Farmers' perception of coconut mite damage and crop diversification alternatives in the coastal belt of Tanzania

Oleke, J.M.; Isinika, Aida; Manyong, Victor; Hanna, Rachid; Sabelis, Maurice W.

doi:10.1080/01647954.2012.682093

Cited by 10 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…The size of land holdings under cashew cultivation in our study site are similar to across other regions such as Tanzania, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau [28][29][30], Brazil [26,27] and Indonesia [25].…”

Section: Present-day Cashew Farming Systems In Sawantwadi-dodamargsupporting

confidence: 59%

“…Cashew grows well in poor, nutrient-deficient soils and does not need intensive labour for most part of the year except during the harvest season [21]. Majority of cashew cultivation across the tropics is carried out in small-scale farms as opposed to large-scale, industrial plantations [25][26][27][28][29][30]. The two main products from cashew trees are cashew nuts and the cashew apple or pedicel [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

Rege¹,

Lee²

2021

Preprint

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Agricultural commodity production is an important source of livelihood for farmers but is a major driver of tropical deforestation and biodiversity loss. While the socioecological effects of agricultural commodities such as palm oil, cocoa and coffee have been well studied, the effects for other commodities such as cashew (Anacardium occidentale) have received less attention. Global cultivated area for cashew increased rapidly from 526,250 ha in 1980 to ~5.9 million ha in 2018. India is the world’s second largest cashew producer, with cashew farms often occurring adjacent to ever dwindling cover of remnant forests. To mitigate cashew expansion at the expense of forests, it is necessary to understand land use policies that drive the expansion of cashew cultivation and the land management practices in present-day cashew farm systems. Through semi-structured interviews (n=65) and a literature review on agricultural policies in India, we evaluated the role of state-led land use policies in cashew expansion and characterised present-day cashew farming systems in the Sawantwadi-Dodamarg landscape in a biodiversity hotspot in northern Western Ghats. Agricultural subsidies introduced from 1980 to 1990 encouraged cultivar cashew expansion and influenced land use conversion from rice and privately owned forest to cashew. Farmers grew a mix of common and cultivar cashew but the latter was preferred as they produced high yields over short duration, even though they required agrochemical inputs and are more susceptible to pests and wildlife-induced losses. About 80% of farmers had cashew farms that were planted over forests in the past 30 years and expressed interest to continue forest clearing for cultivar cashew expansion. Although farmers incurred high losses from crop depredation on cultivar cashew, they avoided applying for government-sponsored compensation for these losses and chose to expand cultivar cashew into forested areas. Our study deepens the understanding of how government-led agricultural subsidies drive farmers’ uptake of cashew cultivars, farmers’ practices on cashew management, and how these factors at the state and farm level drive deforestation in this landscape. We recommend further research in cashew farming systems to devise sound conservation planning that is inclusive of stakeholders for the protection of privately owned forests and sustainability standards for the cashew industry.

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Section: Present-day Cashew Farming Systems In Sawantwadi-dodamargsupporting

confidence: 59%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

Rege¹,

Lee²

2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The size of land holdings under cashew cultivation in our study site are similar to across other regions such as Tanzania, Ghana, Guinea- Bissau [ 28 – 30 ], Brazil [ 26 , 27 ] and Indonesia [ 25 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 53%

“…Cashew grows well in poor, nutrient-deficient soils and does not need intensive labour for most part of the year except during the harvest season [ 21 ]. Majority of cashew cultivation across the tropics is carried out in small-scale farms as opposed to large-scale, industrial plantations [ 25 – 30 ]. The two main products from cashew trees are cashew nuts and the cashew apple or pedicel [ 21 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

Rege

Lee

2022

PLoS ONE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Agricultural commodity production constitutes an important livelihood source for farmers but significantly contributes to tropical deforestation and biodiversity loss. While the socioecological effects of agricultural commodities such as palm oil, cocoa and coffee are well studied, the effects for commodities such as cashew (Anacardium occidentale) have received less attention. Global cultivated area for cashew increased rapidly from 526,250 ha in 1980 to ~5.9 million ha in 2018. India is the world’s second largest cashew producer, with cashew farms often occurring adjacent to remnant forests. To mitigate deforestation for cashew expansion, it is necessary to understand present-day land use policies and management practices that drive this expansion. Through semi-structured interviews (n = 65) and a literature review on agricultural policies in India, we evaluated the role of state-led land use policies in cashew expansion and characterised present-day cashew farming systems in the Sawantwadi-Dodamarg landscape in India. Agricultural subsidies introduced from 1980s to 1990s encouraged cultivar cashew expansion and influenced land use conversion from rice and privately owned forest to cashew. Farmers preferred cultivar cashew as they produced higher yields faster, although they required more agrochemical inputs and were susceptible to pests and wildlife depredation. About 80% of farmers had planted cashew farms by clearing forests in the past 30 years and expressed interest to continue the same. Farmers avoided applying for government-sponsored compensation for crop losses due to wildlife depredation and chose instead to expand cultivar cashew into forested areas. Our study deepens the understanding of how government-led agricultural subsidies drive farmers’ uptake of cashew cultivars, farmers’ cashew management practices, and how these factors drive deforestation in this landscape at the state and farm level. We recommend further research with equitable stakeholder participation in cashew farming systems to devise sound planning for forest conservation and sustainability standards for the cashew industry.

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“…The results of this study contradict this suggestion, since intercropping increased the odds of high disease incidence. In line with this, Oleke et al (2012) found that intercropping coconut with cassava, maize, cashew nut, sorghum and/or pineapples served as alternative crops used by farmers to cope with declining coconut production, caused by coconut mite and lethal yellowing disease in Tanzania. However, the practices were not promising as part of the disease management strategy.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Effect of farming practices and farm history on incidence of coconut lethal yellowing in Mozambique

Bila¹,

Persson²,

Högberg³

et al. 2016

Afr. Crop Sci. J.

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Farmers' perception of coconut mite damage and crop diversification alternatives in the coastal belt of Tanzania

Cited by 10 publications

References 11 publications

State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

Effect of farming practices and farm history on incidence of coconut lethal yellowing in Mozambique

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