Drivers of Adoption Intensity of BRRI Released Modern Aus Rice Varieties: Evidence from Smallholders Farmers in Jamalpur District of Bangladesh

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine factors influencing the intensity of BRRI cultivar adoption in the Aus season on farm households in the Jamalpur district. The data were collected through structured questionnaires from 200 randomly selected rice farmers from three upazilas in the Jamalpur district. The study employed descriptive statistics and Tobit-censored regression to determine the adoption and the intensity of the adoption. In addition, ten FGDs and expert panel interviews were conducted to verify the collected data. The results show that 88.04% of the area in Jamalpur district was cultivated with rice varieties developed by the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), with an average yield of 3.85 t/ha during the Aus season. The findings of the Tobit censored regression indicate that schooling, distance to the local market, distance to UAO, training, price variation, taste and preference, number of cultivated varieties, and yield variability were the significant factors of the intensity of BRRI variety adoption in the Aus season. The study's results suggested that breeders should also emphasise farmers' choices while developing varieties. In addition to developing new rice varieties, BRRI, the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), Bangladesh Agricultural Corporation (BADC), and other seed-producing organisations need to work together to provide the farmers with good-quality seeds of BRRI varieties, which will increase the country's total production and thus help to ensure food safety.