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Methodological and integration aspects of ABC-method application in trade organizations
49-52Views:299In conditions of declining consumer demand and deficit of credit resources more and more managers of Russian companies think of necessity of introducing effective methods and systems of cost management. One of the most relevant is method of “Activity Based Costing” (ABC-method). Since, in western experts’ opinion sectors of service and trade are adjusted to use of ABC-method even more than production, we should refer once more to the main methodological and integration aspects of ABC-method application and consider it from position of trade organization.
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Farmers’ experience in adoption and usage of ICT solutions for agriculture in the Republic of Macedonia
25-30Views:531The adoption of new of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in farming activities becoming crucial for developing countries in order to meet the challenges of rapidly growing populations, urbanization and arable agricultural land declination. Because of it, each farmers’ organization or farmer has to concern their agricultural products and services more towards modernized and ICT related routine. The attempt has been made to analyze the reaction of the Macedonian farmers towards ICTs as a source of reliable and timely information about e-banking, online purchasing/selling, marketing, input and output optimization, increased revenue, remote farm management process etc. Semi-structured questionnaire was used for interviewing 132 semi-experienced and experienced farmers that use ICTs as sample for the research. The data were analyzed using appropriate statistics tool like correlation and Rank Based Quotient (RBQ). The findings showed that farmers stressed the cost of ICTs, lack of training, trust level in the government institutions, and lack of ICT infrastructure are thresholds for ICTs adoption and use in agriculture. This research contributes to understand the adoption and use of ICT, identify the constraints associated with ICT use and propose recommendations towards the improvement of ICTs for agriculture in the Republic of Macedonia.
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Conceptions and misconceptions of hostels worldwide
61-67Views:437Present research is inspired to study the conceptions and misconceptions of hostels in eight different countries (Spain, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Hungary, Venezuela, China, Australia). The outcome of the research reports that the participants in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and in Hungary define hostels as youth accommodations, Spanish participants as cheap hotels and Venezuelans call them homeless shelters. The majority of the participants of all the above mentioned countries determine that the most important difference between hostels and hotels is the price. Americans, English, Germans, and Hungarians believe that a night would cost between 10 and 30 Euro in an average hostel, while Spaniards and Venezuelans say it would be under 10 Euro. Most respondents agree that hostels are; located in the city center, great places to socialize, offer safe accommodation, staying in there allows guests to save up money, and they are popular choices among travelers. American and English participants think hostels are only for people who like to party. Spaniards and Venezuelans think, hostels are outside of the city center. Spanish and English participants believe that hostels are too cheap to be able to offer a good service. Most participants say, the low price would be the main reason to stay in a hostel. Americans, English and Germans also think that other values are important besides the price: fun, the opportunity to meet people and atmosphere. In spite of all the above, most participants think people would rather stay in a hotel than in a hostel. Stereotypes evolve in different ways, which also explains how misconceptions about hostels developed.
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THE ROLE OF DIGITALIZATION IN SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
Views:56ICT, digital and smart tools are an integral part of a competitive agriculture in the 21st century. The world's population is growing, which also means that demand for food will increase, so there is a need to increase agricultural productivity (increasing output/input factor efficiency), for which technological innovation is essential. An important aspect is that some factors of production in agriculture are limited (land, water, etc.), so a fundamental issue for farmers in agriculture is how to carry out their agricultural activities in a sustainable and cost-effective way. Innovative and modern solutions are needed to increase productivity in agriculture in a sustainable way. Digitalisation, of which data and the information derived from data are an integral part, is the basis for these innovative solutions. Technological progress and digitalisation are making a major contribution to the emergence of sustainable agriculture. The aim of the present study is to briefly describe the development and milestones of agriculture, based on a literature review, and to highlight the importance of agricultural digitisation, especially from the perspective of sustainable agriculture.
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Methodological and integration aspects of abc-method application in trade organizations
57-60Views:275In conditions of declining consumer demand and deficit of credit resources more and more managers of Russian companies think of necessity of introducing effective methods and systems of cost management. One of the most relevant is method of “Activity Based Costing” (ABC-method). Since, in western experts’opinion sectors of service and trade are adjusted to use ofABC-method even more than production, we should refer once more to the main methodological and integration aspects ofABC-method application and consider it from position of trade organization.
