Exploring farmer perceptions of agricultural innovations for maize-legume intensification in the mid-hills region of Nepal

Maize-legume intercropping is a fundamental component of mixed farming systems in the mid-hills of Nepal. However, its productivity is constrained by several biophysical and social factors, and limited adoption of proven agricultural innovations. In this study, we assessed the productivity impact of a selection of relevant agricultural innovations and changes in the associated perceptions of farmers through a series of two-year participatory on-farm trials. The evaluated innovations resulted in higher yields as compared to farmers' current practices. The active involvement of farmers enlarged our understanding of underlying decision-making factors to adopt or non-adopt agricultural innovations. Additionally, the in-depth farmer engagement in our onfarm trials positively influenced farmer perceptions of the innovations and their interest to adopt the agricultural innovations. Yet, farmers final decisions to adopt some of the evaluated innovations were limited by a host of factors including labour scarcity, the availability of inputs, and by cultural preferences despite the increased yields. This was particularly true for low and medium resource-endowed farmers. This study shows the importance of active farmer participation and context-specific design of research and development projects aiming for local impact.     

Discourse and practice of participatory flood risk management in Belfast,UK

The introduction of the Floods Directive signals a move from flood protection towards flood risk management in the European Union. Public participation is highlighted in the Floods Directive as being instrumental to effective implementation of this new approach. This study utilised document analysis, non-participant observation, a questionnaire survey, and interviews to evaluate the discourse and practice of participation in the implementation of the Floods Directive in Belfast, United Kingdom. Flood risk management processes in Belfast are found to be high on participatory rhetoric but low on meaningful engagement. The participatory process is lacking in transparency, does not encourage the active participation of interested parties and has not been clearly communicated to key publics. Opportunities to increase meaningful public participation in the process remain underutilised, and the establishment of local flood forums has provided little opportunity for meaningful engagement. Some actions of governance agencies could be best characterised as facilitating the responsibilisation of risk and are designed to manage risk to agencies rather than address flooding issues.     

Women farmers’ participation in the agricultural research process: implications for agricultural sustainability in Ethiopia

Empowering women farmers to participate in agricultural research is a key strategy for sustainable agricultural development. Women empowerment has the potential to improve their roles in agricultural production while enhancing nutrition and food security. Although new agricultural development policies are focusing on improving women engagement in agriculture, there is limited literature on women empowerment in relation to agricultural research. This study used mixed methods to analyse women farmers’ participation in four stages of the agricultural research process – design, testing, dissemination, monitoring and evaluation. Two hundred and thirty individual interviews with women farmers and 16 focus group discussions with men and women farmers were conducted in four Woredas (districts) of Ethiopia. Quantitative data were analysed using binary and multivariate probit models. Qualitative data were analysed using line-by-line coding. The results showed that several empowerment indicator variables significantly (p?≤?.001) influenced women’s participation in different stages of agricultural research. Specifically, input in production decisions, autonomy in plot management, membership to farmer groups, and ability to speak in public enhanced women’s participation in different stages, in addition to access to information and extension services, education and land size. Cultural norms hindered women’s empowerment and engagement in research. To foster sustainable agriculture development, it’s important to integrate holistic and proactive gender perspectives into research strategies to increase women’s participation in farmer research groups, access information and knowledge, have voice and challenge constraining cultural norms and traditions.     

参与式方法在集体林权制度改革中的应用思考

中国的集体林是一个特殊的、具有历史性、复杂性和关键性的产权系统。当前,中国政府正在开展集体林林权制度改革,希望通过改革能促进林业的发展。林权改革的目的在于通过明晰产权,进一步把森林管理的权力下放并改善权属的安全性。作为林业管理和改革的主体与核心,林农的参与十分重要。从参与的概念出发,探讨了在集体林权改制中应用参与式方法的可能性、应用的领域和应该注意的问题。建议在改革全过程中必须确保有实际意义的真正参与。     

