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Cost analysis of pig slaughtering: A Hungarian case study
121-129Views:202The scale of Hungarian slaughterhouses is small in international comparison and the cost of slaughter and cutting a pig of average live weight is relatively high at 16.1-19.4 EUR on average. The aim of this study is to evaluate the cost of pig slaughter and cutting through the case study of a medium-scale plant in Hungary. Based on data from the enterprise, a calculation was performed in relation to the “output” quantity of pig slaughter and cutting, as well as its value and the cost and cost structure of processing. The capacity of the examined plant and its utilisation were analysed and cost reductions were estimated for various increases of output. In 2015, the direct cost of slaughter and cutting was 18.9 EUR per pig for the medium-scale plant which processed 100 thousand pigs. When the purchase cost of pigs is excluded, labour costs accounted for the highest share (30%) of costs, followed by services (29%) and energy costs (21%). For this reason, the level of wages and employer’s contributions has a rather high significance. Analysis showed that significant increases in Hungarian minimum wage and guaranteed living wage in 2017 resulted in an estimated 7% increase in the cost of slaughter and cutting compared to 2015, despite the decrease of contributions. The capacity utilisation of the plant was a low 28% when compared to a single 8-hour shift considered full capacity. The cost of slaughter and cutting was estimated to be reduced to 14.2-17.0 EUR per pig if the plant operated at full capacity. This may be considered a lower bound estimate of cost because there are numerous restricting factors on optimising capacity utilisation, such as: 1) number of live animals available for purchase and related logistics; 2) cooling capacity availability; 3) labour availability; 4) market position of the enterprise and potential for marketing additional pig meat products. Enterprises of this scale are recommended to consider producing more value-added products and, accordingly, investing in product development.
JEL Classification: Q13, Q19
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Economic issues of duck production: A case study from Hungary
61-67Views:140The Hungarian waterfowl sector is characterised by export orientation, as 55-57% of the revenue comes from exports, so its importance is high in the national economy. The production of slaughter animals in the duck sector has doubled in the last decade. The objective of the study is to examine production parameters, as well as the cost and profit situation of broiler duck production and to reveal the correlations between the factors with a case study through the example of a Hungarian company. The production parameters and cost data of the investigated farm (2014-2016, 96 production cycles) were analysed using descriptive statistical methods, correlation and regression analysis. The results show that the average cost of the duck produced in intensive, closed farming system was between 72.6 and 101.7 eurocent kg-1. The most significant cost items were feed (52-63%) and chicken cost (14-19%). The sales price decreased from 112.9 eurocent kg-1 to 98.4 eurocent kg-1 during the examined period, resulting in a profit from -3.3 to 25.7 eurocent kg-1, and overall profitability was decreasing. The study also revealed that there was no correlation between average cost and final bodyweight, while the correlation between average cost and reared period was weak. At the same time, the relationship between average cost and average daily weight gain, mortality, feed conversion ratio was moderate. In addition, the European Production Efficiency Factor (EPEF) can be adapted to the duck sector as strong, positive relationship can be scientifically verified between the indicator and average cost. There is a close correlation between the sold live weight per m2 and the amount of feed used per m2, as well as between the final bodyweight and the amount of feed used to rear a duck, while the correlation between average cost and the sold live weight per m2 is weak.
JEL Code: Q13, Q19
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THE PROFIT EFFICIENCY OF MORINGA OLEIFERA PRODUCTION IN OSUN STATE, NIGERIA
Views:71This study examined the profit efficiency of Moringa oleifera production by farmers in Osun State, Nigeria. Primary data were obtained from 150 respondents. Multistage sampling procedure was used for selecting respondents. The data were analyzed with the aid of descriptive statistics, budgetary analysis and stochastic frontier production function. The findings revealed that male predominate moringa enterprise with about 55.3% male, most producers fall between the age bracket 41-50years with a mean age of 44.92 (± 13.168) years and the average farm size is 0.3 hectares whilst indicating that most producers had less than 0.1 hectares of land. Moringa production had a benefit cost ratio of ₦5.852, profit margin of ₦0.182, expense structure ratio of ₦0.107, net return on investment ₦4.857, rate of return of ₦5.482 and profitability ratio of ₦0.981. The average profit efficiency of moringa producers was 18.73% on the profit frontier. Family labour, hired labour and transport cost were significant and had positive coefficient while the seed cost, pesticide cost, level of education and farm size are also significant but bears negative coefficient. The level of education and farm size are amongst the inefficiency variables considered. This study concludes that Moringa oleifera production is highly profitable but producers have not been able to maximize profit efficiency. It therefore recommends that producers improve on adding value to moringa products and extend their channels of distribution considering the cost incurred on transportation.
