Agricultural Innovation: A comparative analysis of economic benefits gained by farmers under climate resilient and conventional agricultural practices

Abstract

Cotton producers in Pakistan must manage many concerns, for example, climate change, traditional agricultural management practices and depletion of land resources i.e. land, and water have resulted in low productivity and pose the largest challenge ever to the sustainability of cotton production in Pakistan. Sustainable land and water (SL&W) management practices of climate resilient agriculture (CRA) such as irrigation (laser land levelling, bed sowing, and drainage management), soil (minimum tillage), and crop (flood and drought tolerant varieties) management practices are recognized as the most efficient and sustainable, particularly for growing cotton. Using cross-sectional data from cotton-growing districts of Punjab, this study attempted to estimate and compare the economic benefits of SL&W management practices of CRA and conventional agricultural practices. The study also estimated the impact of technical training, SL&W management practices of CRA and changing soil quality to improve cotton productivity and sustainability in Punjab, Pakistan. The economic analysis showed that the adopters of CRA have significantly higher economic benefits from one hectare of cotton compared with non-adopters. The economic benefits of adopters significantly increased after implementing SL&W management practices of CRA. Additionally, this study also explores the SL&W management practices; technical training regarding SL&W management practices of CRA; access to credit; varying soil quality; and other inputs lead to significant variation in cotton productivity. The most important implications are that cotton farmers improved productivity through the SL&W management practices of CRA. Hence, proved that CRA are economically, financially, and environmentally, desirable. The findings of the study in a nutshell also reveal that CRA have an absolute advantage over traditional cotton farming.