Survival Analysis for the Adjustment Phase Following Investment in Swiss Dairy Sheds
1
Farm Management Group, Agroscope, CH-8356 Ettenhausen, Switzerland
2
Institute of Farm Management, Hohenheim University, D-70593 Stuttgart, Germany
3
GUS Group, CH-9000 St. Gallen, Switzerland
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Agriculture 2019, 9(11), 238; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture9110238
Received: 6 October 2019 / Revised: 1 November 2019 / Accepted: 5 November 2019 / Published: 8 November 2019
We analysed the adjustment phase following a dairy shed investment. On the basis of farm observations from both the Swiss Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) and a database of government-supported investments from 2003 through 2014, we focused on the imputed profit, the farm income minus opportunity costs for family labour and family capital. After investment, the analysed farms needed three years to return to the same profit level as that before the investment (median value). A Cox proportional-hazards model (survival analysis) showed that the probability of reattaining the imputed profit increased with equity capital. A reduction of the probability was related to a high imputed profit, a high off-farm income, high expenses for purchased animals and, in particular, a greater use of family labour before the investment. We conclude that the use of family labour after investment should be addressed more thoroughly during the planning process prior to an investment.
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Keywords:
investment; dairy cattle; imputed profit; Switzerland
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MDPI and ACS Style
Kramer, B.; Schorr, A.; Doluschitz, R.; Lips, M. Survival Analysis for the Adjustment Phase Following Investment in Swiss Dairy Sheds. Agriculture 2019, 9, 238.
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