Farm Assets and Their Sources of Financing: Application of Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA)

The objective of the research was to identify the relationship between farm assets and the sources of financing used in agricultural operations, through the application of canonical correlation analysis (CCA). The study was conducted on a group of farmers in Central Pomerania, Poland. The analyses were based on data obtained from 150 farms during the pilot study that was implemented in 2023. The study employed the CATI (Computer-Assisted Telephone Interview) survey technique, which was based on an interview questionnaire. Calculations and graphical representation were performed using the R statistical program ver. 4.4.2, with the following packages: CCA (ver. 1.2.2), CCP (ver. 1.2), GGally (ver. 2.2.1) and corrplot (ver. 0.95). The study found that among the asset-related variables, the first two canonical dimensions are most strongly influenced by ASSET_BUILD and ASSET_STOCK. Among the financing-related variables, the first canonical dimension is most strongly influenced by DP_INVEST and DP_PROD, the second – by LEASE, COMMER_LOAN and EQUITY. The work is part of research on the use of intelligent information systems, particularly econometric methods and statistical computer packages, in studies on financial and investment decisions of farms and agricultural households.