Participation in farmer organizations and adoption of farming technologies among rice farmers in Ghana

PurposeThe authors examine the factors influencing membership in farmer organizations (FO) and their effects on the decision to adopt farm technologies by rice farmers in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a farm survey of 900 households from Northern Ghana and a recursive bivariate probit (RBP) model that accounts for selection bias and endogeneity.FindingsThe results indicate that the household head’s decision to adopt machinery and row planting increases by 38.4 and 25.3%, respectively, upon joining a farmer organization. Membership in farmer organization is positively influenced by off-farm income, asset value, farmer organization location and farmer location in Upper West region but negatively by males, age and total livestock units owned. Machinery adoption is positively influenced by membership in farmer organizations and respondent being male but negatively influenced by the years of schooling, farm size, farm distance and location of a farmer in Ghana's Upper East and West regions. Similarly, row planting adoption is positively influenced by membership in farmers' organization but adversely by farm size, farm distance and a farmer's location in Upper East region of Ghana.Research limitations/implicationsIt can be concluded that membership in farmers' organizations significantly impacts farm household head’s decision to adopt machinery and row planting in rice production, which potentially enhance crop productivity.Practical implicationsThese results show the importance of agricultural stakeholders in encouraging the formation and strengthening of farmer organizations to support the adoption of modern farming technologies.Originality/valueDeveloping literature has demonstrated that farmer organizations promote the adoption of agricultural innovations. However, most of these studies have concentrated on conventional agricultural innovations and have used methods that fail to account for potential selection bias. This paper fills this important gap.

The benefits of geographical indication certification through farmer organizations on low-income farmers: the case of Hoa Vang sticky rice in Vietnam

Origin labeling and quality upgrading through farmer organizations have been considered as solutions to reduce transaction costs and improve market bargaining power. This paper explores whether belonging to a farmer organization that improves and signals quality can help increase yields and household incomes of small-scale farmers for a specific quality product, Hoa Vang sticky rice in Vietnam. The paper is based on primary data on 185 households collected in 2013 and on 149 households collected in 2015. Different econometric methods were applied to investigate the effect based on rice yield, rice income and household income as the outcome variables. The results show that membership of farmer organization does not significantly improve household income compared to non-membership. However, members of farmer organizations have less resources in terms of land and inputs than non-members. These results suggest that the economic results achieved by farmers with fewer opportunities to access markets are similar to those obtained by farmers with more opportunities thanks to the involvement of farmer organizations in marketing. The specificities of the Hoa Vang sticky rice are still not reflected in higher farmer sales prices and incomes. More dialogue between farmer organizations and their customers is thus required, as well as better public control of labeling fraud.

Strategy Alternative in Developing Coffee Agribusiness: Study in Rengganis Mountain Slope Jember Regency in Indonesia

Coffee is one of the potential plantation products in Jember, East Java, Indonesia. The coffee production amount is mostly supported by the production amount in several regions at the Rengganis mountain slope. However, the coffee agribusiness potential in Rengganis mountain slope has not yet been optimized. Human resource and coffee institution are the two main elements in developing coffee agribusiness in Rengganis mountain slope, Jember. This study aims to choose the priority strategy as an effort in developing coffee agribusiness in Rengganis mountain slope, Jember by using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). The result showed that the strategy in developing coffee agribusiness in Rengganis mountain slope is optimizing the function and role of the institution in making policy which supports the coffee agribusiness development through 3 institutions, namely: (1) government institution, (2) farmer organization, and (3) research institute.

Study on Coffee Marketing and Farmer Organization in Pasuruan District

Complexity of coffee supply chain system encourages business actors to optimize supply chain management as an effort to increase market transparencyamong them. Consolidating in farmer organization was required to strengthen bargaining position of farmer for facing the complexity of supply chain system.The aim of this research was to analyze supply chain and marketing margin on coffee marketing; and to analyze the characteristics of coffee farmer organization.This research was conducted in Pasuruan district as one of coffee producing area in East Java. Number of respondents were 18 that consisted of 16 farmersand 2 extension officers. The respondent was determined by snowball sampling method. The data was considered a primary data and secondary data was usedas supporting data. Data were analyzed by using descriptive method and marketing margin analysis. The result showed that coffee marketing chain in Pasuruan district would lead to a relatively long and complex which was dominated by collectors. The highest profit of Arabica coffee marketing received by collectors was gained by selling green beans. On the Robusta coffee marketing, the highest profit was derived by selling fresh cherries. Farmer organizations could not be able to improve their bargaining position and market access as a result of weakness on the role and function of them.

PERLAWANAN TERSAMAR ORGANISASI PETANI: SINERGI ANTARA KEPENTINGAN PEMBANGUNAN DAN ABSTRACT KEPENTINGAN GERAKAN SOSIAL

This study goal is understanding people movement development that articulated through organization construction. Farmer as social entity faced with structural pressure that obstruct the social transformation movement. According to the facing problems, these are natural when approach that developed by farmer organization is the community development strategy. Production center oriented for the latest 30 years have become the development ideology. Critic toward this paradigm as described above brought in to the community development (CD) approach. Unfortunately CD produce dependence with the elite structure and program, elite domination and effort to integrating farmer to high capital condition. Besides that problem, CD preserve community stability and disappear social change and social movement. Looking to this fact, farmer organization that prepared as case study develop a new paradigm for the community development which more intense to the people center development. This effort can be held with self govern building and farmer authority. Practically; choosing paradigm for people center development strategy. Differentiation between early CD with the CD as the strategy that will be directed to the people center development lie on the result. CD as the strategy is not resulting dependence otherwise achieving access and control to the resources. <br />Those explanation above really want to describe that farmer achieving specific ways to reach organization goals. Paradigm resistance have been doing with the hidden tactic. Concept that founded in this research is disguised resistance. Disguised resistance indicated hidden strategy that used to reach organization agenda. Disguised resistance is the alliance model between maintaining social existence and the effort to the social deconstruction. Resistance have been doing bellow the government development propaganda and doing the redefinition to those propaganda in to the paradigm ways more oriented to the people center oriented. <br />Keywords: Disguised Resistance, Farmer Organization, Farmer Self Govern, Farmer Authority <br />

STRATEGI PENGEMBANGAN KELEMBAGAAN KOPERASI PERTANIAN BERBASIS JAGUNG DI PROVINSI GORONTALO

success of an integrate agribusiness system of a commodity must be followed by the increase of farmers’ bargain position, especially the small scale agribusiness runs by farmers. Otherwise, farmer will continue to be marginalized, and sustainable production is hard to be achieved. Farmer organization in Indonesia is relatively has weak position and cannot improve farmers’ bargain position since it is still in social institution form (i.e. farmer group), and yet become a socio-economic institution (cooperative). In many countries, farmers’ cooperative not only improves the production, productivity and product quality, but also lead to increase in welfare and life quality of its members. This study specifically aimed to develop corn farmer co-operative in Gorontalo Province. SWOT analysis was being used to formulate the strategy, followed by strategy mapping in road-map as guidance for local government to develop corn farmer co-operative that suitable with its character.Keyword: agribusiness, corn, farmer group, farmer co-operative, Gorontalo.