Impact of green control techniques on family farms' welfare

Using survey data of 375 family farms in five provinces of the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain, this paper conducts a comprehensive measurement of family farms' welfare within the framework of the capability approach theory. Furthermore, using an endogenous switching regression model and a multinomial treatment effects model, this paper evaluates the impact of the adoption or non-adoption of green control techniques on family farms' welfare and estimate the welfare effects of the degree and timing of adoption. This research finds that the average treatment effect on family farm welfare with and without adopting green control techniques is significant, at 0.084 and 0.046, respectively. Therefore, green control techniques help to improve the welfare level of family farms. Compared with family farms that do not adopt green control techniques, the welfare level of family farms adopting a high or low degree of green control techniques increases by 22.63% and 16.42%, respectively, and the welfare level of family farms given the early or late adoption of green control techniques increases by 5.87% and 7.57%, respectively. Therefore, the welfare effect of a high degree of adoption on family farms is greater, and the welfare level of family farms with late adoption is higher.