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Profit efficiency among catfish marketers in Lagos state, Nigeria: a Stochastic Profit Frontier Analysis (SPFA) approach
Views:191The 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 cost formation mechanism of milk and animal yield in dairy cattle-breeding in conditions of costs grouping by physiological classification
101-103Views:110This articles crutinizes the cost formation mechanism of milk and animal yield in dairy cattle-breeding in costs grouping conditions by physiological classification, it’s analysis allows to reveal "weak points " in production process of the enterprise and to direct point efforts to overcome negative consequences, and also enables to optimize and more exact prognosis of the company’s financial results.
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A comparative analysis of the profitability of pineapple-mango blend and pineapple fruit juice processing in Ghana
33-42Views:245This study analyzes the profitability of fruit juice processing using data from Kudors Fruit Juice Limited at Kasoa in Ghana. The cost involved in fruit juice processing (which includes the capital cost and the operating cost) was obtained from the Company. This study compares the profitability of blend (i.e. fruit juice made up of pineapple and mango blend) with that of pineapple juice alone. The viability of the project was determined using the discounted measures of project worth: Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR), Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR). The empirical results reveal that pineapple juice processing had a BCR of 1.03 which means that going into the pineapple juice processing is profitable. The value of the NPV (GHS11,728.00) and IRR (23%) further confirms that pineapple juice processing is profitable because the NPV is positive and the IRR is greater than the discounted factor (21%). The results also showed that it is more profitable to invest in the blend (pineapple and mango blend) than the pineapple juice alone as it yields a BCR of 1.36 which was greater than the BCR of 1.03 for the pineapple juice only. Furthermore, the value of the NPV (GHS176,831.00) which is greater than the pineapple juice only, suggests that the blend is more profitable even though the IRR for both are the same. Moreover, it is also more likely to recover capital investment earlier in the processing of the blend than when one goes into pineapple juice processing only, because the net cash flow in year 2 (GHS 58,146.00) for the blend is more than triple that of the pineapple juice only (GHS17,826.00).These results have policy implications for the development of Agribusinesses in Ghana.
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Economic modelling and analysis of Hungarian wheat production in the marketing year 2011
63-67Views:136In the framework of the present study I analysed the wheat production sector. In order to evaluate the situation prevailing in the sector I conducted an economic analysis which I based on primary data collection. The year of investigation was the production year of 2011. Long-term implications for different crop sectors can only be based on multi-annual analysis, so in this article I only attempted to analyse the sector with respect to 2011. To evaluate wheat production I compiled its cost structure and assessed it. To evaluate its position in comparison to other crops I also carried out calculations to determine the gross margin (revenue minus variable cost)1 By gross margin I mean the gross margin (C), which is production value (PV) minus direct cost (DC), by definition (C=P-DC). of maize and rape. I observed that the gross margin attainable on one hectare was the lowest in the case of wheat. I applied two types of gross margin, because I consider it important that a given sector should also be profitable without subsidies. In the case of the gross margin including subsidies it is essential to emphasize the role of subsidies, since their ratio varied between 30 and 47% of the total revenue. The importance of subsidies was the most significant in the case of winter wheat.
