Adoption Potential of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies for Smallholder Farmers in the Global South
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies with Adoption Potential for Smallholder Farmers in the Global South
2.1. Soil Heath and Moisture Technologies
- (1)
- Colorimeters, which are devices that identify soil color, an indicator of soil components and nutrient content [12,13]. These devices can be used by producers to analyze the soil components of a new segment of farmland or determine how soils on a familiar farm have changed due to crop rotations, weather, or other factors. Based on determining existing soil mineral content, farmers can design nutrient management plans for the crops that they intend to grow on the evaluated parcel of land.
- (2)
- Soil moisture sensors, which can be placed in the farm soil to measure the existing water content and track its levels throughout the course of a growing season [15]. Such monitoring can be critical for ensuring that planted crops have adequate water for growth, while also preventing overwatering.
- (3)
- Irrigation pump flow meters, whose role is to measure the water amount flowing through an irrigation pipe while irrigation is taking place [16,17]. Some functions of these meters may be autonomous to the farmer. Depending on the type, irrigation flow measures can be sent to a controller and then be utilized by the farmer for various purposes such as estimating water supply and demand balances for different time periods, and planning future irrigation flow provisions based on supplementary information such as current water and crop needs within the irrigation area.
2.2. Crop Production and Nutrient Management Technologies
- (1)
- Direct seeders, of two types: rolling seeders that can be pushed and function like drill seeders pulled behind tractors; and handheld seeders that pierce the ground and directly implant a seed below the soil surface in line with the impact point [18,19,20]. These technologies are essential in no/reduced tillage systems because crop residues that remain when the soil is not tilled can prevent seeds from directly entering the soil using methods such as broadcast seeding by hand.
- (2)
- Handheld crop sensors, that are used after the plant has emerged to measure plant health and determine potential nutrient requirements. Specifically, handheld crop sensors translate crop light reflectance readings into estimation of an associated normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) measure, which is an indicator of plant growth and health [21,22]. After placing the sensor in the advised manner over a plant, the device provides a NDVI estimate that farmers can use to calculate the amount of supplemental nitrogen needed for the remainder of the growing season [22].
- (3)
- A remote sensing device, a small drone, for which the more affordable versions are in the form of a multibladed rotary copter, that can be flown over a farm and take either images or pixelated light reflectance sensor recordings over the flown area [23,24]. Drone images and/or reflectance measures of plant growth can be obtained over a wider area and in a more standardized fashion than manual crop monitoring. This information can be useful for forming yield expectations and implementing nutrient and/or pest management interventions in particular farm areas where plant growth is relatively low [23,24].
2.3. Aligned Sustainability-Related Agriculture Strategies and Tools
- (1)
- Irrigation Scheduler: which is aligned with the use of a soil moisture sensor and/or an irrigation pump flow meter. This web-based platform assists with planning and implementing irrigation activities at specific times based on the readings of soil sensors regarding soil water content [25]. Planning for irrigation activities based on actual and anticipated soil conditions can help preserve water and ensure that soil-based nutrients remain accessible for plants (i.e., reducing runoff and leaching into groundwater and/or surface water) [26].
- (2)
- Yield Mapping, in which actual farm yields are represented spatially on a map based on current crop conditions [27]. The most typical type of yield map displays whole field yield variation based on harvest data. These maps can be used for such purposes as identifying areas where there may be a problem such as a lack of water drainage. However, once multiple years of yield maps are created and NDVI data are also obtained during the growing season for the same field, then a farmer could combine historical yield data with current NDVI data to produce maps of estimated yields for the current crop year in advance of the harvest. Since NDVI is correlated with plant growth and health, the NDVI value associated with each pixel can be translated into a plant growth/health or yield estimate [18]. Mapping expected yield for an entire farm allows producers to plan for harvest (e.g., necessary equipment and labor), post-harvest (such as crop storage capacity), and marketing.
- (3)
- Satellite Remote Sensing data, which can be used simultaneously with several of the nutrient management technologies in Table 1—especially small drones. These web-based data are particularly useful because they are typically downloadable in the form of pixelated NDVI sensor maps that can be used in combination with analogous drone-based field level data to potentially extrapolate yield mapping over larger areas [27]. While satellite remote sensing data observation units are much larger than those at the field scale on a small drone, they are available for the entire globe and so are universal regarding their ability to provide information on plant growth in an area of observation. Additionally, much satellite remote sensing data are publicly available for free download, which means the barriers for use are existing computer hardware, internet access, and some training for tasks such as image file conversion and interpretation [27].
