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The statistical analysis for the theoretical bio-methane market based on the opinion of car-owners of Hajdú-Bihar county in Hungary
27-30Views:254The more expensive fuels and the health-threatening air pollution make even necessary the spread of such a fuel, which serves as a solution to these problems. In our country at present there are three public CNG filling stations, two of them are located in Gyôr and Szeged and the third one was opened at the end of October in Budapest. The lack of infrastructure obstructs the spread of the methane gas powered cars in Hungary. During my research getting information by means of a test questionnaire I measured the fuel selection of the drivers and their opinion about alternative fuels. Then on the basis of the results I determined the potential target audience of the bio-CNG. As it is also typical in our country, the most of the respondents use gasoline-powered vehicle and drive less than 12 000 km/year on an average. 55% of the respondents would have their car converted in order to refuel cheaper and to protect the environment, consequently there would be demand for CNG. The potential target audience is the urban population below the age of 41 with higher education degree and average salary. One of my future objectives is to design a CNG filling station network in Hajdú-Bihar county considering the demand of car owners.
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FACTORS INFLUENCING FEMALE YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN AGRICULTURAL LIVELIHOOD GENERATING ACTIVITIES FOR SELF-CARE IN GWAGWALADA AREA COUNCIL, ABUJA, NIGERIA
Views:262This study examines female youth participation in agricultural livelihood generating activities for self-care in Gwagwalada Area Council, Abuja. The objectives were to: examine the extent of female youth participation in agricultural livelihood generating activities and the income generated, determine the levels of female youth self-care responsibilities and perceived contribution of participation in agricultural livelihood activities on their wellbeing, determine factors influencing female youth participation in agricultural livelihood activities in the study area. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select 133 female youths from 13 registered youth associations. Structured questionnaire was used to collect data while descriptive statistics and Logit regression model were used to analyze the data. The results showed that 30.1% of the respondents were engaged in crop production and generated an average income of ₦420,093.02 while only 3.0% were engaged in crop produce processing and generated ₦29,250.74. Also, almost half (47.4) of them spent money to take care of themselves of between 3-4 self-care responsibilities and about 41.5 spent an average of 130,078.95 on food per day. It also showed The logit regression results indicated that factors influencing female youth participation in agricultural livelihood generating activities include age, educational status, household size, income, occupation, and distance. While the study indicates that a significant portion of female youths is engaged in crop and poultry production, their overall participation in agricultural activities is limited. The study provides critical insights into the potential of agriculture as a viable solution to youth unemployment and is an instrument of female vulnerability reduction in Nigeria. The study recommends implementing policies to improve land access for female youths, including land reform initiatives that prioritize youth ownership and leasing options. Additionally, it suggests exploring strategies to reduce production costs through input subsidies, partnerships with agricultural suppliers, and community-based resource-sharing initiatives.
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Consumption habits of “Free range chicken” in Hungary
69-73Views:330Poultry is highly ranked in theWorld meat production and consumption (it accounted for 32% in 2007), and, in the past 20 years it was growing with an annual rate of 3–6%, higher than in case of any other meat-types. This tendency is also valid for Hungary: poultry has the largest share (29.8 kg/person/year, 47%) in the domestic meat consumption since 2000, which is among the EU top (KSH, 2007). As the result of the animal health and nutrition scandals, the EU animal welfare and quality requirements and the advancements in health consciousness the Master-Good group launched the production, processing and trade of free-range poultry under the brand “Free-range chicken”. The new products had good consumer responses, because at present 1.5% of the processed chicken in Hungary (25 tons/week) is under this brand. As it regards the future of this product, we can expect the decrease of the current 1.5 times higher production price over broiler chicken, due to the increasing energy, labour and other cost items, thus the increase of the domestic consumption by 25–30% per annum can be foreseen. Besides the growth in domestic demand, increasing foreign consumer demand can also be expected because of the space requirement of the production. Summarising the above mentioned: „Free range chicken” can be one of the most successful products of the Hungarian poultry industry. In order to realise the prognosis mentioned above, it is inevitable to learn the consumer attitudes towards the brand. A primary market research programme supported by the Master Good group has been launched to study the main features of the domestic chicken meat consumption – including the „Free-range chicken” as highlighted brand. The primary aim of the research was the complete assessment and evaluation of the Hungarian chicken consumption habits and the identification of the possible take-off points. The research undertaken resulted basic information concerning the internal structure of the Hungarian poultry consumption (including that of the „Free-range chicken”), the potential consumer groups and their requirements, provided information on the consumers’knowledge of the products and identified the elements of the consumers’ judgements. This will serve as basis for a marketing communication programme to increase the domestic „Free-range chicken” consumption.