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Optimised dairy cow feeding economy in Hungary
69-72Views:131High yielder cows optimal feeding is always a major question in farm management. We attempted to find the optimal yield- and weight group in a Holstein_Freisian herd. Handled more than 2000 milk record samples and concluded that the optimal body weight is about 600-650 kg. Also step up from medium yielder to high yielder is more cost efficient than pushing the milk production over 30 kg milk daily. Our results show that fitness traits and body scores are major factors and every 50 kg of extra weight rises the forage cost in average of 0,11 €cents. The mid-weight cows produce 25 kg of milk daily but the herds are very heterogeneous. The solution should be smaller cows, homogeneous herds and optimized feeding.
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The effect of working capital on profitability of poultry egg enterprise in Osun State, Nigeria
Views:104This study investigated the effect of working capital on the profitability of poultry egg enterprise. Primary data were collected from 180 poultry egg farmers using two-stage sampling technique. Data were collected on the socio-economic characteristics such as age, gender, educational qualification, farming experience and flock size owned, quantities of inputs and outputs. Descriptive statistics, farm budgetary technique and ordinary least square model were used to analyze the data collected. The results from descriptive statistics show mean values of 42 years, 9 years and 5 persons for age, years of experience and household size, respectively. Majority of poultry egg farmers (52.2%) used their personal savings to fund their businesses while, some had access to loan from co-operative societies (37.2%), from SEAP microfinance (6.7%) and from banks (3.9%). Poultry egg producers invested their working capital on feeds (64.8%), rearing of poultry birds from day old chicks to point of lay (14.8%), account receivables (13.6%), drugs & vaccines (2.4%) and variable overheads (4.4%). A total cost of ₦5,494,927.04k was incurred by the poultry egg producers. Cost of feed accounted for 71.89% of the total cost of production. A total revenue of ₦9,388,555.60k and the net returns of ₦3,893,628.56k were realized. The net farm income per bird from the enterprise was ₦1,698.05k while the gross margin per bird was ₦1,795.32. The ordinary least squares regression estimates revealed that inventory, account receivable, operating cycle and flock size have significant effect on the profitability of poultry egg enterprises. The study concluded that poultry egg enterprise is profitable and working capital has a significant effect on the profitability of poultry egg enterprise. In light of the findings, the study recommended the expansion of the poultry flock size as well as reduction in the number of days of inventories, account receivables and operating cycle in order to increase the profitability of poultry egg enterprise.
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Some aspects of accounting and management accounting during economic downturns
33-35Views:149Economic slowdown and downturn creates new situation for every organisation, no one can avoid facing to new situation created by the global financial-, and economic crisis.All of the organisational function should reconsider its own role within the company due to the new circumstances, Accounting and Mangement Accounting can not be exception, but they have more complex and emphasized role in these difficult times. In the following paper I can not avoid to mention some general statement about importance of accounting and accounting principles, while there are a number of criticalaccounting and financial reporting issues that accountants and auditors should consider.In the framework of the paper I can not face with all relevant issues of the topic, but after some general statement I would like to highlight some special area regarding to management accounting, which can be more important during these challenging time for decision makers and accountants.Regarding to balance sheet analysis its important to mention current debate about fair value comparing with historical cost from accounting point of view, on the other hand from the view of management reporting system I would like to highlight the importance of working-capital indicators. More practical topic is the crucial role of budgeting and forecasting during economic downturns, and at the end I would like to show why it is more important monitoring price variance and indirect cost allocation in these uncertain business circumstances.
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A structural equation model: Greece’s tourism demand for tourist destination
75-83Views:258Structural equation model (LISREL 8) was applied to test the causal relationships between tourist travel motivations and tourist destination.A survey containing Likert scale questions was conducted to collect data from 100 tourists who had travelled to Greece’s tourist destination. With the help of factor analysis, four dimensions were identified for scales used in the study: travel cost satisfaction, tourism product, tourism product attributes, and tourism product management. Results indicated that the travel cost satisfaction of tourists has a positive influence on tourism product, tourism product attributes and tourism product management. Moreover, our results suggested that the tourist demographics has a positive influence on tourism product and tourism product attributes and has an insignificant relationship with tourism product management. Based on our findings the tourist demographics has not influence on tourism product management. However, these findings suggest that both the private tourism and the governmental tourism sector should develop a better management of tourist destinations so as to develop a stronger attraction of tourism, better amenities, a better accessibility, an appropriate image, to make tourism competitive and to keep tourism product prices at a reasonable level. The implications of the tourism demand model can be used for the public environmental policy-making process based mainly on reasons of interest, ideology or understanding.
