Expanding the policy dimension of farming systems research

The contribution of economics to farming systems research (FSR) has usually been restricted to the microeconomic analysis of alternative agricultural production technologies. In the traditional approach to FSR, macroeconomic variables and government policies are treated as exogenous. This paper discusses one method for expanding the policy analysis dimension of FSR. The policy analysis matrix method allows for the explicit treatment of macroeconomic and sectoral policies, and it builds logically on the wealth of technical and microeconomic data traditionally utilized in FSR. Examples from Portuguese agriculture are used to illustrate the method.