Machine Learning
& AI in Agricultural Economics: Examples and Explanations
(Virtual Book by Prof. Dr. Xiaohua Yu, University of Göttingen)
This
page introduces my recent research papers on agricultural economics with
applications of machine learning and AI.
Machine
Learning & AI will prevail in agricultural and applied economics with the
increasing volume of data and powerful computation. Causality analysis with
traditional econometrics and prediction with machine learning & AI have
different logics, but the later will be better to serve the policy analysis.
1, Feature Engineering
(1).
LASSO
Meister
S. X. Yu (2025) Forecasting Egg Price Inflation in Germany with Machine
Learning: A Comparative Study with ARIMAX and LSTM. Qopen. https://doi.org/10.1093/qopen/qoaf015
Li Y., and X.
Yu (2025) Attribute Non-Attendance in the Choice Experiment with Machine
Learning: WTP for Organic Apples in Germany. Forthcoming in International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, https://doi.10.22434/IFAMR.1133
Maruejols L., L. Hoeschle, X. Yu (2022) Vietnam between
economic growth and ethnic divergence: A LASSO examination of income-mediated
energy consumption. Energy Economics.
106222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2022.106222
(2)
IV LASSO
Höschle,
L.,Maruejols, L., and Yu, X. (2025) The impact of energy justice on
local economic outcomes: Evidence from the bioenergy village program in
Germany, forthcoming in Energy Economics. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2025.108432
(3)
Shapley Values
Meister S., X. Yu (2025) Forecasting Egg
Price Inflation in Germany with Machine Learning: A Comparative Study with
ARIMAX and LSTM.
(4)
Other methods
Wang H., L. Maruejols, and X.Yu (2021) Predicting energy poverty with combinations of
remote-sensing and socioeconomic survey data in India: Evidence from machine
learning. Energy
Economics. Vol. 102, 105510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105510
2, Supervised Machine Learning
(1) Random
Forest
Wang H., L.
Maruejols, and X.Yu (2021) Predicting energy poverty with
combinations of remote-sensing and socioeconomic survey data in India: Evidence
from machine learning. Energy Economics. Vol.
102, 105510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105510
Zhong, X. and X. Yu (2025) “Who Buy Food Products from Online
Influencers? Predictions with Machine Learning”, forthcoming in International
Food and Agribusiness Management Review. https://doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR.1130
Maruejols,
L., Höschle, L. and Yu, X. (2025) ‘Energy
independence, rural sustainability and potential of bioenergy villages in
Germany: machine learning perspectives’, International Food and
Agribusiness Management Review, Available at: https://doi.org/10.22434/ifamr1132.
(2) Gradient
Boosting Classification (GBM)
Zhong, X. and X. Yu (2025) “Who Buy Food Products from Online
Influencers? Predictions with Machine Learning”, forthcoming in International
Food and Agribusiness Management Review. https://doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR.1130
(3)
Support Vector Machine
Zhong, X. and X. Yu (2025) “Who Buy Food Products from
Online Influencers? Predictions with Machine Learning”, forthcoming in International
Food and Agribusiness Management Review. https://doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR.1130
Maruejols,
L., Höschle, L. and Yu, X. (2025) ‘Energy independence, rural
sustainability and potential of bioenergy villages in Germany: machine learning
perspectives’, International Food and Agribusiness Management Review,
Available at: https://doi.org/10.22434/ifamr1132.
(4) Logit
Zhong, X. and X. Yu (2025) “Who Buy Food Products from Online Influencers?
Predictions with Machine Learning”, International Food and Agribusiness
Management Review. https://doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR.1130
Maruejols,
L., Höschle, L. and X. Yu (2025) ‘Energy independence, rural
sustainability and potential of bioenergy villages in Germany: machine learning
perspectives’, International Food and Agribusiness Management Review,
Available at: https://doi.org/10.22434/ifamr1132.
Li
Y., and X. Yu (2025) Attribute Non-Attendance in the Choice Experiment
with Machine Learning: WTP for Organic Apples in Germany. Forthcoming in International
Food and Agribusiness Management Review, https://doi.10.22434/IFAMR.1133 .
(5) Neural Network Analysis (Deep Learning, ANN, CNN, RNN,
LSTM)
Yu, X. and S. Liu. 2024. "No Free Lunch
Theorem"and Algorithm Selection in Policy Research: Predicting Hog Price
with Machine Learning (In Chinese). Issues in Agricultural Economy. 202(5):20-32.
