Adoption and Use Intensity of Sustainable Agricultural Practices (SAP) Among Young Rice Farmers in Ogun State, Nigeria: A Double Hurdle Approach

Abstract

The study analysed the factors influencing the adoption and intensity of Sustainable Agricultural Practices (SAP) among young rice farmers in Ogun State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was employed in selecting 94 respondents for the study. Data was collected with the use of a structured interview schedule. Frequency counts, percentages, mean scores, and probit-Tobit ‘censored’ double hurdle regression were used to analyse the data. The findings revealed that most (73.4 %) of the respondents cultivated Ofada rice varieties on an average farm size of 1.1 hectares and reaped an average of 2.6 tonnes per hectare, mostly cultivated under a rain-fed system. SAP adopted and used by the respondents include farm planning and use of cropping calendar (97.9 %), planting at appropriate spacing (100 %), appropriate use of agrochemicals (100 %), selection of sites, dominated clay-loamy soil for planting (WMS = 1.93), timely planting (WMS = 2.62), market demand/supply trend, and quality improvement for rice (WMS = 2.60). The result of the double-hurdle regression revealed that years of education (β = 1.9313; 0.0144), farm size (β = 0.0339; 0.1444), and output (β = 0.2629; 0.0072) influenced the adoption and intensity of use of SAP. Based on the findings, the study recommends that the above factors should be considered by extension institutions in efforts to sustain continuous adoption of the practices for sustainable production in the study area.