网络治理视角下农业科技创新发展的路径研究——基于农业试验示范站的实践分析

[目的]农业科技的广泛应用是农业现代化发展的重要标志,农业试验示范站是提升农业科技水平的重要手段。[方法]文章以杨凌农业科技示范推广模式的典型代表——试验示范站作为研究对象,借助网络治理理论研究我国农业技术推广模式的特征和经验,分析农业技术推广过程中涉及的多方主体的职能定位,构建农业技术推广治理网络,同时通过深入分析市场机制和宏观调控机制的作用机理和作用过程,研究各方利益相对主体的关系,为创新农业科技示范推广机制构建提供理论支持。[结果]从网络类型的视角看,试验示范站是政府推动、基层农技试验示范站具体操作实施的政府参与型的网络治理模式;从网络主体的视角看,以试验示范站为主体,联动政府相关部门、普通农户等各个主体在技术推广过程中的行为;从网络运行的视角来看,通过从网络治理的主体因素、关系因素和环境因素等方面分析影响杨凌农业试验示范站网络治理效果的一些具体因素。[结论]政府参与型的农业科技示范推广模式通过政府推动、基层农技试验示范站具体操作实施、普通农户参与落实等一系列的技术推广过程实现了农业科技创新发展,该模式是最有效的农业科技创新发展路径之一。     

From rhetoric to reality: farmer perspectives on the economic potential of biochar in China

Biochar has garnered much attention for its potential to improve farming productivity and sustainability by amending soil, enhancing crop yields, improving fertilizer use efficiency and sequestering carbon. However, few publications consider farmer perspectives on whether biochar is attractive as an agricultural input. This paper therefore investigates the micro-economics and social suitability of biochar in four contrasting Chinese agricultural systems, using linear optimization models and qualitative contextual data. Results demonstrate that commercially produced biochar is uneconomic as an independent farming input, whilst farm-produced biochar shows promise in just one of four case-study sites. This suggests that biochar research in China should shift away from on-farm production and application of pure biochar, towards combined biochar-inorganic fertilizer products.     

The importance of ecological and socio-technological literacy in R&D priority setting: the case of a fruit innovation system in Guinea,West Africa

The introduction of farmer participatory approaches over the past decades has to some extent improved the relevance and uptake of research results. While R&D prioritization increasingly involves more stakeholders, including the private sector, policymakers and civil society, building ecological literacy among all stakeholders is urgent, especially for sustainable agricultural development. A case study of an emerging fruit innovation system in Guinea, West Africa, highlights the challenges of supply- and demand-driven approaches to R&D prioritization. Shallow ecological knowledge and a blind faith in ‘modern’ technologies by scientists and farmers alike distort prioritization. Locally available, appropriate technologies are dismissed in favour of high technologies that are inaccessible to most smallholder growers. Strengthening the ecological literacy of all stakeholders may help to overcome this bias. On the other hand, building socio-technological literacy would allow innovation intermediaries, who typically act as brokers between the demand- and supply-side of technologies, to better understand the social and institutional contexts of technologies and how these affect potential uptake by poor farmers. Member centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) could use the notion of ecological and socio-technological literacy to better understand supply and demand of technology and to work more effectively with their partners towards pro-poor and sustainable agricultural development.     

Technological and policy options for sustainable agricultural intensification in eastern Uganda

This article presents a bio‐economic household model, which has been developed to assess the potential impacts of agricultural intensification efforts on economic and ecological indicators in eastern Uganda. A study region in the Lake Victoria Crescent was selected with comparative advantages for intensive agricultural production: high agricultural potential, high market access, and high population density. However, current production is characterized by low input–output systems revealing a discrepancy between development opportunities and actual development outcomes. Based on a farmer participatory research approach, production methods were introduced in the study region aimed at fostering sustainable agricultural development. Data from two community surveys, two comprehensive household and plot level surveys, and farm‐trial data were used to develop and calibrate bio‐economic models for four representative household types. Model scenarios reveal that farm households in eastern Uganda would not pursue sustainable intensification under current socio‐economic conditions. The market environment has to be improved substantially, i.e., transaction and transportation costs have to be reduced, innovative credit schemes for smallholders have to be introduced, and alternative forms of labor acquisition have to be promoted, to provide sufficient economic incentives for the adoption of environmentally sound production methods. In addition, agricultural service provision needs to be reformed and more agricultural research is needed for new and better‐targeted technologies.     

