Wednesday, November 7, 2007 - 10:45 AM
248-6
Cropping System Risk Management and Economic Optimization.
Paul Wilkens1, Upendra Singh1, Fred Muhhuku2, Guillaume S. Ezui3, and Gerrit Hoogenboom4. (1) Intl. Fertilizer Development Ctr., IFDC, PO Box 2040, Muscle Shoals, AL 35662, (2) Agricultural Productivity Enhancement Project (APEP), Plot 58 Lumumba Avenue, Kampala, Uganda, (3) IFDC Africa, Lome, Togo, (4) Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, The University of Georgia, 1109 Experiment Street, Griffin, GA 30223
The identification of optimal crop management in both developed and developing countries is often general and non-site specific. In some cases, blanket recommendations were developed half a century ago and do not take into account changes in cropping management, climate, and water and nutrient status. Our approach to developing customized cropping recommendations is centered on the collection and organization of soil, climate, nutrient, and crop databases linked with soil-crop simulation models. Recommendations are developed by linking the biophysical simulation results with an economic evaluation. In addition, the annual production variables (prices and weather) are evaluated to develop economically optimal strategies while minimizing production risks. This paper evaluates the production constraints and opportunities in diverse areas such as Benin, Afghanistan, Uganda, and the southeast United States to examine how to optimize fertilizer use to avoid both under- and over-use of inorganic fertilizers.