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  <front>
    <journal-meta />
    <article-meta>
      <title-group>
        <article-title>Development of Software for the Farms Accounting</article-title>
      </title-group>
      <contrib-group>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Dimosthenis Mpoutakidis</string-name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Alexandra Pavloudi</string-name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Stamatis Aggelopoulos</string-name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Maria Rapti</string-name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <aff id="aff0">
          <label>0</label>
          <institution>Department of Agriculture Technology, Direction of Agricultural Economy, Alexander Technology Educational Institute of Thessaloniki</institution>
          ,
          <country country="GR">Greece</country>
        </aff>
      </contrib-group>
      <fpage>85</fpage>
      <lpage>91</lpage>
      <abstract>
        <p>This is an application, which contributes to the improvement of the economy in a farm through the systematic recording and organization of economic and technical data. Initially, given some useful general information on a theoretical level, which relate to the way in which agricultural enterprises are organized. Then, there is the way in which was created “Agrologic”, such as the setting up of the tables and the creation of the template. Here's a guide for the application, allowing the user to be able to enter the details of the agricultural enterprise and to manage them. The "Agrologic" is a user friendly application, which can be used by everyone, without a special financial or accounting knowledge. It aims to help farmer in a position to manage the economics of the agricultural unit, because the application can produce the overall results automatically, without the need to calculate.</p>
      </abstract>
      <kwd-group>
        <kwd>Agricultural accounts</kwd>
        <kwd>Application</kwd>
        <kwd>Agrologic</kwd>
      </kwd-group>
    </article-meta>
  </front>
  <body>
    <sec id="sec-1">
      <title>1 Introduction</title>
      <p>The competitive environment within which agricultural activity is developed makes
necessary the modernization of agricultural holdings and the adoption of new
technologies to improve effectiveness and productivity. Farmers are being urged by
their advisors to use accounting as a means of survival in an industry dominated by
corporations yet find their calculations and plans nullified as corporations raise the
costs of their inputs and lower the prices obtainable for their outputs. (Jack, 2007)</p>
      <sec id="sec-1-1">
        <title>2.1 Agricultural Accounting</title>
        <p>
          There are very few studies on the subject of agricultural accounting. The field of
academic agricultural management research lacks both qualitative empirical studies
and sociological interpretations
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref10 ref4 ref9">(Argiles &amp; Slof, 2001 and Juchau &amp; Hill, 2000)</xref>
          ,
whilst the agriculture and food industries are largely absent from studies in
management and accounting generally
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref4 ref9">(Argiles &amp; Slof, 2001)</xref>
          .
        </p>
        <p>
          Accounting for spatial heterogeneity is, however, a key step in the integrated
assessment of agricultural production systems
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref2 ref3">(Antle and Stoorvogel, 2006 and Antle
et al., 2006)</xref>
          .
        </p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-2">
        <title>Inventory:</title>
        <p>
          Keeping inventory is the process by which the producer categorizes the assets of a
holding, the counting and the records in physical units and economic value. The
inventory shall be drawn up at the beginning and at the end of each financial year and
the balance sheet of the agricultural holding
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref11">(Kitsopanidis, 1993)</xref>
          .
        </p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-3">
        <title>Ways of agricultural accounting</title>
        <p>According to Kitsopanidis, (1993), there are three ways to keep the accounting of
farm: Monitoring the accounts of the farm as a whole, Accounting farm per
categories of like industries and Accounting farm per industries.</p>
        <p>In the light of the rational organization of agricultural holdings, which the farmer
uses the limited resources factors of production in industries which contribute most
to improving the income of the accounting is essential.</p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-4">
        <title>The use of electronic computers in agriculture</title>
        <p>
          The computers are used in agriculture to resolve problems of rural economy,
because it helps in quick decision-making. Given the substantial growth in computer
hardware and software functionality, it would be helpful the agricultural software
vendors, farm consultants, state and federal agricultural agencies, agribusinesses to
determine what computer technology producers now own and how they use it.
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref6">(Flanagan, 1995)</xref>
          .
