Farm consumption behavior in the presence of uncertainty and restrictions on credit

Farm consumption behavior has an important indirect role in determining the ability of farms to invest and grow. In this paper I examine the effect on farm consumption behavior of the presence of quantitative restrictions on farm borrowing. Using a form of the life cycle model which allows for both consumption and production by the household, the effect of borrowing restrictions on consumption behavior is tested econometrically for a sample of Dutch farm households. The results suggest that the life cycle model without borrowing restrictions is rejected by the data.