Abstract
Extension services play a crucial role by improving skills and access to information that result in greater farm level innovations, especially on family farms which are the predominant form of agriculture in the world. This study analyzed the connection between strategies implemented by extension services and technology adoption on family farms. Using the case of the Servicio de Asesoría Técnica (SAT) Program, we developed a bottom-up adoption index (AI) for vegetable and berry farmers in three regions of Central Chile. We implemented 10 focus groups totaling 101 participants, all recipients of technical assistance from private extension companies (PECs) funded by the SAT Program. After the focus group sessions, we surveyed participating farmers to gather information on socio-economic attributes and adopted technologies. Using cluster analysis, we identified three groups of farmers according to their adoption intensity. The results indicate that extension strategies used by PECs have distinct effects on the adoption of new technologies. Higher adoption indexes were positively associated with the duration of the extension visits, the number of group activities, and the use of incentives and credits provided by the Chilean government. The value of production and farm size were positively associated with adoption intensity.
Highlights
The development of agriculture depends largely on access to new technologies and information which can be greatly facilitated by extension services [1,2,3]
It is clear that the Servicio de Asesoría Técnica (SAT) Program and the private extension companies (PECs) involved in providing extension assistance did not pay attention to soil and water conservation practices, even though many traditional agricultural practices contribute to soil degradation [38,39]
We developed a bottom-up technology adoption index (AI) in order to analyze the connection between the strategies implemented by extension services and the adoption of 30 practices among small-scale farmers in Central Chile
Summary
The development of agriculture depends largely on access to new technologies and information which can be greatly facilitated by extension services [1,2,3]. Because family farm agriculture (FFA) usually has limited access to markets and services [2,5], the delivery of high-quality extension can be a suitable policy to improve access to information and technology among this group of producers. FFA often encounters restricted access to extension services because of the inability or unwillingness to pay for them, the lack of providers, and limited incentives from public institutions. Previous studies have shown that once delivery barriers are overcome, investments in extension yield high rates of return [6].
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