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Using sustainable development tools for solving property rights in Montenegro
127-131Views:288In recent months Montenegro has been faced with serious budget problems , one proposed solution of which has been to reduce the number of employees in state administration. Additionally, the costs of living are above the disposable budget of most households, in particular the high cost of electricity. While the government warns about a lack of electricity, the citizens are hardly in the position to cover these costs. Montenegro is dealing with the double challenge of inefficient use of space (the country features over 100,000 illegal homes)(I don’t understand the link between inefficient use of space and illegal homes) and inefficient energy use (Montenegro needs an average of 8.5 times more energy per unit produced than an average EU country). How can these problems be solved in a way which pleases both sides? In this paper, an approach is presented which links the solving of the problem of illegal construction with increasing the level of energy efficiency in households, businesses and other facilities. There is a model developed by UNDP Montenegro – an integrated policy solution to the double challenge of providing energy efficiency measures to incentivise households to legalise their homes. The legalisation of illegal buildings by the introduction of mandatory energy efficiency measures in them may at the same time result in an increase of revenue to the central and local budgets, the reduction of negative impacts on the environment, an increase in employment, the engagement of the economy, a reduction of electricity consumption and thereby to reduce the need to import electricity, and ultimately the increased welfare of the population.
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Risks and competitiveness in agriculture with emphasis on wine sector in Croatia
11-17Views:318International competitiveness, being a key objective of each economic entity, is at the same time significantly determined by the level of risk the entity is coping. Based on the assumption that risk management is directly linked to competitiveness in agribusiness, the scope of this paper is predominantly focused on the wine agribusiness in Croatia. The aim of this paper is to encompass available literature and transfer findings to interested parties, about risks and competitiveness in agriculture, with particular reference to the wine sector. Qualitative analysis of secondary data, descriptive i.e. monographic method, deductive method and comparison of available papers from the world and Croatia were applied in the paper. There are very few companies in general, however, that tend to use their abilities to manage risks as a source of competitive advantage. These companies go beyond compliance or cost-controlling defensive approaches and take a more aggressive stance toward risk. They have realized that their risk management capabilities can be leveraged as a source of competitive advantage (Elahi, 2013). Current literature showed that such companies indirectly exist within global agribusiness. Examples of such companies in the wine sector could be found in Old World and New World wine countries. In regards with the mentioned, further research in the wine sector that would more directly link competitiveness and risk management and benefits that could be drawn from such “linkage” is needed.
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OPERATING RESULTS OF SILAGE ENTERPRISE OF A FARM - A CASE STUDY
Views:521Improvements in agriculture has been focusing on innovations to improve the efficiency of the activity by making the traditional production structure currently in use more flexible and by making the necessary technological changes for farmers with large areas and the necessary machinery and equipment. Farms with significant arable land are able to offset the effects of changes affecting efficiency and profitability. The decisive sector of agriculture in Hungary is crop production, therefore its performance is largely determined by the annual output of the crop sector and the volatility in prices. From the farm data, we calculated farm-level results that support the need for machinery modernisation efforts, as precision tools and improvements already started in maize production can be applied fruitfully even in the light of the increasing frequency of negative climatic effects. During the development of silage maize cultivation technology, the achievements of precision farming were applied. Differentiated nutrient replenishment and sowing operations were used, in addition to the fact that harvesting was also documented. We set ourselves the goal of analyzing the management data of the study period between 2019-2022 in order to reveal the nature of the changes that occurred in terms of production value, production cost, and income, as well as the components that shape them. The presented values are average values of such conditions which are also suitable for crop-level conclusions. At the same time, they can be used to identify sector-level challenges and trends.
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The social value of science shops: A cost-benefit analysis
23-30Views:426We describe and apply a method to determine the net social benefits of science shops. University departments operating as science shops coordinate research projects for individuals or civil society organizations (CSO) lacking the financial means to turn to professional consultancy bureaus. Three cases are analyzed; the science shops atWageningen, Brussels and Eindhoven. After investigation, it appears that under the normal assumptions for the application of CBA, the science shops concerned show positive net social benefits.