Greenhouse gas emissions and mitigation potential from fertilizer manufacture and application in India

Crop management research is increasingly involving farmers in evaluating new technologies, identifying adoption constraints and opportunities for improving farm performance to produce more sustainable impact. ICRISAT and its partners worked with farmers in Malawi and Zimbabwe during the 1999/2000 and 2000/2001 seasons to evaluate a range of ‘best bet’ soil fertility and water management technologies and evaluate the impact of farmer participatory research. Although there was some variation in methods implemented at different sites, the study found that there is a basis for a comparison of methods. Community entry and participatory approaches that engage farmers in decision making throughout the research-development-diffusion-innovation process have higher setup costs compared to traditional ‘top-down’ approaches. But they improve efficiency, both in technology development and in building farmers' capacity for experimentation and collective learning. This results in the development of more relevant technologies, joint learning among farmers, researchers and extensionists and better impact. To make farmer participatory research projects more sustainable and introduce them on a wide scale, the study recommends that public and NGO investments be targeted to building district and village-level innovation clusters.     

Exploring participation in a sustainable farming initiative with self-determination theory

Sustainable farming initiatives (SFIs), which aim to support farmers’ adoption of sustainable practices vary in the degree of farmer participation. In this study, we explored the influence of SFI design characteristics on farmer motivation to participate. Based on self-determination theory, we framed farmer participation by linking participants’ motives and motivational processes, participation context and participants’ perception of that context. Using a mixed-method investigation, we analysed Veldleeuwerik, a Dutch SFI with about 400 members. We observed four motive types, in order of importance: knowledge exchange, business opportunities, sustainability and social contact. By combining them with five types of motivational regulation, our research revealed that motives are directed by a diversity of underlying motivational processes, and that both are influenced by the participation context, or SFI design. Based on these results, we suggest that SFIs who wish to attract farmers who are not autonomously motivated for sustainability, need to rely on characteristics that meet either other motives than sustainability or other motivational processes than autonomous ones. To maintain participation, SFI characteristics should support autonomous motivational processes, by supporting the psychological basic needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness. The study illustrates how a socio-psychological perspective adds value to investigating SFI design characteristics for successful farmer participation.     

Food Sovereignty and Fome Zero: Connecting Public Food Procurement Programmes to Sustainable Rural Development in Brazil

The global discourse on food sovereignty suggests several mechanisms for improving food security and agricultural livelihoods, including redistributive land reform and restructuring of markets to improve food distribution and access. In Brazil, the Fome Zero (Zero Hunger) social welfare programme has created innovative links between public nutrition and food security programmes and rural development initiatives through mediated market support for the family farm sector. We report on a participatory assessment of the experience of land reform beneficiaries in seven municipalities in Mato Grosso, Brazil, who were contracted to produce food for the Programa de Aquisição de Alimentos (Food Procurement Programme, PAA) and the Programa Nacional de Alimentação Escolar (National School Feeding Programme, PNAE) under the umbrella of Fome Zero. This analysis offers insight into the opportunities and challenges related to participation in mediated ‘farm‐to‐institution’ food procurement programmes, and assesses their influence on key food sovereignty principles, including agro‐ecological transition, increased market stability and farmer autonomy.     

农机社会化服务对小麦生产技术效率的影响

目的 在中国土地规模经营和服务规模经营并重推进粮食作物效率提升背景下,进一步探讨农机社会化服务对小麦生产技术效率提升效应的规模异质性具有现实意义。方法 文章使用随机前沿分析和门限回归分析,利用2018年全国6省区小麦种植户经营情况,对农机社会化服务影响小麦生产技术效率及影响效果规模异质性进行研究。结果 农机社会化服务的采用有助于提升小麦生产技术效率;农机社会化服务对小麦生产技术效率存在门限效应,当农户经营规模低于门限值（0.293hm²）时,农机社会化服务对小麦生产技术效率不具有显著影响,跨越门限值后,农机社会化服务对小麦生产技术效率则具有正向影响效应。基于农户适度规模经营的情况下,农机社会化服务对中等规模（0.293hm²＜Area＜3.333hm²）农户的小麦生产技术效率具有显著正向影响。结论 农机社会化服务有助于提升中国小麦种植户技术效率,但受限于农户规模,推进农机社会化服务发展的同时仍然需要推动土地的适度规模经营。     