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The Attitudes of Pete Program Applicants Towards Information and Communication Technologies
75-80Views:424As information and communication technology has permeated all aspects of life education cannot be considered an exception either. The schools of the 21st century require the use of the latest digital devices whose effectiveness is greatly determined by the motivation, ICT-related attitude, and the respective competences of teachers managing and directing the given teaching and learning process. Since P.E. also requires the use of information and communication devices it would be crucial that prospective teachers develop a positive attitude toward such equipment. The present research aims at exploring the attitudes of students applying to P.E. teacher programs at the Eszterházy Károly University toward such instruments and approaches. Additional research objectives include the exploration of potential correlation between the sex of the applicants and the respective attitudes. Our inquiry utilized the questionnaire method and the computer-based attitude scale was completed by a sample of 130 applicants in the 2016/2017 and the 2017/2018 academic years. Our research concluded that both men and women maintain a positive attitude toward the use of digital devices, or the tools of information and communication technology. Students representing both sexes consider the computer as a valuable learning device promoting the efficiency of the knowledge acquisition process. Furthermore, a significantly greater proportion of male respondents stated that they were capable of repairing computer problems emerging during use than that of their female counterparts. At the same time men are less apprehensive to use computers during instruction and this attitude appears to be an indispensable requirement for the application of ICT devices in class. The research can contribute to a deeper exploration of the given field along with performing a gap filling function as such examination has not yet been conducted among applicants to P.E. programs provided by higher education institutions in Hungary.
JEL Classification: Z2, I23
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Towards innovative environmental management in the Agro-food Industry
7-14Views:246This article focuses on the problem: what external (stakeholder) and (internal structural/organizational) factors drive companies in the food- and agribusiness towards innovative environmental management? Innovative companies are those considered to have adopted a supply chain perspective, instead of a focus on the single business unit. We propose that innovativeness is associated with stakeholder wishes (the government, the public environmental policy being a major influential factor), in combination with structural characteristics of the firm (like R&D-efforts, culture and managerial competences). We surveyed 492 companies in 2002, to get insight into the causes of innovativeness in the Dutch agri-food sector, and supplemented this data by means of a similar questionnaire in 2005. Structural equation modeling and correlation analysis were applied. The research provided evidence that companies are restricted by, and therefore not comfortable with, public environmental policies, which seem to obstruct innovativeness rather than stimulate it. Firms that(1) have enough internal (physical, financial, social)resourcestoinnovate, and (2) are more embedded in a web of (commercial) stakeholder wishes, prove to be more innovative. Suggestions are made to shift the corporate and public policies towards a supply chain-oriented approach by granting benefits for vertical cooperation in supply-chains.
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Medals and degrees: factors influencing dual career of elite student athletes at the University of Debrecen
93-98Views:356Career planning and goal setting play a significant role in the life of elite athletes gaining critical relevance during the overlapping years with university studies. As athletic career contain a necessary end and cannot serve as a profession for life, all athletes shall go through modification period in their professional lives. The athletic career shall come to an end and elite athletes need to find another profession for which they need to prepare as well. The specialities of this undertake is that the peak or the progressive cycle of athletic career often times overlap in time with high school and university studies. This definitely challenges those young athletes who made the decision to continue their studies at the university level beside their athletic careers. The objective of this study is to explore the main factors influencing the simultaneous realisation of studies and elite sport careers during university years. Part of a complex research approach on dual career in sport this study is aimed to gain information about methods of athletes for managing their dual tasks, the perceived relationship of student athletes to their peers, teachers and coaches, and their position on the relevant policy regulations provided by the university environment. Following the development of research instruments, data collection was conducted by focus-group interviews at the University of Debrecen among student elite athletes receiving sport scholarships (N=15). Level of success in sport, sport type (individual and team) and gender distribution was taking into account. The results shall contribute to the development of a future research instrument in a form of a questionnaire to assess aspects of dual career of athletes in case of larger samples.