        </p>
        <p>Software applications frequently mentioned in computer use studies about
financial administration, taxes, accounting, business planning, budgeting, livestock
management, crop management, and market analysis or decision making. (Ascough
et al, 1999)</p>
        <p>
          Use of computers makes it possible to process large amounts of data order to try
out new methods of mathematical Programming, simulation, the econometric
models, advanced methods of forecasting etc.
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref12">(Manos, 1995)</xref>
          .
        </p>
        <p>
          The use of computers in Greek agriculture has helped considerably to measure and
check the various figured to increase the productivity and services available to
factors of production, to exert effective agricultural policy and to provide new
growth.
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref7">(Grammatikou, 2008)</xref>
          .
        </p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-5">
        <title>2.2 Objectives and Characteristics of "Agrologic"</title>
        <p>In particular, the application "Agrologic" intends to help farmers and producers, to
record and edit quickly and easily the economics of their farms. The application
"Agrologic" gives the possibility even for non-specialists to use it.</p>
        <p>"Agrologic" is a software application that is addressed to the modern farmer for
the management of agricultural holdings. With this software the farmer/grower has
the capability to store all the data of agricultural holding, keeping full calendar of all
cultivation of work, comply with the department of supplies, keep budget and
monitoring of the progress of implementation, detailed monitoring the cost of each
crop at the working level and individual rates and a full picture of the economic
effect of the holding, recording and storing information, helping to keep the
configuration integrated in the management.</p>
        <p>
          Based on data from previous periods you will be in able to decide on the crops and
to make specific estimates of production, price and cost. The aim is to protect
yourself and the production from residues of substances through the warnings for
permissible times and re-harvest. Observing the traceability in terms of batches and
harvest, you will be able to have easier access to markets that require tracking
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref1">(Aiello et al 2015)</xref>
          .
        </p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-6">
        <title>Stages of implementation and connections</title>
        <p>Below are the stages of the application "Agrologic".</p>
        <p>Initially, it was an empty database with the application Access 2007 Microsoft,
called "Agrologic".</p>
        <p>
          On this basis were three electronic books accounting, the book Accounting farms
as a whole, the book Accounting Floral Park Farm as a whole, and the paper
Accounting Agricultural Holdings - greenhouses
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref14">(Martica-Bakirtzi &amp; Dimitriadou,
2007)</xref>
          .
        </p>
        <p>Having designed all the forms for each workshop, placed in groups.</p>
        <p>The basic books are:</p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-7">
        <title>Manual monitoring' accounting system rural operating as single total</title>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-8">
        <title>Manual of accounting of a greenhouse holding (vegetables) and</title>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-9">
        <title>Manual monitoring' accounting system of a floral farm operating as single total</title>
        <p>The groups who belong in every book are separated:
A. Composition of the farm and family
B. Inventory and assessment of the value of assets of the holding
C. Data Processing of holding</p>
        <p>The books are differentiated in groups of Single account of production plan. Each
group separated in the book in subgroups: Production planning, composition of the
farm and family, Experience and the training of the leader or the members of the
family, Work available for the family and permanent workers (hours/ month),
Inventory and assessment of the value of assets of the holding, field, areas in
improvements, equipment of buildings and constructions, census perennials lands
(vegetables section), machinery and tools, logs referred to in forms fixed and variable
capital, Calculation deprecation permanent capital and annual expenditure, Capital
structure of the holding, Financial results.</p>
        <p>Finally, according to the book the groups include the subgroups Single account of
production plan (calendar physical or technical and economic data), Account tractor:
tractor type, horsepower, age, technical specifications, Requirements of project
production in hours of human or/and mechanical work per month and per acre,
Inventory machinery and tools, Inventory ground, Inventory areas improvements,
Inventory agricultural construction, Inventory machinery, Inventory loans referred to
in forms fixed and variable capital, Calculation depreciation permanent capital,
Calculation annual expenditure, Capital structure of the holding, Technical and
financial data per unit production sectors Account industry: calendar physical or
technical and economic data of the industry, calendar harvest, account means of
