Knowledge and Attitude of Malaysian Fruit Growers on Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

Abstract

Integrated pest management (IPM) is a sustainable approach for pest control. However, the adoption of IPM remains low in Malaysia. The main objectives of this study were to identify the knowledge level and attitude of Malaysian fruit farmers on IPM. A total number of 150 respondents were selected through a non-random sampling method and the data was collected through an online questionnaire. The knowledge level and attitude of the respondents were accessed on a scoring scale of one to five. The respondents recorded a moderate knowledge of IPM with a mean score of 3.36. However, farmers showed poor knowledge on different modes of action of pesticides (2.25), and the ability to identify insect pests (2.25). The respondents showed a positive attitude on IPM with a mean score of 3.58. Among the attitude aspects, farmers displayed a positive attitude on the cost-effectiveness of IPM (3.53) and are willing to learn and adopt IPM practices (4.35). The Spearman’s correlation test revealed that there was no significant correlation between age and educational level of farmers on their knowledge on IPM. The findings of this study could assist in the development of IPM programs for better country wide IPM adoption.