Assessing pure technical efficiency of dairy farms in Turkey

Compared with results from other studies of dairy farm production in developing countries, this study finds that the samples of 132 dairy farmers in Burdur province, Turkey, are producing at a low level of technical efficiency. Using Data Envelopment Analysis, technical efficiency ranges from 28.6 to 100.0%, with the average being 64.2%. Forage feed and labor inputs are used most inefficiently. A statistically significant, positive relationship between a herd size and efficiency underscore the importance of larger herd size to catch benefit of scale economics. This study also finds no statistically significant relationship between contact with extension and the degree of farm production efficiency. In contrast to expectation, negative and statistically significant relationship was found between forage feed land size and production efficiency.