Measurement , Farm Size and Productivity

Agricultural economists have long debated the efficiency and viability of smallholder agriculture. While much research has shown that small farmers in developing regions are often more efficient than larger farmers, some have challenged the validity of that evidence, citing potential problems that come with farmers' selfreporting of land size. If smaller farmers systematically under-report the size of their plots, one would observe higher levels of production per unit of land that are not linked with efficiency in the production process, but to a failure to properly account for the quantity of land they actually use.