3. Barriers to Adoption and Effective Usage of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies in the Global South
3.1. Economic and Infrastructure Constraints
3.2. Farmers’ Attitude towards Technological Adoption
3.3. Education and Information on Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies
4. Strategies for Overcoming Barriers to Adoption and Effective Usage of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies
- (1)
- Governmental support is cited as a key instrument to encourage sustainability efforts. Subsidy policies may help decrease the investment cost on these types of technologies [40], and publicly facilitated access to credit for smallholder farmers can help them to overcome private financial market limitations. Research suggests that collective adoption of sustainability-related agriculture practices can increase overall farm sector profitability as it also leads to stronger market integration [31].
- (2)
- Dissemination of information on sustainability-related technologies through education and outreach programs can help communicate the advantages and the appropriate uses of sustainability-related agricultural practices. Extension specialists may also meet with local farmers and associations to discuss their potential problems so they can receive instruction regarding how sustainability-related agriculture technologies can be adapted to fit within their existing farm systems [28,39]. Agricultural extension systems can play a particularly key role in implementing experiments that allow for determination of effective usage of the new technologies in the agroecological contexts and farming systems that predominate in a region. A main example is the implementation of field trials using the new technology and then implementing educational dissemination activities to describe the usage requirements and observed effects of the technology on farm outcomes [44].
5. Implications of Adoption of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies on Food and Nutrition Security
6. Concluding Remarks
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Technology | Description | Use in Crop Cycle | Approximate Cost of Most Affordable Version (USD) | Complementary Technologies |
---|---|---|---|---|
Soil health and moisture | ||||
Colorimeter | Device that identifies soil color, which is an indicator of soil mineral content [12,13]. | Assess existing soil minerals to determine nutrient application needs [14] | $300 | Depending on type: computer or Android or Apple smartphone. |
Soil moisture sensor | Device placed in the soil that measure the soil water content and transmit measurements to a data logging unit [15]. | Irrigation management and scheduling [15]. | Less than $100 | Depending on type: soil sensor reader device. |
Irrigation pump flow meter | Device that is connected to an irrigation water pipe and measures the volume of water flowing through the pipe and sends information to an irrigation controller [16,17]. | Management of irrigation water allocations and planning to ensure adequate soil moisture for crop cultivation [17]. | $200 | Irrigation controller. Some compatible with smartphone. |
Crop production and nutrient management | ||||
Push/rolling or handheld direct seeder | Handheld or push rolling device that punches through crop residue (e.g., farm ground with no or reduced tillage) and plants seed directly into the soil [18,19,20] | Planting row or specialty crops [18,19,20]. | $30 | None. |
Handheld crop sensor | Handheld device with sensor that measures plant reflectance via estimation of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) [21,22]. | Estimate growing season Nitrogen (N) needs for crops [21,22]. | $500 | Android or Apple smartphone, if data logging is desired. |
Small drone | Multibladed small rotary copter with camera and/or sensor and GPS system to capture low altitude images of vegetation [23,24]. | Monitor crop growing conditions; form yield expectations; plan nutrient or other interventions [23,24]. | $300 | Depending on type: computer or Android or Apple smartphone. |
Food and Nutrition Security Pillars | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Technology | Availability | Access | Utilization | Stability |
Colorimeter | Indirect | Indirect | N/A | Indirect |
Soil moisture sensor | Direct | Indirect | N/A | Direct |
Irrigation pump flow meter | Indirect | Indirect | N/A | Indirect |
Push/rolling or handheld direct seeder | Direct | Indirect | N/A | Direct |
Handheld crop sensor | Direct | Indirect | N/A | Direct |
Small drone | Direct | Indirect | N/A | Direct |
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Hatzenbuehler, P.; Peña-Lévano, L. Adoption Potential of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies for Smallholder Farmers in the Global South. Sustainability 2022, 14, 13176. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142013176
Hatzenbuehler P, Peña-Lévano L. Adoption Potential of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies for Smallholder Farmers in the Global South. Sustainability. 2022; 14(20):13176. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142013176
Chicago/Turabian StyleHatzenbuehler, Patrick, and Luis Peña-Lévano. 2022. "Adoption Potential of Sustainability-Related Agriculture Technologies for Smallholder Farmers in the Global South" Sustainability 14, no. 20: 13176. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142013176