JEL code: Z20
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LEAN Management Models Application and Safety Management of Logistics Firm in Nigeria
Views:377The need for lean concepts application in the safety management of logistics processes cannot be emphasized as it can help in enhancing the flow of information and expediting processes within the supply network for improved organizational outcomes. The study investigated the application of lean management models to the safety management of logistics firms in Nigeria. The study population includes 215 employees of Manal Plant hire Ltd Nigeria. 138 employees were chosen using a purposive sampling method. A self-administered questionnaire was designed to collect the primary data from the respondents. The data collected were analyzed using the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique to test the hypotheses developed in the study. The study's findings suggest that Process and Equipment Management has a positive and significant effect on the operational efficiency and workplace safety of the studied firms; employee empowerment has a positive and significant effect on operational efficiency; technological innovation has a positive and significant effect on the operational efficiency, and that continuous improvement has a positive and significant effect on the operational efficiency and workplace safety. It is, therefore, concluded that the adoption of Lean Management has a positive and significant effect on the safety management of logistics firms. The study recommends that manufacturing, logistics, and service industries should be committed to carrying out process mapping to eliminate non-value-adding operations in production as well as logistics and ensure the effective and continuous flow of logistics operations.
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What differentiates the entrepreneurs from non-entrepreneurs on nature and nurture?
45-52Views:832Based on the importance and contribution of entrepreneurship in economic development, it is vital to know that what underlying factors may promote the spirit of entrepreneurship? The entrepreneurship literature suggests two kinds of broader influencers or predictors for entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs “nature” and “nurture”. In this study “nature” includes the psychological or personality related factors; self-confidence, locus of control, risk-taking propensity and trust levels. The “nurture” is explained by the effects from society in general and friends and family in particular. To answer the question “What differentiates the entrepreneurs from non-entrepreneurs on nature and nurture?” we collected data through questionnaire from 155 respondents. The 70 respondents were entrepreneurs and 85 were non-entrepreneurs. Step-wise discriminant analysis was used to determine the discriminating factors for entrepreneurs from non-entrepreneurs. Results indicate that societal impacts, risk taking propensity and trust levels were significantly discriminating the two groups; entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs. The study has important implications for policy makers, academicians, researchers and potential entrepreneurs.
JEL Code: L26, M13
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Athlete’s life path in the perspective of gender athletes reporting opportunities in their sports after their sport carrier
59-70Views:518Sport is the highlight of the male-female relationship system. We find that the concept of homogeneity is becoming more and more weakened, sport becomes unisex, which can strongly influence gender judgment in society. The "weaker sex" appearance and spread of the sport indicate that something has changed in the world, so thinking has to change also. Nowadays, there is a dual process in the field of sport: 1.) women appear in the traditionally masculine sports, and this plays an important role in the development of gender relations as mixed races arise; 2.) at the same time, men also appear in previously reserved areas for women, which they have not had opportunities so far (BÉKI, 2018). This phenomenon can be observed, though much slower in sports management. Yet in other sports roles, the gates for both sexes have not yet been opened in masculine and feminine sports. The study deals with how the status of an athlete will be transformed after sport if he/she wants to remain his or her sport in other sports roles - concentrating on coaching and judging roles – to represent his or her own sport. Particularly, we have been focusing on sports whose judgment is not socially acceptable to both sexes. The research sample is team and individual women athletes who are more than 14 years old. Research method is in-depth interview research (n = 145) and questionnaire research (n = 240). The results showed that female athletes are becoming more accepted in masculine sports, although more limited in their careers possibilities than men after an athlete’s life. Their athlete’s identity is strong, they want to stay in the sport on the civilian life as well.
