Evaluation of environmental efficiency of edible canna production in Vietnam

Abstract

Increasing yield while minimizing environmental pollution in agricultural production is nowadays the primary concern in agriculture-based countries, including Vietnam. This study aims to assess the environmental efficiency and technical efficiency, as well as to determine the factors influencing efficiency of edible canna farms in Backan province, by using the stochastic frontier analysis and truncated regression, respectively. Data were collected from a face-to-face interview of 346 farmers in 2017/2018 production year. The findings revealed that the average environmental efficiency score was low, of 0.57 and 0.58 for Nari and Babe districts, respectively; while the technical efficiency was found to be higher than the environmental efficiency with 0.74 for Nari district and 0.72 for Babe district. In addition, the results of the inefficient effects and truncated regression model indicated that education, extension contact, and experience individually had a significant and positive effect on efficiency scores. Hence, the government should designate policies focused on the extension system to provide training and facilitate technology transfer for farmers.