Income Distribution Commons^™

Prospects Of Agricultural Entrepreneurship Among Resource Limited Farmers In The Central Appalachian Tobacco Belt, M’Kiaira Kimathi Miriti, Eric Scorsone

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

Agricultural entrepreneurship is receiving heightened attention as a potential means for economic revitalization of communities adversely affected by changes in the agricultural sector. In particular, resource limited farmers in the Appalachian region of the United States have been hit by major changes in the tobacco industry. Very little is known about resource limited farmers respond to changing industry conditions and policy attempts to remedy structural change. Recently, the Commonwealth of Kentucky has attempted to assist farmers in adopting new farmbased enterprises to expand their income base. However, it is unclear about the factors that drive entrepreneurial or diversification activities among …