Question 60

The opportunity cost of the farm choosing to produce 4 tons of corn instead of 3 tons of corn is 0.75 tons of wheat.

When the farm decides to produce an additional ton of corn, it sacrifices a certain amount of wheat production. In this case, that sacrifice amounts to 0.75 tons of wheat.

A) 8 tons of wheat

This option is incorrect because an opportunity cost of 8 tons of wheat implies that the production trade-off between corn and wheat is much larger than what the data suggests. The context indicates that the increase in corn production does not result in such a significant loss of wheat.

B) 0.75 tons of wheat

This option is correct as it accurately reflects the trade-off for increasing corn production from 3 tons to 4 tons. The farm's decision to produce one additional ton of corn results in the loss of 0.75 tons of wheat.

C) 4.2 tons of wheat

This option is incorrect because a loss of 4.2 tons of wheat when increasing corn production by one ton is not supported by the context. The opportunity cost should be significantly lower than this amount based on the given production possibilities.

D) 2.4 tons of wheat

This option is also incorrect as it suggests a higher opportunity cost than what is indicated. The loss of 2.4 tons of wheat does not align with the actual trade-off that occurs when moving from 3 tons to 4 tons of corn.

Conclusion

The correct answer is 0.75 tons of wheat, as it accurately reflects the opportunity cost of increasing corn production by one ton. All other options either overestimate or miscalculate the trade-off, failing to capture the actual economic principle at play in this scenario.