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INTEGRATING SERVICE VALUE CHAIN GOVERNANCE ON SMALL SUNFLOWER PROCESSING INDUSTRIES IN DODOMA, TANZANIA
Views:239Small-scale sunflower oil processors dominate Tanzania’s sunflower value chain but face persistent performance challenges. This study examines how service value chain governance – defined by factors such as transaction complexity, service characteristics, technological capabilities, market transparency, market structure, and institutional frameworks – influences the capabilities and performance of small sunflower processing industries in Dodoma. Drawing on global value chain and transaction cost economics theories, we hypothesize that high transaction complexity and service intangibility negatively impact processors’ technological and human resource capabilities, while robust technological capacity and market transparency improve logistics and marketing performance. A cross-sectional survey of 275 sunflower oil processors in Dodoma was conducted, and six multiple regression models were used to test each specific hypothesis. Results show that all six governance factors significantly affect the processors’ operational capabilities in the expected directions. High transaction complexity and service heterogeneity are associated with lower technological competency and workforce efficiency, whereas greater technological capability and market transparency yield improved logistical coordination and market access. Fragmented market structures (many small suppliers) correlate with weaker financial performance, and a strong institutional framework is linked to better regulatory compliance. These findings highlight critical governance-related barriers and enablers for small agro-processors. We discuss practical and managerial implications for improving value chain integration – including investing in technology, training, and policy support – and outline theoretical contributions.
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Optimal crop plan of cooperative farmers in Osun state, Nigeria: a linear programming approach
Views:471Optimal level of production requires better use of existing resources at the lowest possible cost. Despite the inherent advantage of cooperatives to the agricultural sector, the question of how farmers under cooperative umbrella use farm resource for optimal outcome remains unanswered. This study investigates optimal crop mix for cooperative farmers in rural communities in Southwest Nigeria. Primary data were collected for the study through structured questionnaire. The data were fitted to Linear Programming Model. Three different cropping patterns are identified among the cooperative farmers. Based on the results from linear programming model, only maize, cassava and yam are admitted in the final plan and this combination is to be produced at 2.23 hectares. The gross margin value associated with the plan is ₦156, 235.781 (1$ = N365). Input resources such as land, labour, fertilizer, and chemicals are not fully utilized. The slack values for these inputs are 0.31, 651.20, 1929.6 and 140.76 respectively. The sensitivity analysis shows that seed/seedling is the only binding resource in the final plan with a shadow price which suggests that proper allocation of seed and seedlings would improve returns to cooperative farmers. There is need for appropriate farm management strategies to ensure optimal return for farmers. More education and training is suggested to boost cooperative farmers understanding of optimum strategy that is needed to improve production and earnings.
JEL code: Q10, Q13
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The efficiency of porkers production of intensively and extensively feeded
69-74Views:364The aim of this study is a comparative analysis of the costs of production of intensively and extensively fed porkers in view of the qualitative parameters of meat obtained after slaughter. The production experiment, which involved the parallel fattening of 3 groups of 30 porkers (fed intensively up to a weight of about 120 kg and extensively up to weights of about 100 kg and 120 kg), was carried out between 2011 and 2012 in a deliberately selected farm. The researchers assumed average prices of the means of production and prices of livestock pigs in individual meatiness classes noted in Poland in 2012. The fattening started when the animals weighed about 40 kg. The feeds used for extensive fattening contained less total protein, energy and basic exogenous amino acids, but more raw fibre. The analysis proved that the extensive production of porkers up to 100 kg in 2012 was not profitable. The most profitable production was the intensive production up to 120 kg (a profit of €0.100 per kg, whereas in the extensive feeding up to 120 kg the profit was €0.072 per kg. The porkers which were fed less intensively had a higher slaughter value, thinner fatback, higher dressing percentage and smaller content of fatback in the half-carcase, whereas their meat contained more water and less protein, fat and ash than the meat from the group of porkers fed with the mix richer in protein and energy.
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Understanding the demand side and coordinating the supply side for connected goods and services
17-23Views:313This paper addresses the coordination and innovation issues needed for promoting value added at the rural and regional level. There are two sides to value added: the ability to meet consumer demand, and to identify least cost ways of supplying the demanded goods. Human and social capital plays an important role on both sides. At the municipality level the supply side issues are complex. First, because the production space has far more dimensions than for the single entrepreneur. Second, because the value of some goods and services produced depend on what other goods and services that is available. On the supply side networks are important to solve the coordination issues, while networks for identifying and understanding consumer preferences are important on the demand side. Participation in these two network types compete for the same scarce resource, the time of the inhabitants of a municipality. We address these issues in more detail. A major insight from our work is that in addition to the time conflict, innovation and new information may make it more difficult to maintain coordination networks.
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Co-innovation: what are the success factors?