Meister S., X. Yu (2025) Forecasting Egg
Price Inflation in Germany with Machine Learning: A Comparative Study with
ARIMAX and LSTM.
(6)
Other methods
e.g. Regression based method,
Bayesian Learning
3, Unsupervised Machine Learning
(1) K-means
Ölkers Tim, Liu S., X.
Yu, O. Musshoff (2024) Patterns and Heterogeneity in Credit Repayment
Performance: Evidence from Malian Farmers. Applied Economics Perspectives
and Policy. https://doi.org/10.1002/aepp.13484
Wang H., J. Han, X.
Yu (2024) Who performs better? The heterogeneity of
grain production eco-efficiency: Evidence from unsupervised machine learning.
Forthcoming in Environmental Impact Assessment Review 106, 107530. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2024.107530
Wang H. , X. Yu (2023)
“Carbon Dioxide Emission
Typology and Policy Implications: Evidence from Machine Learning”.
China Economic Review. Volume 78, April 2023, 101941 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chieco.2023.101941
Wang H., J. F. Feil and
X. Yu (2023) Let the
Data Speak about the Cut-off Values for Multidimensional Index: Classification
of Human Development Index with Machine Learning. Socio-economic Planning
Sciences. Volume 87, Part A, June 2023, 101523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seps.2023.101523
Liu S., J.
Wehner, J.H. Feil and X. Yu, 2025, Harmony, Conflict, and Evolution of
the Common Agricultural Policy in Europe: A Text Mining Survey. Modern
Agriculture. https://doi.org/10.1002/moda.70020
.
(2) PAM
(partition
around medoids)
Graskemper V., X. Yu and Jan-Hennting Feil (2021). Farmer
Typology and Implications for Policy Design – an Unsupervised Machine Learning
Approach. Land
Use Policy. Volume 103, April 2021, 105328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2021.105328
Graskemper V., X. Yu and Jan-Henning Feil (2022) Values of
Farmers-Evidence from Germany, Journal of Rural Studies. Vo.
89:13-24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2021.11.005
(3) DTW
(dynamic time warping)
Liu C., Zhou L., Hoeschle L. And X.
Yu (2023), Food Price Dynamics and Regional Clusters: Machine Learning
Analysis of Egg Prices in China. China Agricultural Economic Review. Vol. 15 No. 2,
pp. 416-432. https://doi.org/10.1108/CAER-01-2022-0003
(4) PCA
Forthcoming
(5) Market
Basket Analysis
Forthcoming
4, Text Mining
Liu S., J.
Wehner, J.H. Feil and X. Yu, 2025, Harmony, Conflict, and Evolution of
the Common Agricultural Policy in Europe: A Text Mining Survey. Modern
Agriculture. https://doi.org/10.1002/moda.70020
.
Hoeschle L.,
Shuang Liu, X. Yu (2025) "Let the Poor Talk about “Poverty”:
Revisiting Poverty Alleviation in Rural China with Machine Learning”,
forthcoming in Public Policy & Poverty. https://doi.org/10.1002/pop4.7000
5, Time series analysis
Meister S., X.
Yu (2025) Forecasting Egg Price Inflation in Germany with Machine Learning:
A Comparative Study with ARIMAX and LSTM. Qopen. https://doi.org/10.1093/qopen/qoaf015
Liu
C., Zhou L., Hoeschle L. And X. Yu (2023), Food Price Dynamics and
Regional Clusters: Machine Learning Analysis of Egg Prices in China. China
Agricultural Economic Review. Vol. 15 No. 2, pp. 416-432.
https://doi.org/10.1108/CAER-01-2022-0003
6, Reinforcement Learning
e.g.
Markov Reward Process
7, Methodological Comments
Yu X. and
L. Maruejols. Prediction, pattern recognition and machine learning in
agricultural economics. China Agricultural Economic Review, 2023. Vol.
15(2):375-378. https://doi.org/10.1108/CAER-05-2023-307
Yu, X., Tang Z. and
Bao T. 2019. Machine Learning and Renovation of Agricultural Policy Research. Journal
of Agrotechnical Economics (in Chinese). 2019 (2): 4-9.