Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Completed Competitive Grant

Determining the methods for measuring the economic and fiscal impacts associated with organic crop conversion in Iowa

Project ID: M2006-12

Abstract

This study examines the economic benefits and risks that increased organic crop production can bring to a community or region.

Key Question: How does growing organic crops affect the bottom line for farmers and the public?

Findings: This research reiterates existing ISU research that the potential returns to organic farmers utilizing a corn, bean, oats, and alfalfa rotation exceed those of conventional corn and bean rotations as practiced so widely in Iowa. As a consequence, this study demonstrated that there are higher regional economic impacts mostly due to greater levels of household-level spending by farm families and their workers. This research also concluded that local tax abatements are not an efficient public policy alternative for inducing organic conversion as the fiscal costs are likely to exceed the net gains to public accounts over a reasonable period of time.

Lead investigator: David Swenson, ISU Economics, et al

Year of grant completion: 2008

This competitive grant project was part of the Leopold Center's Marketing Initiative.

Topics: Business management, distribution and marketing