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The responsibility of marketing and legislation in childhood obesity
85-90Views:122The purchasing power of youth is considerable; they are the market of the future. , the young generation is the most influenced and vulnerable segment of the economy. The greatest problem of the influencing of our children is the rising cost of childhood obesity. The health care system cannot keep up with the pressure of obesity. Today, the risk of obesity is a bigger problem than smoking or alcoholism. The greatest problem is that youth underestimates the cost and risk of consumption of foods with high levels of fats, sugar and/or salt.
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Profitability of cassava production in the Ashanti region of Ghana
66-69Views:665Cassava is a crop that is massively produced and consumed in Ghana even though it is produced by subsistence farmers. The aim of this study is to analyse the cost and returns of cassava farmers. Farmers profitability was accessed using the gross margin, net present value and the benefit cost ratio. SWOT analysis was conducted to access challenges faced by cassava farmers. Data was collected by personal interview from fifty (50) cassava growing farmers in the Sekyere East District of the Ashanti Region, Ghana. The Costs and returns analysis show gross margin of USD 22.75 per acre. It was concluded that cassava is cultivated for both consumption and revenue. Even though there is low investment of capital in cassava production, it helps farmers to make use of available resources (personal savings, land and labour) which would have been idle. Further should compare profitability of crops that compete for use of famers land.
JEL. CODE: Q13, Q19
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PERCEPTIONS, PROFITABILITY AND DETERMINANTS OF GRANULATED CASSAVA PACKAGING IN KUMASI METROPOLIS, GHANA
Views:151Packaging does not only protect a product but also provides directions for using the product, as well as relevant information about its content and nutritional value. This study was undertaken to assess Granulated Cassava (Gari) sellers’ perception, profitability and determinants of packaging in Ashanti Region. The study area was purposively selected because of the active participation and contribution of marketing activities. A structured questionnaire was administered in the form of interview to obtain primary data from the respondents. Data was generated using binary and multinomial logit regression model and Garret ranking technique. The results showed that there is 0.11% difference in the gross margin of both ventures which is also statistically significant at 1%. Years of education, legal requirement, and durability of the packaging material and cost of packaging material were the significant factors that influence sellers’ choice of packaging. Lack of technical know-how, cost of capital equipment and lack of knowledge on packaging equipment and/or material were the most limiting constraints affecting Gari packaging. The study recommends that investors should invest in the Gari packaging business since it has a relatively higher rate of returns as compared to the unpackaged one.
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The direct and indirect costs associated with food hypersensitivity in households: A study in the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain
107-117Views:182Background: Recent studies show that food hypersensitivity, such as food allergy or food intolerance, has the potential to affect direct, indirect and intangible economic costs experienced by individuals and their families. This research assesses the direct and indirect economic costs of food hypersensitivity at the household level in the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain.
Methods: A self-administered postal survey was conducted (n=1558). Respondents with food hypersensitivity were clinically diagnosed cases recruited through clinical centres in Poland and Spain. In the Netherlands, food hypersensitivity cases were recruited through hospitals, patient organisations and advertisements. The controls formed the baseline sample and were obtained from households in which none of the members had food hypersensitivity. The monetary value of indirect costs, forgone time, was calculated using the opportunity cost method. The indirect and direct costs were expressed in purchasing power parity. Analysis of co-variance on the cost items was used to test the within-country differences between respondents with food hypersensitivity and respondents without food hypersensitivity, as well as across the three countries.
Results: The average total direct and indirect costs across all countries for families with food hypersensitive family members are not higher than for households without food hypersensitive members. However, the intangible costs for food hypersensitive individuals appear to be higher than for individuals in the control group.
