The Adoption of Conservation Practices and Program Participation among Socially Disadvantaged Agricultural Producers: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

As climate change has become undeniable in recent years, it has become increasingly important for the agriculture industry to address conservation. Within the agriculture industry, small farmers are usually the ones who take on this burden on a daily basis. However, some socially disadvantaged agricultural producers face unique challenges compared to the average farmer, which may impede their ability to adopt the necessary conservation practices or participate in conservation programs. This review sought to provide a definitive economic analysis on the possible effect of race on conservation adoption and program participation, as there is not much research on this topic. This analysis shows that race alone does not significantly impact on conservation adoption and program participation amongst socially disadvantaged agricultural producers. However, the sample size provided in this analysis is small and does not represent the current reality of socially disadvantaged agricultural producers living in the United States today. Whenever race was observed in the literature, the meta-analysis concluded that race did not significantly influence conservation adoption and program participation. Due to the small sample size and lack of abundant research, this result may not reflect socially disadvantaged agricultural producers living today, who have historically been underrepresented by the agriculture industry at large.