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EXPLORING CONSUMER INTENTION FOR FUNCTIONAL FOOD PRODUCTS IN HUNGARY: THE ROLE OF HEALTH CONSCIOUSNESS, NUTRITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDES
Views:455Background: The potential health advantages of functional food products have increased their appeal. Their reception and implementation are greatly influenced by consumer attitudes and purchasing intentions. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) is used in this study to examine how attitudes toward and intentions to buy functional food products in Hungary are influenced by health consciousness (HC) and nutritional knowledge (KN).
Methods: From March to May 2023, 396 adult Hungarian volunteers took part in an online survey. The poll measured respondents' intentions to buy functional food products as well as their health consciousness, nutritional knowledge, attitudes, and subjective norms (SN). Through pilot research, the questionnaire's reliability and validity were determined. Multiple regression analyses, one-sample t-tests, and Cronbach's alpha were all included in the statistical analysis.
Results: The majority of participants were female, working students. In support of hypotheses H1 and H2, health consciousness significantly influenced attitudes and purchase intentions. H3 and H4 are supported by the findings that nutritional knowledge strongly influenced attitudes and purchase intentions. Both perceived behavioral control and subjective standards had a beneficial impact on purchase intentions supporting H5 and H6.
Conclusion: This study provides important insights into Hungarian consumers' preferences for functional food items. It highlights the beneficial effects of health awareness, information, attitudes, arbitrary standards, and perceived behavioral control on buying intentions. It was discovered that attitudes play an important role in mediating the link between nutritional knowledge, health consciousness, and purchase intentions.
It was discovered that attitudes play an important role in mediating the link between nutritional knowledge, health consciousness, and purchasing intentions. The dynamic functional food market's marketers and legislators should take these findings seriously. The subtleties of these attitudes and their implications for promotional tactics can be explored in greater detail in future research. Promoting healthier food options and informing policy and marketing decisions require an understanding of consumer perceptions and behaviors.
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European traditional food producers and marketing capabilities: An application of the marketing management process
41-46Views:242The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the marketing management capabilities of SMEs producing traditional food products, in order to analyse the market orientation of SMEs in the food industry. Following the theoretical approach of Market Orientation, our analysis is based on an assessment of the marketing management process. The methodology refers to a survey developed through a questionnaire published on the web, and a sample of 371 firms based in Belgium, Italy, Spain, the Czech Republic and Hungary was used in the analysis. Cluster analysis was applied to find the different levels of market orientation of the firms. The results revealed a certain lack of appropriate skills in marketing management in the firms of the sample, confirming the evidence found in economic literature concerning SMEs. Nevertheless, cluster analysis outlined a group of firms with good marketing capabilities and market oriented, and these represent a great part of the sample (40%). With regard to the stages of the marketing management process, the most problematic are those of planning and implementation, and control and evaluation, highlighting the difficulties SMEs encounter in carrying out coordinated marketing; which appears to be generally characterised by poor organisational capacity.
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Analysis of the cavebath of Miskolctapolca’s brand elements and guests satisfaction
155-160Views:550In the region of Northern Hungary the unique Cavebath of Miskolcatapolca is one of the leading health tourism service positioning itself on national and international market with its developing supply items and 4 star qualifications. It has a unique natural background all over in Europe; this uniqueness gives an opportunity to develop brand, which is a determinative item of competitiveness. Because of the competition between destinations and the ever-changing nature of tourists’ expectations and behavior tourism destinations need to be managed as other commercial brands. The aim of our research was to analyze the role and possibilities of product development which is based on the unique natural factors, and to help to expand the domestic health tourism supply. We examined how the possibility of branding and brand equity change based on brand elements; how satisfied are guests with the services; how often guests visit the bath; what kind of period guests arrive in the bath; what kind of services do guests try; how do guests arrive in the bath with. In summer of 2014 we asked 210 Hungarian customers to fill the questionnaire in the Cavebath. The choosing of guests happened randomly. 199 questionnaires were correctly filled.