Conclusions: These results do not support the hypothesis that all food allergies incur high costs to the individual. However, being hypersensitive to foods may have a negative impact on quality of life compared to people who are not food hypersensitive. -
Complex problem analysis of the Hungarian dairy farms
93-100Views:203Hungarian dairy farms went through significant changes in past two decades. The most significant changes were caused by our accession to the European Union in 2004. In Hungary milk production remarkably declined after EU accession due to the decreasing level of support and decreasing milk prices. Size of our dairy herd has been practically reducing since the political transformation (1989); meanwhile the relative yields per cow have been continuously increasing. Relatively low prices, high production costs and tightening quality requirements ousted several producers – mainly small farms - from the market in past years. Feeding cost represents the highest rate in cost structure of production, but animal health expenditures and various losses are also significant. Applied technology of the Hungarian dairies lags behind theWestern-European competitors’; in addition they have handicaps in efficiency and product innovation. Moreover Hungarian milk and milk product consumption is about half of the Union average. In 2007 at the University of Debrecen the opportunities and the problems of this sector were discussed in the framework of a research and development project entitled “Project-generating based on sector-specific innovation”.At this workshop farmers, experts and advisers shared their ideas which were all gathered. The main objective of our paper is to provide useful information for the decision makers and the most important members of the sector. Using the practically successful ideas plus the ideas based on previous experience a new strategic concept was created. To reach the objective of this paper we collected, synthesized and analysed the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the dairy farms and performed a SWOT analysis. On the basis of this SWOT analysis we set up a well organised problem hierarchy which would help to identify the main weaknesses of the sector. This analysis gives a great framework for the researches and it also gives a useful tool for the decision makers to improve the competitiveness of the Hungarian dairy sector.
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Changes in costs of precision nutrition depending on crop rotation
59-63Views:121By applying precision nutrition the yield heterogeneity owing to the different features of soil spots can be taken into consideration. The planned and sprayed fertilizer adjusted to the expected yield rendered to soil spots can reduce the negative effects of artificial chemicals on soil and environment. The aim of this paper is to examine how the quantity and the cost of fertilizer (material and operational) will change on spot level on a certain plot during a five-year period, considering crop rotation, too. The following crops are in the rotation: winter wheat, corn and sunflower. Precision nutrition can be used in all the cultures mentioned above. Our earlier (static) model calculations have revealed that the threshold price of precision production was lower by 31% than in conventional technology. So it is necessary to explore for a longer period how the profitability of precision nutrition reacts to the changes in input and yield prices in different crops. The risk receptivity of precision nutrition can be characterized with the help of price sensitive analyses. Effects on profitability of other technological elements are not analysed in this paper.
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The determination of economic and public health benefits achievable by increasing regular physical exercise
5-13Views:236There are various methods at our disposal to determine the direct expenses of the factors, which influence the state of health – such as inactive lifestyle –, but research studies aimed at comprehensively determining all direct and indirect expenses have not been conducted in Hungary, yet. We desired to remedy this deficiency with our research, which was prepared at the commissioned order and with the support of the Hungarian Society of Sport Science and the Department for Sport of the Ministry of Human Resources of the Hungarian Government. Using the factual data of OEP (National Health Insurance Fund) we determined the annual cost of illnesses, along with the extent of the cost of physical inactivity, (HUF billion), and we prepared an estimate of the possible amount of savings in Hungary (sick-pay, medication costs etc.), the methodology of which we adapted from international research projects, thus the resulting data in the case of Hungary will later be comparable to international data. International examples reveal the savings achievable by increasing physical exercise in a broad range, even though having conducted the research in different ways and time periods. All research projects concur about one thing, namely that the reduction of physical inactivity can result in significant savings. Our results have verified this statement statistically as well.
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Consumer potential analysis of feasibility criteria of geothermal projects
125-130Views:101The University of Debrecen, Faculty of Engineering, has been conducting a research program in geothermal energy since 2008. This program enabled me to devise an analytical study of the monetary and non-monetary criteria of geothermal projects. The monetary criteria of a region or a location for geothermal energy production cover the investment costs of the surface installations and the cost of the drillings. Non-monetary criteria include the geological and geothermal evaluations of a reservoir and the evaluation of consumer potential. This paper represents a small part of the larger study and focuses on consumer potential.
