The Impact Of Agricultural Socialized Services On Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity

Since the 21 st century,China’s agricultural economy has grown rapidly,and the average annual growth rates of total grain output and total agricultural output value from 2000 to 2020 were 7.24% and 5.65% respectively.Agricultural development has achieved a historic leap from a shortage of supply to a balance between supply and demand to a surplus in good years,laying a solid foundation for ensuring the prosperity and development of country’s economy and society.However,while the traditional extensive production model of "high input,high consumption,and high output" promotes the rapid growth of the agricultural economy,it also brings about increasingly severe agricultural non-point source pollution,deteriorating ecological environment,and low efficiency of agricultural input factors.These problems have caused the hidden danger of "unsustainable" in country’s agricultural development.At the same time,the people’s growing demand for high-quality agricultural products also objectively puts forward green and efficient requirements for agricultural development.In this context,the central government attaches great importance to and promotes green and efficient agricultural production.The report of the Twentieth National Congress,the No.1 Central Document in 2022,and the Fifth Plenary Session of the Nineteenth Central Committee all emphasized the need to realize the transformation of agricultural production from quantitative growth to quality and quantity,to promote the green and efficient development of agriculture,and to further build a socialist agricultural power.Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity takes into account both agricultural input-output efficiency and agricultural environmental pollution.Scientific calculation of Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity and in-depth exploration of the feasible path of Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity improvement are of great significance to promote the improvement of agricultural quality and efficiency,to realize the high-quality modernization of agriculture,and to accelerate the construction of a strong modern agricultural country.The moderate-scale operation of agriculture is the mainstream way to promote the green and efficient development of China’s agriculture at this stage.Since the 21 st century,China has been committed to realizing the moderate-scale operation of agriculture through land transfer.However,at the current stage,under the background of "big country and small farmers",most farmers are not inclined to transfer land,which determines China’s "small-scale,decentralized" agricultural production pattern.Agricultural socialization services can connect agricultural management entities through service outsourcing without changing farmland management rights,Which is an important organizational form to promote moderate-scale agricultural operations,to realize the transformation of agricultural production methods,and to promote the green and efficient development of agriculture.Since 2017,the No.1 Central Documents over the years have emphasized the establishment and improvement of an agricultural socialized service system to realize the effective connection between small farmers and modern agriculture.Therefore,the study of the impact and mechanism of agricultural socialization services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity is in line with the current agricultural green policy orientation and the goal orientation of building a strong agricultural country.At present,the relevant research is mostly based on the macro level,ignoring the characteristics of space effect,household differentiation and agricultural separability.On the one hand,it does not fully consider the heterogeneous impact and spatial effect of agricultural socialization services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity in different regions,and on the other hand,it does not take into account the heterogeneous impact of different service links and different operating scales.In view of this,this thesis raises the following questions,what is the relationship between agricultural social services and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity at the macro level? What is the pathway through which agricultural social services affect Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity? Are there significant regional differences and spatial spillover effects in the impact of agricultural social services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity? At the micro level,what is the relationship between farmers’ participation in agricultural social services and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity?What is the relationship between the degree of participation in agricultural social services and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity? Is there any significant difference in the impact on farmers with different scales? What is the heterogeneous impact and effect improvement of outsourcing of different service links on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity?Therefore,based on the dual perspectives of macro and micro,this thesis intends to deeply explore the impact and mechanism of agricultural social services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity,so as to enhance the rationality at the macro level and the operability at the micro level.The main research contents and relevant conclusions are as follows.The first research content is the calculation and analysis of Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity.The research found that:(1)Although the national and provincial Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity levels were at a relatively low level from 2010 to 2020,the overall level of Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity has been greatly improved,and presenting the distribution pattern of "eastern region > western region > central region" and "main grain sales area > grain production and sales balance area > main grain production area";(2)At the micro-level of farmers,the vast majority of farmers have low Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity,with an average of only 0.153,and there is a lot of room for improvement;(3)Both the macroscopic and microscopic levels of agricultural social services and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity are positively correlated.The second research content is the impact of agricultural social services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity at the macro level.Based on the 2010-2020 panel data of 30 provinces in China(excluding the missing data in Tibet),a double fixed effect model and a spatial econometric model were constructed to analyze the impact of agricultural social services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity and the spatial spillover effect.The research found that:(1)The agricultural socialization service at the macro level has a significant promotion effect on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity.For every 1 unit increase in the level of agricultural socialization services,Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity will increase by an average of 0.717 units;(2)In terms of sub-regions,the impact of agricultural social services in the eastern regions and central regions,major grain production areas and major grain sales areas are significantly positive,while the impact of agricultural social services in the western region and "grain production and sales balance areas" are not significant;(3)Agricultural social services have significant spatial spillover effects on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity,and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity also has positive spatial externalities,which will drive the green and efficient development of agriculture in surrounding areas.The third research content is the impact of agricultural socialization services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity at the micro level.Based on the field survey data of 1031 rice growers in Jiangxi Province,a regional fixed effect model was constructed to analyze the impact of agricultural social services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity.The further consideration was given to the heterogeneous effects of different service links,different seasons of rice,different scales of farmers,and different Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity endowments.The research found that:(1)The agricultural socialization service of rice growers has a significant improvement effect on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity.For every increase in the number of service links,Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity will increase by an average of 0.022 units.For every 1 percentage point increase in the proportion of service amount,Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity will increase by an average of 0.125%;(2)Except for machine harvesting services,service participation in all links can significantly improve Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity.The improvement effects of machine tillage services,seeding services,fertilization services,pesticide application services,irrigation services,and machine harvesting services were 0.020,0.041,0.090,0.065,0.049,and 0.006,respectively.The improvement degree of technology intensive services was greater than that of labor intensive services;(3)The adoption of agricultural socialized services for early rice,middle rice,and late rice can significantly improve Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity,and exhibit a characteristic of "early rice>middle rice>late rice";(4)The impact of agricultural socialized services for small farmers(<6 mu)on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity is positive but not significant,while agricultural socialized services for large farmers(≥6 mu)have a significant improvement effect on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity;(5)With the improvement of Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity,the improvement effect of agricultural socialized services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity presents an inverted U-shaped relationship of "rising first and then falling".The fourth research content is the analysis of the role of agricultural socialized services on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity.Based on macro provincial panel data and micro farmer survey data,this thesis demonstrates the mediating effect of agricultural land scale management and agricultural green technology adoption from both theoretical and empirical levels.The research finds that:(1)At the macro and micro levels,agricultural socialized services can promote Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity by optimizing the level of agricultural land scale management,and the intermediary effect at the macro provincial level is10.60%,while the intermediary effect under the proportion of service participation and service amount at the micro farmer level is 26.37% and 16.99%,respectively;(2)Both the macro and micro levels of agricultural socialized services will promote Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity by improving the level of agricultural green technology adoption,and the intermediary effect at the macro provincial level is 24.72%.The intermediary effect under the proportion of service participation and service amount at the micro farmer level is 24.96% and23.35%,respectively.Based on the above research conclusions,this article proposes a series of policy recommendations:(1)Improving the socialized agricultural service system;(2)Differentiation promotes high-quality agricultural development in different regions;Fully meet the differentiated needs of agricultural business entities;(4)Promoting the effective connection between agricultural socialized services and agricultural scale management;(5)Strengthening the innovation,research and development,promotion and application of agricultural green production technologies.