Norwegian Agricultural Economics Research Institute

Our name in Norwegian is: Norsk institutt for landbruksøkonomisk forskning, abbreviated NILF

NILF is an independent research institute under the Ministry of Agriculture.

NILF provides background material for general agricultural economics descisions, economic development and decisions on farms and rural development.

NILF's staff has high professional competence in matters pertaining to agricultural economics. The staff is interdisciplinary, but the majority of the researchers and administrators have their background in agricultural economics.

NILF has broad cooperation with other institutions at home and abroad.

NILF's headquarters are in Oslo and is has regional offices in the Norwegian towns of Bergen, Trondheim and Bodø.

Tasks

NILF collects, processes and interprets large amounts of data on Norwegian agriculture, both at the individual farm and comprehensive levels. Through a number of permanent tasks that the institute is obliged to perform, and through research projects that the institute undertakes, NILF is one of Norway's main producers of data on economic conditions within agriculture.

The institute attempts to solve all of these tasks in the best and most efficient way. Among other things, this involves extensive use of computer technology.

NILF's form of organization makes it possible to put together interdisciplinary project teams and is therefore conducive to the best possible utilisation of available expertise.

NILF's regional offices ensure close contact with Norwegian agriculture at the grassroots level and thereby contribute to the quality assurance of the data material.

Permanent tasks

• Farm account statistics in agriculture and forestry.
• Secretariat matters for the Budget Committee for Agriculture, including the preparation of the background material for agricultural negotiations.
• Prognoses for the production and consumption of food.
• Work on the National Budget and longterm programme for the agricultural sector.
• Statistics for international organizations.
• Pilot farms and experimental economic schemes.
• Developing of methods and material for analysis and planning in agriculture, including the development of computer programs.
• Courses for advisers in the extension service.
• Teaching at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Expert guidence of students working on their post-graduate thesis.

Research tasks

The data material that NILF possesses and the expertise that the institute's staff has acquired, make the institute well suited for research tasks in a number of fields. Thus, NILF undertakes tasks from both public and private clients, who wish to clarify particular areas of concern relating to general agricultural economics and farm management:

• Economic matters pertaining to Norwegian agriculture.
• International matters concering Norwegian agriculture (EES, EU, WTO, etc.).
• Rural devlopment, including rural tourism and "niche productions".
• Environmental matters relating to agriculture.
• Food consumption, self-sufficiency and readiness for self-supply.
• Accounting and taxation matters.

Almost every year NILF has one or two PhD students for whom the institute's staff is responsible for providing guidance.

NILF's staff is often used as lecturers, as members of project teams and committees and as external examiners at the Agricultural University of Norway and other teaching institutions.

Organization

NILF is headed by a director and has a professional board of five members. The institute is organized into five departments:

• Research Department
• Statistics and Analysis Department
• Department of Analysis
• Administration Department
• Finance Department

The institute has some 85 employees, of whom about 60 work at the headquarters in Oslo, and the rest at the three regional offices.