In a general sense, when only a few enterprises are run by the farmer, in which he has acquired special knowledge, it is known as specialized farming.
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Advantages:
Better utilization of land: More profitable to grow crops on lands most appropriate to it.
Better promoting / marketing: permits grading, processing, storing, transporting and finance the produce.
Resources: Less labor and equipments
Exorbitant and productive machineries can be kept: A wheat harvesting machine can be permanently kept in a highly specialized wheat farm to be more productive
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The proficiency and expertise of the labor increase: Specialization enables a man to be more productive and master at doing a certain things
Records: Farm records can be looked after easily
Production: Intensity of production leads to relatively large amount of output
Better administration: fewer enterprises on the farm are liable to be less neglected and sources of wastage can easily be detected.
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Disadvantages:
These disadvantages of specialization are evident when the farmer realizes that “all his eggs are in one basket”.
There is more Risk: Crop failure and decrease in market price due to less demand.
Soil: Soil fertility cannot be maintained – lack of crop rotation
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Resources: The productive resources i.e. land; labor and capital are not fully utilized.
Income: Irregular income of the farm as they get income only once or twice in a year
Asset: Legitimate utilization of assets is not possible.
Lack of Knowledge: Due to specialization of a single enterprise, the knowledge about other enterprises vainness
Food: Does not help in supplying all the food needs of the family members of the farmer
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