JEL CODE: Z32
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Profit efficiency among catfish marketers in Lagos state, Nigeria: a Stochastic Profit Frontier Analysis (SPFA) approach
Views:378The study analyzed the determinants of profit efficiency among catfish marketers in Lagos state, Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 120 catfish marketers, data were collected with the aid of a structured questionnaire. The data collected were analyzed with the use of descriptive statistics, enterprise budgetary technique, Shephered-Futrell method and stochastic profit frontier analysis (SPFA) model. The result of the gross ratio and net return on investment reveals that catfish marketing was a profitable and bankable enterprise. About 76.72% of sales revenue was taken up by the costs. The SPFA reveals that cost of catfish purchased and depreciation cost had positive (p<0.01) effects on profit while transportation cost (p<0.01) and labour cost (p<0.05) had negative effects. Furthermore, marital status and credit use (p<0.01) had negative effects on profit inefficiency, the mean profit efficiency of the catfish marketers was 74%. The study concluded that catfish marketers were inefficient, however, to improve the efficiency of the marketers and create more job opportunities; the study recommends that credit facilities that will enable the marketers increase their scale of operation, acquire better marketing resources and employ capable hands in catfish marketing should be made available and accessible. Policies that will help to provide good road networks and reduce the pump price of premium motor spirit (PMS) should be given adequate consideration.
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The study of group and team management in agribusiness companies
75-77Views:259For almost three decades now that the operation of groups and teams became highlighted by scientific examinations and widespread acknowledged leverage for improving corporate efficiency and effectiveness. Much is known about general conditions of operation, still little is known about managerial attitudes, behaviour in operating them. Considering the agribusiness sector, we have hundreds of years of traditions; although operational rules, internal properties, managerial aspects are poorly acknowledged. The Department of Management of University of Debrecen has been conducting research in this field for many years now. Its research program enabled me to work out a questionnaire for surveying agribusiness organizations so that I could identify major and typical characteristics of performance groups. In this article I intend to more precisely describe internal rules, relations and characteristics of this phenomenon.
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Intensity and Profitability of Smallholder Cassava Farmers’ Participation in Value Addition in Afijio Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria
Views:344This study investigated the intensity and profitability of smallholder cassava farmers’ involvement in cassava value addition in Afijio Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria. Data were collected from 150 cassava farming households through the use of a well-structured questionnaire and employing a simple random sampling procedure. The data collected included information on the socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents, intensity of value addition among the respondents, factors influencing their decisions to add value as well as the extent of value addition, profitability of cassava value addition and the factors that determined the profitability level of the enterprises. The data were analyzed using the descriptive statistics for profiling the socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents, gross margin was used to measure profitability, and ordinary least squares regression model was used to determine the factors influencing the decisions of smallholder cassava farmers to add value to cassava as well as the extent of value addition among them. The results revealed that majority of the respondents were females (52.7%) with average age between 31-40 years of age while the average household size (52.7%) is between 6-10 members. Regression analysis of the determinants of the intensity of value addition revealed that the decisions to add value to cassava as well as the extent to which value was added were influenced positively by educational attainment, household size, and years of experience in cassava value addition. Results of the gross margin analysis revealed a positive return on variable costs thus indicating that the cassava value adding enterprise is a profitable one. These findings presented the need for all the stakeholders concerned to focus their attentions on proffering solutions to the challenges faced by cassava processors within the minimum time possible.
JEL code: L11, M11, M21, Q13, R32
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The Opinion of Visitors on the Touristic Attractions and Services of the Esterhazy Castle of Fertőd
97-102Views:292The lately renovated Esterhazy Palace is one of Europe’s biggest Baroque palaces. This paper examines the visitors’ opinion of this worldwide famous palace. This survey-based study was carried out in 2016/2017. The sample was of 800 people, using paper-based questionnaire. It emerged from the study that the visitors needed to be separated analyzed differently under and above 18 years of age, because the push and pull factors vary significantly. Other words, the adult visitors (persons, families) decided themselves to go and see or not, but the young people were influenced by their teachers. Other important lessons of the study was that the visiting process does not end with the viewing of rooms and tools, but the different souvenirs and providing further information, and services are also part of it. This is evidenced by the fact that the worst rating was given by the related service. Organizing and ensuring this is an important task of the management of the palace.
