The impact of information and other factors on on-farm agrobiodiversity conservation : evidence from a duration analysis of Portuguese fruit growers

Abstract

In spite of the increasing awareness of the importance of in situ and on-farm conservation of agro biodiversity, there is still limited knowledge about the factors that influence farmers’ choices in variety adoption. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the factors that influence farmers’ adoption of traditional varieties of fruit trees so that better and more effective policy measures aiming at their preservation can be designed. While studies in this area have mainly employed standard probit/logit techniques, in this paper, an econometric technique which addresses simultaneously the issue of sample censoring and the joint determination of the occurrence and timing of adoptions —duration analysis— was applied. The use of this technique in the analysis of adoption data uncovers a sizably higher effect of information on farmers’ decisions than that obtained by standard approaches. The results strongly support the idea that good extension services providing reliable and accessible information, as well as technical guidance adapted to local conditions, are fundamental components in determining the adoption of landraces.