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Motivation solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises in the Southern Transdanubian Region
39-46Views:225The singularity of human resources and the complex interests in the world of work are a constant challenge for business executives and HR colleagues. While the difference between the performance of a motivated and an unmotivated employee can be up to twice as much at almost the same cost level, the motivation strategy is typically either absent from the business life, or operates on a reactive concept based on an unconscious design. Although the mere presence of motivation and its various levels are less quantifiable in exact terms with direct tools, a performance which is much weaker than possible is measurable in the short and long term, and its negative economic results are clear. The aim of the research is to examine the motivational practices of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in the Southern Transdanubian Region. Involving 300 businesses we evaluated the applied wage system, the role of money among the motivational tools, the extent and causes of fluctuation, the system of employee training, the way of performance evaluation, the reasons for underperformance, the importance of motivation, the company motivation strategy and the efforts to retain the key people. The employee motivation can be increase in several forms, but the priority of needs and claims is constantly changing. Updating this motivational matrix is a real leadership challenge, but this effort can pay off multiple times. According to the results it can be stated that the motivation strategy – as a key economic issue – is not given sufficient attention in business practices.
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Strategy for soil protection in cross-border region of Hungary and Romania
135-137Views:105Within the Hungary-Romania Cross-Border Co-operation Programme for 2007-2013 the University of Debrecen and the University of Oradea is to elaborate a soil strategy for the Nyírség and Bihor Mts region. Project partners expect the strategy will support and strenghten national, regional and local soil policies and contribute to the competitiveness of the region by protecting and developing various soil functions. Project partners also expect to prevent cross-border problems with soil and reduce the competition caused by cost differences.The elaboration of the strategy includes the problems of erosion, deflation, compaction, water-deficiency, inland water-threat, problems induced by the usage of fertilizers, loss and substitution of soil organic matter, amelioration (bentonite, sewage sludge, fermented biogas). Based on summarised data of former examinations and new experiments a concise database will make it possible to calculate and apply the Sustainability Index Model, which may be useful in order to address EU supports properly based on objective calculations, and may be useful to determine the optimal culture. The project also encourages the farmers to keep in mind the cross-compliance, since EU gives financial support to realise sustainable soil strategy based on EU directives. This may enhance the options to initiate the take off of rural areas with shrinking export facilities, to mitigate social tensions and the effect of migration processes.
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The economic situation of Hungarian crop production enterprises, especially in Hajdú-Bihar county
Views:172Increasing the competitiveness of Hungarian crop production plays a key role in moving forward at the international level. However, improving efficiency and profitability is essential in this regard. The natural resources in Hungary provide an excellent opportunity for crop production. About 8% of the arable land in Hungary (a total of 4.3 million hectares) belongs to farmers in Hajdú-Bihar County. This research is based on secondary data that can be found in the HCSO and EMIS databases. HCSO data was used for the comparison of national and county data characterising crop production, while the EMIS database was used to process the financial data of enterprises dealing with field crop production. The Hungarian sample size is 853, of which 69 enterprises are from Hajdú-Bihar County. The aim of this study is to assess the profitability, assets and financial situation of arable crop production enterprises operating in Hajdú-Bihar County as a function of national average data. Based on the examined profitability indicators (operating ROS and ROA), it was established that the enterprises in Hajdú-Bihar County are profitable, even in a national context. In terms of operating ROS, the farms in the examined county were able to achieve a 3.6 percentage point higher value due to their more efficient cost management, despite having a similar level of technology compared to businesses spanning across the entire country. The proportion of farms with the lowest leverage ratio (<20%) is 16 percentage points higher at the county level than at the national level. In addition, almost 70% of the enterprises operating in Hajdú-Bihar County have excellent liquidity. This rate is 50% at the national level.
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Using sustainable development tools for solving property rights in Montenegro
127-131Views:107In 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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Consumption habits of “Free range chicken” in Hungary
69-73Views:178Poultry 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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Methodological and integration aspects of ABC-method application in trade organizations
49-52Views:123In 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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