Economic Analysis and Investigation of Factors Affecting the Inefficiency of Saffron Farms in Gonabad

The present study was conducted to evaluate the efficiency of saffron farms in Gonabad county and provide solutions for improving the using method of production factors. In order to achieve the research objectives, a sample of 110 saffron farms was studied in 2017.Considering variable return to scale, the average of technical, allocative and economic efficiency were 0.922, 0.593 and 0.556 respectively, indicating that the saffron farms, despite having high technical efficiency, do not have a decent allocative efficiency and they have not succeeded in achieving the cost minimizing input quantities. Subsequently, by assessing the cost minimizing input quantities, it was found that if saffron growers managed resources properly, they would be able to achieve the current amount of yields despite a considerable reduction in the amounts of four inputs of bulks, manure, chemical fertilizer and water, and only a slight increase in the input of labor. In this way, the operating cost per kilogram of saffron flower would reduce by about 44% on average. Considering there is evidence that the saffron growers of the study area have a tendency to use high-input cultivation systems, it is suggested that appropriate policies be developed to improve the knowledge of farmers and change their attitudes towards cultivation of saffron, so that they will be aware of the adverse effects of these systems.