scholarly journals Have farmers had enough of experts?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niki A. Rust ◽  
Petra Stankovics ◽  
Rebecca M. Jarvis ◽  
Zara Morris-Trainor ◽  
Jasper R. de Vries ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Peer Influence ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Knowledge Exchange ◽  
Soil Management ◽  
Expert Advice ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Sustainable Soil Management ◽  
Agricultural Innovations ◽  
The Uk

AbstractThe exponential rise of information available means we can now, in theory, access knowledge on almost any question we ask. However, as the amount of unverified information increases, so too does the challenge in deciding which information to trust. Farmers, when learning about agricultural innovations, have historically relied on in-person advice from traditional ‘experts’, such as agricultural advisers, to inform farm management. As more farmers go online for information, it is not clear whether they are now using digital information to corroborate in-person advice from traditional ‘experts’, or if they are foregoing ‘expert’ advice in preference for peer-generated information. To fill this knowledge gap, we sought to understand how farmers in two contrasting European countries (Hungary and the UK) learnt about sustainable soil innovations and who influenced them to innovate. Through interviews with 82 respondents, we found farmers in both countries regularly used online sources to access soil information; some were prompted to change their soil management by farmer social media ‘influencers’. However, online information and interactions were not usually the main factor influencing farmers to change their practices. Farmers placed most trust in other farmers to learn about new soil practices and were less trusting of traditional ‘experts’, particularly agricultural researchers from academic and government institutions, who they believed were not empathetic towards farmers’ needs. We suggest that some farmers may indeed have had enough of traditional ‘experts’, instead relying more on their own peer networks to learn and innovate. We discuss ways to improve trustworthy knowledge exchange between agricultural stakeholders to increase uptake of sustainable soil management practices, while acknowledging the value of peer influence and online interactions for innovation and trust building.

scholarly journals Factors Affecting Adoption of Sustainable Soil Management Practices among Fluted Pumpkin Producers in Ikorodu, Lagos State

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 43
Author(s):  
Olatomide W. Olowa Omowumi A. Olowa ◽  
Akinkunmi A. Falade Ijiyokun, A.O.
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Soil Management ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Adoption Of Technology ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Fluted Pumpkin ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Sustainable Soil Management ◽  
Probability Of Adoption

Proper soil management is germane to sustainable vegetable production. The greatest threat to sustainable agricultural productivity is the declining soil productivity. The reason for this declining soil productivity might not be unconnected with the soil management practices by farmers. This study attempts to isolate factors that are contributing to vegetable farmers’ adoption of soil management practices. Primary data were collected from purposively selected 120 fluted pumpkin vegetable farmers, adopting pre-tested semi-structured interview schedule in Ikorodu Local Government Area. This is predicated on the facts that Ikorodu environment seems to be well adapted for fluted pumpkin production as many hectares of land are cultivated to fluted pumpkin by hundreds of small holders. Probit regression model was used to isolate factors affecting the adoption of sustainable soil management practices. Overall, the model predicted 85.76% of the sample correctly. The findings of the study revealed that number of economically active family members, farmers’ education, livestock holding, membership in farmer's group and credit availability were significantly positive while age of farmer negatively affect adoption of sustainable soil management practice. A unit increased in economically active family members, years of education and livestock standard unit would increase the probability of adoption of technology by 21.3, 5.8 and 7.6% respectively. Likewise, if farmers were made member in the groups and credit made available, the probability of adoption of technology would increase by 46.2 and 46.3% respectively. But a unit increase in the age of household head would decrease the level of adoption by 1.4% indicating old aged farmers do not adopt innovative technologies in agriculture.Keywords: Lagos, adoption, probit, sustainable soil management, vegetable, fluted pumpkin

scholarly journals Barriers and Facilitators for Adopting Sustainable Soil Management Practices in Mediterranean Olive Groves

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 506 ◽  
Author(s):  
José A. Aznar-Sánchez ◽  
Juan F. Velasco-Muñoz ◽  
Belén López-Felices ◽  
Fernando del Moral-Torres
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Soil ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Organic Matter Content ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Soil Management ◽  
Matter Content ◽  
Sustainable Practices ◽  
Sustainable Soil Management ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices

Soil is a fundamental resource, subject to severe and quick degradation processes because of the pressure of human activities, particularly in many regions of the Mediterranean where agriculture is an important economic activity. It has been proven that the use of sustainable soil management practices can potentially give rise to the creation of a carbon sink, an increase of soil organic matter content, the maintenance of crop productivity and a reduction in erosion. Despite the existence of scientific evidence about the benefits generated by the use of sustainable practices on soil, many farmers are reluctant to adopt them. The objective of this study is to identify and give a hierarchical structure to the factors that condition the adoption of sustainable practices in the management of agricultural soil. The case of olive tree cultivation in Southeast Spain has been studied, using a participatory qualitative methodology. The results show a series of seven principal barriers (information, costs, risk aversion, characteristics of the farm and sustainable practices, macro factors, and cultural barriers) and five facilitators (technology, farmer training, awareness, incentives, and social pressure) for the adoption of the proposed sustainable agricultural practices. The principal political and legislative actions proposed to increase the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices include: administrative control, fostering environmental awareness, technical knowledge, and on-farm demonstrations; and, on the economic and financial level, incorporation of both general incentives and subsidizing specific costs. This study contributes to the development and discussion of intervention proposals that are designed to stimulate the implementation of sustainable practices in agricultural soil management.

scholarly journals Improving soil and water conservation and ecosystem services by sustainable soil management practices: From a global to an Italian soil partnership

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 293-298
Author(s):  
Filiberto Altobelli ◽  
Ronald Vargas ◽  
Giuseppe Corti ◽  
Carmelo Dazzi ◽  
Luca Montanarella ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Soil Management ◽  
Soil And Water Conservation ◽  
Water Infiltration ◽  
Sustainable Soil Management ◽  
Soil And Water

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) identify the need to restore degraded soils in order to improve productivity and the provision of ecosystem services. The aim is to support food production, store and supply clean water, conserve biodiversity, sequester carbon, and improve soil resilience in a context of climate change. Within this framework, in order to achieve the SDGs and to correct land management in the long-term, soil management is considered mandatory. The reduction of land degradation should be based on various sustainable soil management practices that improve and maintain soil organic matter levels, increase water infiltration, and improve soil water management. This technical review - a policy paper - summarizes the sustainable and territorial impact of soil degradation, including soil water erosion, from the global level to the European and National levels. Furthermore, with the aim of sharing ongoing soil and water management actions, instruments, and initiatives, we provide information on soil and water conservation activities and prospects in Italy.

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