Application of the “real options theory” method to the production systems used in dairy cattle farming

The objective of this study was to analyze applications of real options theory for increasing the productivity of Mantiqueira ecotype dairy cows kept in guinea grass pastures with different sources of bulky supplementation (black oats, fodder cane, or sorghum silage), because the traditional methodologies do not consider the uncertainties related to this activity. Real options theory, an investment evaluation method, fills this gap as its most significant feature is its flexibility to act on uncertain events. Based on the results obtained for two economic indicators, the net present value and internal rate of return, and considering the production items identified in the sensitivity analysis, this study evaluated the expansion flexibility of each system using the real options theory methodology in discrete time as proposed by Copeland and Antikarov (2001). The analysis of the expansion options showed that the values of the production systems increased by 6.73%, 1.21%, and 19.49% for the systems supplemented with sorghum silage, black oats, and fodder cane, respectively. The expanded net present values were R$ 141,642.39, R$ 64,211.08, and R$ 58,013.07 for the systems that adopted bulky supplementation with black oats, fodder cane, and sorghum silage, respectively.