Farmers’ Perceptions and Willingness of Compost Production and Use to Contribute to Environmental Sustainability

Mohammed Bourhia,Lahcen Ouahmane,Mustapha Taleb,Mounia El Haji,Mohamed Ben Abbou,Mohamed Khalis,Ahmad El Askary,Zakia Rais,Zineb Majbar,Amany S Khalifa,Fatima-Zahra El Madani,Arwa Abdulkreem Al-Huqail,El Batoul Majbar,Kenza Lahlou

doi:10.3390/su132313335

Abstract

Composting is an ecological method of recycling organic waste. It presents an effective solution to reduce the large volume of agricultural waste and provides an organic fertilizer and soil amendment. However, its implementation remains limited, especially in Morocco. The vast majority of farmers are unaware of the effectiveness of compost, and it is often considered as an inefficient product compared with chemical fertilizers. In order to develop a local marketing strategy for compost, this study aims to identify the perceptions and willingness of farmers to produce and use compost in agriculture, and to assess the factors shaping these perceptions and willingness, including socio-economic, agricultural and individual factors. The case of Morocco is investigated, where the vast majority of farmers practice inappropriate disposal of agricultural waste and excessive use of agro-chemicals. Data are collected using a standard questionnaire and face-to-face interviews with 350 farmers during their visit to the international agricultural exhibition in Morocco. Descriptive statistics and analysis of variance (ANOVA) are used for data analysis. The results showed a high level (80%) of acceptance by farmers of the production and use of compost. Farmers are also very willing to produce and use compost in agriculture. All the socio-economic, individual and agricultural factors, except gender, length of experience and cultivated area, had a highly significant influence on farmers’ perception and willingness to produce compost (p < 0.005). The positive perceptions of farmers and the high level of willingness to produce compost imply that the composting of organic waste should be encouraged by our local authorities. The production of compost will thus contribute to environmental sustainability and to the promotion of the ecological management of agricultural waste meeting the requirements of a circular economy.

Highlights

In the past decades, an ever-increasing production of waste has been spread all over the world
According to the report of the World Bank Group [9], the cost of environmental degradation at the national level is estimated at 3.52% of the GDP, i.e., MAD 32.5 billion, of which poor waste management practices represent a relatively significant cost of degradation estimated at MAD 3.7 billion representing 0.4% of GDP
Given the limited amount of Moroccan research examining farmers’ willingness to produce or use compost, this study considers it necessary to identify farmers’ perceptions and willingness to produce and use compost on a national level

Summary

Introduction

An ever-increasing production of waste has been spread all over the world. As wastes are always considered either unusable or disposable, its disposal causes serious environmental problems and harmful effects on human health. These wastes include all residues and effluents generated by various human activities, generally of plant or animal origin, and may even be in liquid, solid or sludge form [1,2,3], Only 37% of the waste generated is disposed of in controlled landfills, while the majority is disposed of in uncontrolled landfills [5] These inadequate and poor waste management practices result in a multiplicity of adverse impacts on the environment. Good waste management is necessary to reduce or eliminate all environmental risks

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