Online via AgEconSearch., Authors evaluated the impact of varietal awareness and nutrition knowledge on their adoption of biofortified crop varieties. Findings suggested that farmers who had knowledge of the nutritional attributes of a specific variety of beans were more likely to adopt them.
Kragt, Marit (author), Blackmore, Louise (author), Capon, Tim (author), Robinson, Cathy J. (author), Torabi, Nooshin (author), and Wilson, Kerrie A. (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2014-12
Published:
Australia
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 139 Document Number: D05809
Notes:
Working Paper 1407, School of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia. 16 pages.
UI Library subscription., Update on agricultural/rural broadcasting in the U.S., including recent survey results about listenership and about the News Service of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting.
8 pages., Online via UI electronic subscription., Researchers measured farmer demand for a new agricultural technology , a triple-layered hermetic storage bag which reduces storage loss from insect pests and neutralizes aflatoxin contamination in grain. Findings revealed a highly elastic demand that that the wholesaler could increase profit by lowering the price. Farmers who had prior awareness of the bag were willing to pay 20% more on average than those previously unaware of it. Farmers' valuation of the bags was not significantly different based on the medium (text, audio, or video) through which they received the information.
10 Pages, As Thai farmers get older they need to plan what to do with their farm business and land given younger people tend to out-migrate to urban areas and shift their interests away from farming. Such demographic trends may reduce agricultural productivity and increase food insecurity, both among farmers and in the region. Using data collected through interviews with 368 farmers in the Prachin Buri province of Thailand, this research aims to examine how ageing is affecting farm activities of older farmers (60 years and older) and how they are adapting. We found that, while a small percentage of older farmers intended to continue farming without making any changes over the next five years (~9%), most were concerned about their health and farm work capacity, and were looking to leave farming and implement strategies to reduce both work intensity and time. Most farmers intended to stop farming and transfer farmland to their children (~40%), or continue farming while making some changes (~30%), such as employing additional workers or switching to less labour intense crops. Some intended to stop farming altogether and dispose of farmland outside their family (~21%; e.g. leasing out or selling or returning farmland to owner if leased). As expected, the chosen strategy depended on personal (old-age income security and gender) and farm characteristics (e.g. successor, farm activities, and subsidy). Having a dedicated successor had a substantial impact on transferring land to the children, reflecting the importance of commitment for farming by the next generation, which will be challenging. A pension higher than the widely available old-age allowance could support farmers in maintaining a better living standard after retiring. However, only a fraction of farmers currently had access to a pension. Both short- and long-term policies are, therefore, needed to support elderly farmers, improve their living standards after retirement, and attract young people back to farming.