29-36Views:340The problem we address in this paper is that in projects focusing on public-private cooperation to stimulate innovation in the Netherlands, initiatives often lack continuation after the study-phase. We extracted possible influencing variables from business and (transaction) cost economic theorizing, stakeholder and capability theory. Moreover, we used measures for classifying projects with respect to financial interdependencies between participants. We supposed that project characteristics influence managerial behavior to continue or stop. We studied 28 projects (20 supply chain projects and 8 biological product development projects). Our aim was to explore the barriers and success factors for these co-innovation projects: innovation as a cooperative effort between public sector/research institute and private organization(s). We derived data from project descriptions and performed semi-structured interviews with project informants. Critical to success appears to be ex ante commitment of all parties. Goal congruence, both at a personal and a company level, and proportionality of sharing in project results are of decisive importance to establish such commitment. Estimations about financial project results should be made in an early stage; they should be used as a basis for negotiations on the (re)distribution of costs and benefits, especially if the value added is disproportionally distributed over the participants. Ideally, project teams of co-innovation projects should bring in complementary capabilities: technical, marketing, financial and organizational. Project governance should therefore be organized in such a way that the knowledge gaps are filled in before kick-off.
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Greener cement sector and potential climate strategy development between 2015-2030 (Hungarian case study)
65-74Views:619Advancing the domestic industrial production towards a sustainable, resource-preserving direction can become an important pillar to support competitiveness in the European Union, as well as in Hungary. Reaching the de-carbonization goals for industrial production via lowering the production volume may result in less desirable macro-economic effects, so decisions which concern the industry require a lot of attention from the climate policy as well. In the case of the cement sector, economic actors have to be motivated to make energy-efficiency investments and technology developments, which also show promise in terms of business efficiency. In the more natural-resource-intensive branches of the industry, both innovations and technological developments will be required to reduce the amount of used non-renewable energy resources, keep it in the industrial cycle, and reduce environmental load. The importance of greener cement will be essential in the near future to reduce the sector’s CO2 emission levels. We need to identify more sector branches which relate to sustainability, which can aid the country in establishing long-term competitiveness that points towards the de-carbonization goals. The cost-efficiency aspects of this development process are the most tedious questions in today’s business planning.
JEL classification: Q55
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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF A COMPLEX PIG FARM
Views:346The objective of this study is, beyond presenting the production and economic indicators of a complex pig farm established as a brownfield investment, to analyze its cost-income and profitability relations. The Authors conducted their calculations based on primary data collection and a preliminary calculation model. The technological equipment of the presented pig farm is competitive at the European level, and its production indicators also show favorable results. The capital investment demonstrates adequate profitability, as the internal rate of return (IRR) is 12.35%, while the net present value (NPV) of the investment at the end of the 15th year is HUF 1.36 billion. According to the model, the results indicate that, on the one hand, the investment is capital-intensive, but at the same time, large-scale livestock farms equipped with similarly advanced technology are definitely necessary, as they greatly contribute to improving the sector’s efficiency. There is further potential for achieving competitive advantages through increasing economies of scale. Appropriate human resources with the necessary expertise, genetics, and feeding must accompany the technological advancement.
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Reasons for and obstacles to cycling in opinions of residents of Debrecen, Hungary
53-59Views:385It is a basic aim of the European Union that due to the developments in 2014-2020 the bicycle would become one of the most often used transportation, touristic, and sports equipment. We were interested to see to what extent is bicycling present in the transportation system of Debrecen and what are the most important reasons for its residents to use the bicycles. The dedication of Debrecen to promote cycling is clearly proven by the number of newly built or resurfaced bike paths and by the fact that the University of Debrecen has introduced – alone in the region – UniBike which is a bicycle renting system brought forth by the need of its students. Here we present the developments that took place in the North Plain Region in the past few years. We have also analyzed the national and European strategies and reports on bicycling. A survey was conducted among the youth of Debrecen to explore their cycling habits. The data were evaluated using the EvaSys program. Until the end of 2011 with the help of different funds 862 km of bike paths had been built in Hungary. In the North Plain Region due to funds totaling 777 million HUF 15.7 km long bike paths had been constructed until 2015. The development of tourism in this direction is promoted by the web-pages and brochures offering bicycle-tours around Debrecen. Nevertheless, bicycling in the neighboring townships is present not as an instrument for sports and/or tourism, rather as a mean of transportation. It is a clear goal in Europe and thus in Hungary to have bike paths that can provide the means of safe cycling. In parallel, it is also important to promote the benefits of bicycling, including positive physiological effects, cost-effectiveness, and environment-friendliness to increase the proportion of those who select bicycling as an alternative.