可行能力视角下农户参与农地整理规划的意愿与影响检验——基于安徽寿县4个典型镇的实证分析

[目的]提升农户参与的意愿与探寻有效参与机制。[方法]文章以安徽省寿县4个典型镇的147户农户与4个项目为调查对象,从农户的可行能力视角出发,运用Logistic模型研究农户参与农地整理规划意愿的驱动因素,运用ArcGIS10.0的空间分析功能检验农户参与对规划的影响。[结果]非农业收入比例、农地整理政策了解度、排灌沟渠布局、田间道路密度及公众参与机制等5类因素有显著推动作用;对规划的影响表现在较大程度优化了规划方案,提高了农地生产率等,但耕作田块扩大效应不显著、排灌沟渠存在空间集聚现象、偏好生产路建设及轻视田间林网工程建设等弊端制约了农业规模化经营、忽视规划全局性与环境效应等。[结论]可通过强化农地整理政策宣传力度、完善引导农户式的公众参与机制及基于农户可行能力视角构建农地整理规划效果的衡量尺度以提升农户参与的意愿与探寻有效参与机制。     

合作社参与对农户测土配方施肥技术采纳影响研究——基于标准化生产视角

本文基于收入最大化理论框架,以测土配方施肥技术为例,结合覆盖所有粮食主产区的微观调查数据,采用PSM模型实证分析了合作社参与对农户测土配方施肥技术的影响研究结果表明:(1)合作社参与有助于提升农户测土配方施肥技术采纳水平;(2)合作社不仅能够通过技术培训促使农户主动采纳测土配方施肥技术,更主要通过标准化生产让农户被动采纳测土配方施肥技术;(3)合作社促使参与经其销售农产品的农户采用测土配方施肥技术效果更显著;(4)合作社对小农户采用测土配方施肥技术的带动效果更明显。因此,要大力支持合作社发展,并不断提升合作社服务质量以及标准化生产水平,带动小农户参与绿色生产,实现农业可持续发展。     

When my neighbors matter: Spillover effects in the adoption of large-scale pesticide-free wheat production

We investigate the spillover effects in farmers’ adoption decisions of a novel pesticide-free wheat production system. To this end, we exploit the variability and asymmetry in the social ties among neighboring farmers. We find evidence of spillover effects in farmers’ adoption decisions as well as in farm and farmer characteristics. Our results further highlight the importance of accounting for potentially heterogeneous social ties in farmer networks beyond pure measures of spatial proximity: spillover effects are only robust once we account for the strength of social ties through farmers’ stated tendency to consult peers on agricultural decisions. Our findings highlight the relevance of peer influence in the diffusion of sustainable agriculture practices even in contexts of well-functioned institutions and high interest in environmental protection such as European agriculture. We discuss implications for the design of policies and programs for sustainable agriculture, which are currently in the center of attention in agricultural policymaking.     

Group heterogeneity and the economic effect of farmer organisation participation: Empirical evidence from Taiwan

We explore the effects of different farmer organisations on smallholder farmers' economic performance. The average treatment effect of switching between different farmer organisations is examined. In addition, based on the premise that a higher level of social capital is accumulated through participation in multiple farmer organisations, we also investigate how the economic consequences of farmer organisation membership vary with the intensity of participation. Our conceptual model explicitly includes social capital to provide a micro-foundation and a theoretical justification for the linkage between farmer organisation participation and the economic outcome. This indicates that participating in different types of farmer organisations is beneficial for farm households only when the returns from social capital investment outweigh the time cost of participation. Our empirical results suggest that membership of farmer organisations that are more homogeneous in terms of member specialty and similarity in production and marketing activities results in a significant increase in farm sales revenue and net returns. This result supports the view that technological proximity accentuates knowledge spillovers within the farmer organisations, and thus leads to better economic outcomes. In line with the prediction of the theoretical model, the average treatment effect of participation is found to increase with the number of organisations that farmers belong to. Moreover, results from the quantile regression provide empirical evidence supporting increasing returns to social capital accumulated through participation in several farmer organisations.     

