Does organic farming lead to higher returns to education? Using the raising of the school leaving age as a quasi-experiment

This paper examines the farmer's return to education differentiating between organic and conventional farming. By using the 1972 Raising of the School Leaving Age in England and Wales as a quasi-experiment with a Regression Discontinuity Design, we identify a causal relationship for the farmer's return to education on farm economic performance. Using data from a sample of English farms between 2011 and 2018 from the Farm Business Survey, we show: (i) a positive return to education on farm performance (ii) a higher education return in organic farming in comparison with conventional farming.