Economic value of factors defining profitability of table egg production

Abstract

The research objectives of the paper are to identify the economic value of key factors determining the profitability of table egg production in Hungary. The survey covers the following factors: the selling price of egg, the purchase price of feed, the price of pullet, the egg production per hen-day, daily feed consumption, the mortality rate in henhouse, the rate of „B” class eggs, and the average egg weight. A deterministic model was used to determine the economic performance of the economic activity based on physical data, where results can be deduced from input data in deterministic way. The input parameters of the model can be divided into two groups: technological and economic ones. Technological parameters include the physical efficiency indicators of production, whereas economic parameters consist of input and output production prices and specific expense items, in this instance average prices and values in 2012. The findings suggest that the economic value of the selling price of egg is 1.01, that of the purchase price of feed is -0.15, the price of pullet is -0.04, the egg production per hen-day is 0.07, daily feed consumption is -0.10, mortality rate is -0.06, the rate of „B” class eggs is -0.14, and the egg weight is 0.04 HUF/egg. These values indicate in what direction and how income changes if a certain factor (ceteris paribus) is increased by one unit related to the basis of boundary conditions. The paper also studies how various production levels, input and output prices influence the economic values of certain factors. The economic value of factors can be influenced by the economic and production conditions, which can be characterized by both linear and nonlinear relationships.