Production refers to all economic
activities that result to production of goods and services. It is also a
process of making and manufacturing goods. In order to create goods and
services during production certain factors or resources must be put together.
The resources are called factors of production and it includes:
LAND
This can be defined as natural
resources such as minerals, water, air space e.t.c. All farming activities are
carried out on the land e.g. growing of crops, rearing of animals, fishery
forestry, wildlife conservation. Mineral resources such as gold, diamond,
petroleum etc can be obtained from land and land can be used as collateral security
to obtain loan from the bank.
CHARACTERISTICS
OF LAND
1.
It
is a free gift of nature
2.
It
cannot be transferred
3.
It’s
supply is limited
4.
It’s
value is determined by its location
The reward of land
is RENT. It can appreciate and depreciate
FACTORS
THAT MAKES LAND APPRECIATE
1.
Fallowing
2.
Addition
of fertilizer or manure
3.
Weeding
4.
Irrigation
5.
Increase
in population density
FACTORS THAT MAKES LAND DEPRECIATE
1.
Erosion
2.
Infestation
by pests and diseases
3.
Overgrazing
4.
Continuous
cultivation
5.
Dumping
of Toxic materials
6.
Water
logging
LABOUR
This is mental and physical effort that is
put into production. It could be skilled or semi-skilled and unskilled. The
size and the quantity influence output (production) because it converts natural
resources into usable product. It is made available to the farm in different
ways, these are:
1.
Personal labour: Carried
out by owner of the farm
2.
Family labour: Carried out by the
members of farmer’s family
3.
Communal labour: Carried out by the
neighbors
4.
Hired labour: Carried out by
people who are paid on daily, weekly basis
The reward for
labour is wages and salaries
CAPITAL
Capital includes all
man-made production asset used in production. It may also be defined as assets
that are needed not for the satisfaction, they are provided directly but for
the production of other goods and services. It includes farm tools e.g. cutlass
hoe e.t.c Farm machinery e.g. tractor, plough, harrow, ridger Stored produce e.g. yam, rice, maize Buildings, e.g. farm house, production
shield Crops in the field e.g. maize,
yam, okro Equipments e.g. tractors, bulldozer
Livestock e.g. cattle, sheep, goat and Cash known as liquid capital
Capital
may be fixed or Variable
1.
Fixed Capital: This refers to
durable goods that are replaced after a long time. In other words they are
assets required for continuous use in production. They are items or materials
which are not used up in production e.g. machine, buildings, equipments, tools,
incubator etc
2.
Variable/Working
Capital:
This capital or asset used in the day to day running of a business enterprise.
They are used up during production and they include.
a.
Farm
input such as fertilizer, herbicides, planting materials e.tc. capital needed
for repayment of workers’ wages and salaries
b.
The
capital needed for the maintenance of farm buildings and structures
c.
The money needed for the purchase of livestock
feeds and drugs. The reward of capital in INTEREST.
MANAGEMENT/ENTREPRENEUR
Management
refers to person or group of people who coordinates, organize and control the
use of other factors of production for a successful output. The management
determines:
1.
What
to produce?
2.
When
to produce?
3.
How
to produce?
4.
To
recruit worker etc
The profitability of
a farm is a function of the management team.
FUNCTIONS
OF THE MANAGER ORGANIZATION
The functions
of a Farm Manager includes:
i.
Organization
ii.
Administration
iii.
Production
iv.
Marketing
v.
Evaluation.
This involves
setting out target for production in an orderly manner that befits all
production processes. Organization also include
a. determination of what to produce
a.
Determine
the scale of production (large or small scale)
b.
Arrangement
of input
c.
Procuring
capital for production
e. Recruiting workers
ADMINISTRATION
Administrative
functions of farm manager include:
a.
Supervision
of work on the farm
b.
Directing
staff on day to day activities
c.
Payment
of staff salaries
d.
Ensuring
welfare of staff
e.
Rewarding
or discipline of staff based on their performance
PRODUCTION
This is the actual
target of any farm enterprise. The activities that are connected with production
on the farm include:
a.
Purchase
and use of farm inputs
b.
Ensuring
proper care for crops and animals
c.
Avoidance
of wastage
d.
Combining
resources in adequate quantity for optimum production
MARKETING
This is the disposal of finished goods; the
farm manager is expected to:
a.
Determine
the quantity of produce to sell at a particular time.
b.
Determine
the selling price
c.
Determine
the best marketing channel for maximum profit
d.
To
process and store
EVALUATION
This is the
assessment of performance for future plans and improvement
a.
Appropriate
records must be kept
b.
Analyse
the account and books kept on all operation carried out on the farm
c.
Assessment
of staff or workers performance
d.
Development
of new strategies
PROBLEMS
OF FARM MANAGER
1.
Inadequate
information
2.
Inadequate
farm input
3.
Shortage
of fund/funding problem
4.
Inadequate
personnel
5.
Bad/unstable
government policy
