drawn on a variety of econometric and modelling frameworks, but there is a need for a non-stationary Markov chain model approach. There is a lack of studies investigating the impact of CAP payments on farm structure and employment in France over the 2004-2021 period.

    Ex-post impact of first- and second-pillar CAP payments on farm structural change · 2026 · DOI

  • The potential of technological adoption to correct inefficiencies in agriculture has received limited attention. There is a need to examine the causal impact of agronomic technology adoption on factor misallocation and aggregate agricultural productivity.

    Beyond Productivity: Technology Adoption and Factor Allocation in Agriculture · 2026 · DOI

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127 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 1,659 Agricultural Economics and Policy papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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