现代农业产业园科技支撑体系建设现状、存在问题及对策

[目的]科技支撑是生产体系现代化的重要内容。而现代农业产业园作为农业先进生产力的代表，按照“生产+加工+科技”一体化发展要求，有效推动现代农业产业园发展，完善科技支撑体系建设是亟需解决的问题。[方法]文章以批准创建的200家国家现代农业产业园为研究对象，分析产业园科技支撑体系建设现状、存在问题及对策。[结果]截至2021年底，200个国家现代农业产业园组建主导产业专家团队约2 000多个、平均每个产业园约10个；农作物耕种收的综合机械化率平均值达到80%以上；50多个建立了大数据中心，实现生产技术服务全过程数字化管理。但科技支撑体系建设仍存在农业科技研发投入不足、农业科技资源集聚不足、农业科技体制机制不完善、农业科技人才缺乏等问题。[结论]提出应强化农业科技研发和投入、建设农业科技创新联盟、强化农业科技创新和科技成果转化服务、构建全产业链经营模式、加大引进农业科技人才等五个方面对策建议，以期为完善现代农业产业园科技支撑体系建设提供帮助。     

Further participatory adaptation is required for community leaders to champion conservation agriculture in Africa

There is a recognized need for the participation of local communities in designing and implementing agricultural interventions for the sustainable intensification in smallholder systems. This study examines the perspectives of local community leaders towards the widely promoted, but not widely adopted, practice of Conservation Agriculture (CA) in African smallholder systems. Perceptions from 47 community leaders (both from traditional local authorities and farmer organizations) across six African countries are documented regarding how CA matches the wants, needs and capabilities of farmers in their communities. While community leaders generally perceived CA as potentially beneficial, they also indicated that CA is not currently perceived as feasible within their communities and hence has limited relevance. Three key themes were identified that limit both CA use and sustainable intensification more generally: [1] a perceived reluctance of farmers to engage with the community platform as part of a higher input, market-oriented production system; [2] informational constraints due to non-functional exchange mechanisms; and [3] a lack of local adaptation of CA underscored by the persistence of top-down, linear research and extension approaches. Through greater understanding of local perspectives, a clearer picture emerges of the need for greater participatory engagement and local adaptation if sustainable intensification of African smallholder agricultural systems is to be achieved.     

我国现代农业发展的演进分析

社会的发展阶段是客观存在的.同样,现代农业也将随着社会的不断进步呈现不同的阶段特征.本文在诸多专家学者已有研究成果的基础上,根据各时期的政策背景农业生产形势,结合《全国现代农业发展规划(2011 ～2015年)》提出的粮食综合生产能力、农村居民人均纯收入、农业机械总动力、有效灌溉面积等几大现代农业发展量化指标,将我国新中国成立以来现代农业的发展历程划分为经济复苏阶段、高速起步阶段、波动上升阶段、整顿调整阶段和全面提升阶段,并概括描述了每一阶段的主要特征.通过对现代农业的历程分析,进一步提出了我国现代农业的发展的不协调状态的4种表现,即粮食连年增产与农业基础设施落后的不协调、农民纯收入的增长速度与来自农业生产的收入增长速度不协调、农业GDP在国家整个GDP中的比重与国家用于发展现代农业的资金比重不协调、农业科技进步率的连年提高与农业劳动力的素质下降不协调.     

The future of Russia’s agriculture and food industry between global opportunities and technological restrictions

This paper reports on the result of a major foresight exercise commissioned by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation on the prospective developments of the agriculture and food industry up to the year 2030. The exercise identified economic, technological, social and ecological trends that will greatly influence both supply and demand in the industry. The findings provide a decision base for policy-makers to improve the technology base and to ease the reliance on technology imports. The country’s agricultural producers have been struggling with the introduction of new technologies, and customers are showing conservative demand patterns. Previous research showed that technology transfer into Russian agricultural enterprises suffers from a low knowledge level especially in receiving organizations. The country’s own S&T system requires support both for technology development and technology transfer, especially for breeding of best-suited plants and animals for local circumstances. Furthermore, consumer behaviour could be influenced towards higher demand, for example, organic food or ethical husbandry.