JEL Classification: M3. O18, Z32
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Farmers’ experience in adoption and usage of ICT solutions for agriculture in the Republic of Macedonia
25-30Views:439The 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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The characteristics of consumer attitudes in the food market in Hungary
43-49Views:379The objective of our research was to examine the health status and health behaviour of the Hungarian population in relation of food consumption by identifying relationships between the underlying factors. In our research we used the objective factors from secondary data concerning nutritional status and body image as a framework for the interpretation of the examined relationship of eating attitudes and body attitudes. We chose survey as our test method, it was carried out on a national representative sample of 1000 people. After the examination of the factor structure of the two attitude measuring questionnaire, five consumer groups have been identified by the cluster analysis. The five clusters are: Uncontrolled Impulse Eaters, Dissatisfied Tense, Uninterested, Overweight Impulse Eaters and Conscious Consumers. This segmentation based on eating attitudes and body attitudes could serve as a guidance for health marketing experts and the manufacturers of health protective food to determine and address their target group.
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DO MULTIPURPOSE COOPERATIVES HAVE ADDRESSED THEIR MEMBER’S AGRICULTURAL OUTPUT MARKETING CHALLENGES OF SMALL HOLDER FARMERS IN ETHIOPIA?
Views:233Multipurpose cooperatives offer a powerful tool for enhancing the livelihoods of small-scale farmers, particularly in developing economies. By joining forces, these farmers gain greater collective bargaining power, allowing them to negotiate better prices for their crops and increase their incomes. In developed countries as well, farmer cooperatives play a central role in streamlining production and marketing activities for family farms. They act as a crucial bridge between farmers and markets, ensuring smoother exchange and coordination within the agricultural sector. However, despite their significant contributions, multipurpose cooperatives also face challenges that influence them to play a significant role of agricultural product marketing. The aim of this study was to examine the benefits and difficulties associated with members of a multipurpose cooperative participating in the sale of agricultural products in the Kersa district of Jimma Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia. For this study, four multipurpose cooperatives were chosen using a two-stage sampling technique, resulting in a sample size of 196 cooperative members. Quantitative data was collected through a structured questionnaire from primary sources, while qualitative data was collected through focus groups and key informant interviews. Descriptive statistics such as mean, chi-square, standard deviation, frequency, and percentage were used to analyze the data. The result showed that 66.36% of cooperative members were participants, whereas 33.64% were non-participants. Multipurpose cooperatives are serving as the primary source of agricultural inputs. However, the output marketing activity of the sampled multipurpose co-operatives in the district is not as remarkable. The study suggests that local cooperative agencies should encourage more members to participate in selling their crops through the cooperatives
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Evaluating linkage between operators’ satisfaction and potential of local resources for rural tourism: Evidence from Matsuura in Japan
33-41Views:265As rural tourism evolves into diversification, the connection between the individual and local resource management is becoming an important issue for the sustainable evolution of rural tourism. To explore this point, we investigated conceptually and empirically whether rural tourism operators’individual satisfaction enhances utilization of local resources and, if so, what mechanism works for it by focusing on rural tourism accompanied by an educational program, i.e. a farm-stay with farm and rural experience services implemented as a part of school trips in Matsuura, Japan. From statistical tests and an econometric estimation based on a questionnaire survey of rural tourism operators we found that operators’individual satisfaction gained from interchange with visitors and direct feedback can positively enhance locally exerted effects that stimulate operators to recognize opportunities within their community and raise the potential for local resource use. Thus, we should strengthen this connection to eventually create a new viable activity.
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Moral hazard in producer organizations - some experiences of an empirical survey
77-83Views:364A wide range of empirical experiences shows that the performance of Hungarian producer organizations (aka TÉSZ) significantly falls behind the activity observed in the developed Western European countries. Regarding this issue, the present study examines how moral hazard - as one of the possible reasons - influences the producers’ activities in cooperative organizations. Information for the research was collected with the help of a questionnaire survey among the members of PaprikaKert TÉSZ Ltd. A statistical path model has been developed for the research, which assumed that - in addition to a direct effect - moral hazard also affects collaborative activity by eroding trust. The statistical model has been tested both in member-member and members-management relations. The experiences from the survey clearly show that moral hazard exists in the producer organization. According to my results, though its measure cannot be regarded numerically considerable, its negative effect on cooperative activity can be proved with statistical examinations. Its effect can be divided into two aspects: besides a direct effect, an indirect one can also be detected, which means that moral hazard is able to reduce producers’ willingness to cooperate by eroding trust. Moreover, our results have clearly pointed out that moral hazard has a negative impact on member-member and members-management relations to varying degrees and through different mechanisms. In addition to the above tests, the empirical testing of another model called Sholtes trust model has been carried out, too. The validating was successful, so the model - which attributes trust to the faith in the partner’s loyalty and capability - is basically acceptable. The argument says that high-level trust can be observed among partners only when faith both in loyalty and capability is strong enough. The research, however, revealed that the above-mentioned two factors determine it in a different way: regarding trust between members, the faith in capability is more important; while trust towards the management is more determined by faith in loyalty.
