This essay questions the way the findings from research on agriculture in poor countries tend to be summarized in policy narratives, and more specifically the role agricultural economics tends to play in this process. I conclude that there is a tendency to overstate the role agriculture plays in development and, as a result, some of the wrong battles are being fought in the policy advocacy arena, and inappropriate advice is being offered to policy makers. A more open and self‐critical approach to the place of agriculture in development would be more helpful for policy design.