Abstract
Tef is a major staple crop in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Many improved Tef varieties were released from the Ethiopian research institute in the past three decades. Information on the farmers’ adoption status and perception on released improved Tef technology have paramount importance for launching new and modifying Tef technology packages. However, such information is meager in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study was conducted to assess farmers’ status and perception of improved Tef technologies. A multistage random sampling technique was employed to select sample of 224 Tef grower farmers. The results were interpreted and discussed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The result indicated that farmers in the study area found at the medium level of adoption of Tef production technology (i.e., the average adoption index is 0.43). The findings also confirm that farmers perception towards the relative advantages of improved Tef varieties shows that high grain yield, good germination, early mature, and disease resistance capacity were perceived as the most crucial attributes of improved Tef varieties, whereas straw quality and tolerance to lodging were perceived as the least important attributes of the technology. Therefore, efforts and commitments to be expected from plant breeders and genetic specialists to reduce lodging of Tef through hybridizing semidwarf Tef varieties.
Highlights
Tef is a major staple crop in Ethiopia and Eritrea
In Ethiopia, a total of 3.07 million hectares of land were covered in Tef in the 2018/19 cropping season
In the Amhara region of Ethiopia, Tef contributes 25.4% in area coverage, 32% of the total production in the 2018/19 cropping season, and 2.5 million rural households of Ethiopia were engaged in Tef cultivation [4]
Summary
Tef is a major staple crop in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Many improved Tef varieties were released from the Ethiopian research institute in the past three decades. In the Amhara region of Ethiopia, Tef contributes 25.4% in area coverage, 32% of the total production in the 2018/19 cropping season, and 2.5 million rural households of Ethiopia were engaged in Tef cultivation [4]. Tef is a major staple crop in Ethiopia and Eritrea It is the most important crop in terms of production value and cultivation area with excellent storage properties, highquality food, and the unique ability to thrive in extreme environmental conditions [1]. Tef cultivation is spreading to other parts of the world (i.e., Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, South Africa, and the USA) Tef is one of the major gluten-free cereal crops [7]) free food, malting, and brewing [7]
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have