FARM SIZE AND HIRED FARM-WORKERS - HOW IM PORTANT ARE TRANSACTION COSTS IN AGRICULTURE

In this article, the old ''Agricultural Question'' concerning the opti mal farm size with respect to hired farm labour employment and the gro wth of farms is analysed. As is well known, most agricultural economis ts are convinced that the present state of agricultural technologies r equires large farms employing many hired workers, thus hired labour fa rms are seen as being economically superior to family farms. Howover, few economists insist. on the fact that the employment of many hired f arm workers is burdened by high and increasing transaction costs. The analysts of recent changes of the size structure of farms in West Germ any reveals that the process of concentration towards larger farms has continued, if that size is measured in terms of hectares of land per farm. However, if the farm size is measured in terms of farm labour pe r farm, it is revealed thar the concentration of farms has been toward s farms employing less than 1,0 hired farm worker and less than 2,0 fa mily and hired farm workers in total. In this article, che factors aff ecting the structural adjustment in favour farm family instead of hire d labour farms are discussed as well as the arguments, questioning the superior competitiveness of family farms.