Agricultural economics or
agronomics is an applied field of
economics concerned with the application of economic theory in optimizing the production and distribution of food and fibre — a discipline known as agronomics. Agronomics was a branch of economics that specifically dealt with
land usage. It focused on maximizing the
crop yield while maintaining a good
soil ecosystem. Throughout the 20th century the discipline expanded and the current scope of the discipline is much broader.
Agricultural economics today includes a variety of applied areas, having considerable overlap with conventional economics. Agricultural economists have made substantial contributions to research in economics,
econometrics,
development economics, and
environmental economics. Agricultural economics influences
food policy,
agricultural policy, and
environmental policy.