Abstract
The UK is the largest lamb meat producer in Europe. However, the low profitability of sheep farming sector suggests production efficiency could be improved. Although the use of technologies such as Electronic Identification (EID) tools could allow a better use of flock resources, anecdotal evidence suggests they are not widely used. The aim of this study was to assess uptake of EID technology, and explore drivers and barriers of adoption of related tools among English and Welsh farmers. Farm beliefs and management practices associated with adoption of this technology were investigated. A total of 2000 questionnaires were sent, with a response rate of 22%. Among the respondents, 87 had adopted EID tools for recording flock information, 97 intended to adopt it in the future, and 222 neither had adopted it, neither intended to adopt it. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and multivariable logistic regression modelling were used to identify farmer beliefs and management practices significantly associated with adoption of EID technology. EFA identified three factors expressing farmer’s beliefs–external pressure and negative feelings, usefulness and practicality. Our results suggest farmer’s beliefs play a significant role in technology uptake. Non-adopters were more likely than adopters to believe that ‘government pressurise farmers to adopt technology’. In contrast, adopters were significantly more likely than non-adopters to see EID as practical and useful (p≤0.05). Farmers with higher information technologies literacy and intending to intensify production in the future were significantly more likely to adopt EID technology (p≤0.05). Importantly, flocks managed with EID tools had significantly lower farmer- reported flock lameness levels (p≤0.05). These findings bring insights on the dynamics of adoption of EID tools. Communicating evidence of the positive effects EID tools on flock performance and strengthening farmer’s capability in use of technology are likely to enhance the uptake of this technology in sheep farms.
Highlights
The United Kingdom (UK) is the largest lamb meat producer in Europe and the fourth largest worldwide
These farmers were more likely to see Electronic Identification (EID) technology as an extra burden for farmers, complex, and had higher level of distrust and scepticism in current technology. This is consistent with the ‘Technology Readiness Index’ (TRI) paradigm, which argues that discomfort and insecurity towards a technology act as inhibitors of acceptance and have a negative relationship with technology adoption [19,24]
There is anecdotal evidence that legislation related to implementation of sheep EID in the UK was not well accepted among some farmers, who saw it as an extra bureaucratic burden with no clear benefits
Summary
The United Kingdom (UK) is the largest lamb meat producer in Europe and the fourth largest worldwide. Despite the great size of British sheep breeding flock, sheep farming is traditionally a sector with lower profit margins than other livestock sectors such as dairy or pig farming [1,2,3,4]. Low margins coupled with heavy reliance on support payments [5] suggests there is room for increased production efficiencies in the sheep farming sector. Low record keeping traditionally seen on sheep farms is likely to be a missed opportunity on the identification of less efficiently used farm resources [5,6]. The use of technologies such as Electronic Identification (EID) tools simplify recording and retrieval of flock information and allow datadriven management decisions, anecdotal evidence suggest that its adoption has not been extensive, despite levy boards promotion actions in that direction. Uptake rates have not been formally investigated in the UK
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