Methods of Farm Management Investigations.

FOREWORD TO FIRST EDITION.
This paper introduces methods of farm management investigation to extension workers, agriculture teachers and officials, rural leaders, officers of farmers' organizations and all who are concerned with the improve-ment of farm efficiency and productivity in their countries and commu-nities. It is a sequel to the FAO Development Paper No. 20 entitled Farm management investigations for agricultural improvement. Since in many parts of the world there are few experts in farm management, and since problems of farm management have to be attacked, in most cases, by people other than professionally trained farm management experts, a paper of this nature may be of value in furthering agricultural development.

The author intends to introduce the methods of farm management investigation in sufficient detail so that the reader may readily follow the procedure. Since farm management investigations involve methods of vary-ing degrees of statistical complexity, the writer thinks that even methods which do not call for advanced statistical training should also be carefully treated in order to avoid the risk of misusing valuable data by failure to perform a few easy analytical tasks. If, on the other hand, the reader finds some of the techniques herein included too difficult, he can either avoid using them or engage the service of someone who is familiar with them.

The writer has observed that, even in the so-called underdeveloped countries, competent economists and statisticians are often available. For them none of the material in this paper is too technical. The writer has also seen farm management surveys, or other research projects, entrusted to persons not trained in research methods because it was believed that no particular training and experience was needed in carrying out the work.

It seemed desirable, therefore, to include both technical and nontechnical discussions in the paper to illustrate the nature and requirements of farm man-agement research. Then misjudgments by enthusiastic government officials and farm leaders may be avoided and the work entrusted to competent persons.

The paper includes discussions of the farm business survey, farm bookkeeping and financial accounting, farm business analysis, cost and enterprise studies, marginal analysis of input/output relationship, farm planning, budgeting and programing, farm work efficiency studies, the esti-mating of machinery cost and the planning of its efficient use, the cost and benefit appraisal of farm and agricultural projects and land tenure problems.

In the course of preparing this paper, many constructive suggestions were received from farm management experts in various countries who reviewed sections of it. Special mention should be made of the suggestions from Dr. J. Petricevic, of the Secretariat des Paysans suisses, Mr. C. H. Blagburn, of the University of Reading, Dr. A. B. Lewis, of the Council on Economic and. Cultural Affairs, Inc., New York, Dr. Ta-Chung Liu, of the International Monetary Fund, and Dr. M. Ezekiel, Deputy Director of the Economics Division of FAO. Dr. J. Lossing Buck, formerly Chief of the Land and Water Use Branch of the Agriculture Division of FAO, and his successor, Dr. Rainer Schickele, both gave the writer great encourage-mCnt and support.

Thy writer is grateful to the authors and publishers of the various bulletins, periodicals and other publications from which illustrations arc taken. Special acknowledgment is due to the Cori cil oii Economic and Cultural Affairs for the financial support which makes possible the publication of the paper.

FOREWORD TO REVISED EDITION.
The first edition of Methods of farm management investigations was pub-lished in 1958 in the three working languages of FAO: English, French an d Spanish. The book has had an enthusiastic reception. Several important periodicals concerned with agricultural economics have commented favor-ably on it.

Many teachers, professors and students in both the developed and developing countries have used it as one of their important reference books and as a manual. Farm management seminars organized in many developing countries adopted it as a guide for their discussions. Training centers in farm management have used it as a textbook.

Permission has been granted. by FAO for it to be translated into Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Turkish. The book's contribution to the development of farm manage-ment teaching, research and extension in many newly developing countries, and even in some of the developed countries, is indeed most gratifying.

The first printing was soon exhausted and to meet the continued de-mand, both the English and Spanish versions were reprinted in 1962. Since its appearance, many farm management studies have been conducted in several developing countries and a great amount of new material and many new publications have become available. Considerable experience has accumulated in its use as a guide for the planning and conducting of farm management research.

The book has now, therefore, been revised, so as to take into account actual experience in its use as well as comments received from colleagues in both the developed and developing countries.

In prepar-ing the present version an effort has been made to:
1. Include more examples from studies made in the developing areas.
2. Give more concrete descriptions to show the steps and procedures for making farm plans and budgets.
3. Add illustrations on the use of linear programing techniques for the solv-ing of cost minimization problems.
4. Bring the material in the book up to date.

The author is most grateful to his colleagues in FAO, as well as to those in the Agricultural Development Council (formerly the Council on Economic and Cultural Affairs), for their encouragement in the work of revision, and for their helpful and constructive suggestions.

The Agricultural Development Council, which financed the publication of the first edition, has also agreed to provide funds for the publication of this revised and extended edition, and for this support the author wishes to express his deep appreciation.

His gratitude is also due to the teachers and professors in both the developed and developing countries and to the farm management specialists, extension workers, rural leaders and govern-ment officials who have made helpful suggestions and provided useful mate-rial and experience for the preparation and revision of the book.