transport: type means of transport, power, age, technical specifications, General
payments and receipts of the holding, Technical and financial data per unit
production sectors, Requirements of industries in working hours per month: human
labor, mechanical work, Variable cost industries, Gross annuity industries, Gross
profit industries, Productive expenditure of exploitation and participation of the
entire coefficient, Financial results</p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-10">
        <title>THE APPLICATION "AGROLOGIC": Application Guide</title>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-1-11">
        <title>Description of the implementation: platform development and implementation; tools, application requirements in hardware etc.</title>
        <p>Start the application "Agrologic", which was created and designed exclusively for
a specific task. With the opening of the application, the first image that the user sees
is figure (1).</p>
        <p>Fig 1. Start the application "Agrologic"</p>
        <p>In the beginning, the user has the option to choose the group, in which he wants to
enter the data. Initially, it will be necessary to start with group A, for the recording of
the composition of the holding of the user-producer and then to continue with the
other groups.</p>
        <p>Selecting the first form the user automatically enters into the PROJECT
production form.</p>
        <p>The following (figure2) shows the introduction of three random entries, as an
example for the user.</p>
        <p>In the industry the user can choose the exploitation that he is interested in. The
field AREA enters the number of acres which grows and the system automatically
determines the area in percentage (%) that uses for the farm in relation to the total
acres of production. The green fields in all forms that are displayed automatically by
the system the fields shown here, as can be seen in this form (figure 2), are set by the
system.</p>
        <p>Initially a list is presented with options prompts for the user to enter the first data
when required to supplement the name, the access name (username) and password
(password), given to him by the designer of the application. Then the user selects the
accounting category wishing to introduce the data as exploitation as a whole,
floricultural exploitation and greenhouse vegetable exploitation.</p>
        <p>The user of the application has the ability to control the total number of records
entered, to move from the first record to the next (and vice versa) and of course, to
introduce a new recording, with the corresponding button located on the status bar.</p>
        <p>Furthermore, on the right side of the template there are three command buttons.
The first button prints, the lower section of the template (the secondary form), with
the total records, to allow the user of the application to print a form with the
aggregated data of the holding. The second button closes the current form and inform
for the storage of data. The third button refreshes the entire form so as to make the
overall results appear more quickly.</p>
        <p>Another possible application is to filter the data in the form and be able to display
the records with specific criteria (Figure 4).</p>
      </sec>
    </sec>
    <sec id="sec-2">
      <title>3 Summary and Conclusions</title>
      <p>The characteristics of the application "Agrologic", as presented above, are simple
and intend to be easily accessible to the farmer, who has no accounting knowledge.
The tables and the forms are distinct and include everything the non-specialist user,
will need in order to organize an agricultural enterprise.</p>
      <p>An application such as "Agrologic" will relieve the farmer of the unnecessary and
complex calculations which require monitoring of the company accounts</p>
      <p>Through the application "Agrologic", the farmer is able to record all the data for a
farm, to keep full calendar of cultivation work, to monitor his available saved stores,
to draw up a budget and to monitor the progress and the cost of each crop, to record
and store information, so as to comply with the requirements of an integrated
company. The weakness of this is mainly related to the ongoing development of the
technology. In other words, as the applications and computers constantly evolve in
the future we will have likely upgrade "Agrologic" and to put on a new footing some
economic data. However, the basic structure and the simple logic are in position to
help a farmer keep control of his business, not only by managing the already existing
financial data, but also by improving the productivity of his business in the future. In
fact, having all the data in portable or fixed, the computer can remember all your
work and other obligations, without learning out something.</p>
      <p>With "Agrologic" you cash daily monitor the stocks and know exactly what is
needed, verify the costs for the salaries and wages of the workers, record the work
and inputs, have better communication with the Agronomist, in order to get the
correct advice and to make correct estimates for the future of farming.</p>
    </sec>
  </body>
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          -
          <lpage>20</lpage>
          ,
          <fpage>76</fpage>
          -
          <lpage>77</lpage>
          ,
          <fpage>110</fpage>
        </mixed-citation>
      </ref>
    </ref-list>
  </back>
</article>