The main purpose of Agricultural Typology is to contribute to sustainable agricultural growth and food security in vulnerable regions by supporting the scaling of proven innovations in the agri-food sector. Since the objective of the typology is to systematize the way in which analytical information is presented, it is necessary to specify the criteria used to group the estimates for agricultural potential, agricultural efficiency, and poverty into classes or types. While there are several ways of choosing such criteria, depending on specific user needs, the common idea behind this typology approach is based on the Priority, Agricultural potential, Agricultural efficiency components.
The Agricultural Potential component provides an estimation of the maximum agricultural income that smallholders in a region can attain if performing at maximum capacity (their own, as well as of the markets, productive infrastructure, and basic services surrounding them). Agricultural income potential is determined by both the biophysical factors that impact agricultural production and the economic factors that influence crop prices. Under perfect conditions, it is the interaction of these two sets of elements that establishes the maximum income a farmer can earn from agricultural activities. To increase their agricultural income potential, farmers require long-term R&D investments that completely shift the productive paradigm through technological change.