JEL code: Q12, Q13
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Optimal crop plan of cooperative farmers in Osun state, Nigeria: a linear programming approach
Views:375Optimal 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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Rural resilience and the role of social capital among farmers in Kirundo province, Northern Burundi
121-125Views:274In Burundi, more than 90% of the active population is engaged in family agriculture, which plays a vital role in food production and constitutes more than 50% of the GDP. Before the civil war of 1993, Kirundo was deemed the “breadbasket of the country”, as the region fed many parts of Burundi through growing particular foods such as legumes and cereals. Family farming was market-oriented. Kirundo alone includes 8 lakes which offer opportunities for field irrigation. Today, this region is the first province in Burundi which shows a high rate of malnutrition, as poverty has increased and a sharp 53.9 % decline in agricultural production has been witnessed between 1996 and 2009. The aim of this article is to analyse the role of social capital through the local association network in improving family agriculture and the resilience to climate change and conflict crisis. In this study, 73 farmers were surveyed in Kirundo province through means of a questionnaire, and the study was completed by collecting secondary data. Analysis of the data reveals that, despite recurrent droughts in that region which caused deaths due to famines and displacement of people to neighbouring countries such as Rwanda and Tanzania, 44% of the farmers who were surveyed were shown to have resilience to climate change. The analysis of data shows that these farmers were members of well organised local associations, and had learned about specific topics such as financial management, processing and storage of agricultural products and livestock. The social capital network positively influences their income and their resilience to climate change and conflict crisis.
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Analysis of consumer habits and attitudes on the Hungarian beef and rabbit market
67-70Views:392As a consortium partner the authors took part in a research project aiming at the development of high added value, healthy and environment friendly animal products. From among the products developed by the consortium (rabbit meat, omega3-fatty acid enriched beef, goose liver from non forcible feeding, selenium-, vitamin-E and natural color enriched eggs) the present study describes the results concerning beef and rabbit meat. The given products are chosen because they are produced in and exported from Hungary in considerable quantities and their competitiveness can be further improved. In order to able to map the consumer preferences a 300 count nationwide, representative, questionnaire based survey was designed and performed. Actual products were tested by focus groups and professional interviews. Beside the specific features of the products a common character is that the marketing strategy focuses on the distinctive nutritional benefits and other quality parameters that seem to be of crucial importance for the targeted consumer segment. Their unique character and health protecting effects make their branding and using community labeling easy. Their positioning points toward the prestige products therefore consumers tend to accept higher prices. In marketing communication the image building advertisement can be a common goal.
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Factors affecting acceptance of smart retail solutions in Hungary: an empirical study using UTAUT2 model
Views:559In today's digitalisation process, retail is also undergoing a transformation, with the emergence of new smart solutions. Integrating intelligent solutions into a business model means new strategic challenges for retailing companies. The aim of the research is to examine the factors influencing the behavioural intention and use behaviour of smart retail solutions (SRS). The proposed model was based on the extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2). Data was collected by conducting a questionnaire of 302 Hungarian respondents. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and partial least squares (PLS-SEM) estimation were implemented. The results showed that behavioural intention is significantly and positively influenced by effort expectancy and it is significantly and negatively influenced by facilitating conditions. Most of the respondents are not yet regular users of SRS, and the market penetration of front-end intelligent solutions in retail is considered as rather low.
JEL code: M10, M31, O14
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