JEL Code: I15
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Bioenergy: Risks to food-, energy- and environmental security
121-130Views:656There are growing opportunities and demands for the use of biomass to provide additional renewables, energy for heat, power and fuel, pharmaceuticals and green chemical feedstocks. However, the worldwide potential of bioenergy is limited, because all land is multifunctional, and land is also needed for food, feed, timber and fiber production, and for nature conservation and climate protection. The recent expansion of the bioenergy industries together with a strong increase in many commodity prices has raised concerns over the land use choices between energy needs and food and feed. New systems of energy production must be developed based on cost of environmental damage due to production and use of fossil energy and certain chemicals and materials. This article presents risks to food and energy security, estimates of bioenergy potential and the challenges of the environmental and social impact associated with expansions in bioenergy production.
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Renewable energy resources in Hungary – solid biomass utilization in terms of necessity and opportunity
75-78Views:369In the 21st century a country’s success significantly depends on how it can solve the problems (supply safety, growing prices, climate change, etc.) induced by the application structure of the fossil energy sources with the means of energy saving, energy efficiency and the utilization of renewable energy resources. The utilization of renewable energy sources has positive effects on five key areas: environment protection, energy policies, fulfilment of EU expectations, agriculture and rural development and on the whole of the national economy. The bioenergy – beside fulfilling the national economic aims – it is putting up the value of the role of agriculture and rural development. The role of agriculture is multi-functional in the process. The agricultural sector has an important task in the area of bioenergy to ensure the proper quality and quantity of raw materials for the increase of bioenergy utilization. This also means new sales perspectives and opportunities for the producers. Above all this, the agricultural policy aims for the agriculture and the rural development segment to be the unambiguous winner of the new bioenergy sector and for most of the available profit to stay with the agricultural sector, with the rural players. For this reason encouraging the raw material production it wishes to encourage the producer their primary process and their local utilization. One of the fundamental objectives of the measures is that agriculture should go beyond the raw material production and take steps towards processing and utilization. The multifunctional role in the product chain might mean extra income and more added value for the producers and the active players in the process. The other objective is to promote the local utilization, the scatter of the environmentally friendly energy sources in rural areas, to change the energy is “lying on the ground unutilized” principle while local processing and promoting the utilization, to achieve a lower energy dependency and to optimize and disseminate cost efficient solutions. To realize all this means a great task and a huge challenge for the agricultural government as well as the rural societies and micro regions but might lead to a successful rural development. The range of the tools and measures to fulfil the aims might be very broad, from the regulating instruments to the various subsidies, coordination and dissemination tools. Part of the subsidy schemes are direct production-type of subsidies (the so called direct payments, for example the area based subsidies) and the other main forms are the investment-type subsidies which are for technology development, promotion of competitive production and local processing and for establishing a green energy industry. In the period of 2007-2013 the key elements of the development schemes were drafted in the frame of the New Hungary Rural Development Programme (ÚMVP) and the Environmental Energy Operational Program (KEOP). The available raw materials and the conditions are taken into consideration while designing the development schemes because a successful realization of a product chain means the assurance of the inputs and outputs. The starting point of determining the development direction is the principle of an operation which is sustainable and economical on the long run. In addition such developments are considered reasonable which are viable on medium and long term and bring numerous rural development, environmental and societal returns.
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The mutual influences of man-made pollutants and allergic manifestations
97-105Views:543The United Nations have projected the world population to reach 9.6 billion by 2050 and that, by then, over 50% of the world population will be living in urban areas. This continuing population growth and accompanying urbanization lead to serious concerns about clean water and food for all, but also about climate change and pollution. Soil and water pollution are directly affecting the crops grown for consumption, and air pollution is affecting our mucosal barriers in the respiratory and gastro-intestinal tract on a daily basis. This review provides an overview of the different types of pollution, and the health effects triggered by especially air pollution ranging from heart disease, pulmonary disease, cancer, to fatal respiratory infections. In addition, the differences in how pollution-induced effects are affecting different age-groups are discussed. Finally, the socio-economic causes and consequences (e.g. Quality of Life and Years of Life Losses versus medical care cost) of these pollution-induced diseases are debated.
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