The effect of different field sizes on the technical efficiency of rice fields (Case study: Rasht County)

This study aims to analyze the efficiency and technological gap ratio of rice fields in Rasht. Data from 531 farmers were used for the research. This information was obtained in 2018 using the cluster sampling method proportional to the size of the population. The sample farms were divided into small, medium, and large groups using cluster analysis to avoid the bias caused by differences in farmers' characteristics and decision-making behaviors. In this study, the data envelopment analysis (DEA) model was used to estimate the technical efficiency relative to the group boundary, and the metafrontier method was used for estimating the technological gap ratio (TGR). The results showed that the average group technical efficiency for small, medium, and large farms was 85.2%, 88.3%, and 89.1%, respectively. In other words, using a certain amount of production inputs, these units produce, on average, about 85%, 88%, and 89% of the amount of products that could be produced using the current amount of input and the available technology level. In addition, estimating the technical efficiency based on the metafrontier function showed that the technical gap between the best farmer and other farmers was minimum in the large farm group and was maximum in the small farm group. The technological gap ratio for the above three groups is 0.80, 0.82, and 0.90, respectively. Therefore, large farms have better technical performance and a higher technological gap ratio than small and medium farms.