Impacts of Extension Contact on the Adoption of Formulated Fertilizers and Farm Performance among Large-Scale Farms in Rural China

Abstract

Growing concerns about the environmental costs of agricultural production have given new impetus to the promotion of sustainable agricultural production technologies that can reduce soil erosion and the excessive use of agricultural chemicals. Although numerous policies have been implemented to popularize soil testing and formulated fertilization technologies in China, the diffusion of the technology among large-scale farmers (LSFs) has been addressed only rarely. We used a two-stage controlled function model to control for endogeneity and selection bias in contacting extension staff to assess the effect of an extension contact on technology adoption behavior by LSFs, Propensity Score Matching techniques are also utilized to analyze the effects of extension contact on the rice yields and nutrient use amount. Empirical results from Jiangsu and Jiangxi provinces show that extension contact plays a crucial role in promoting soil testing and the adoption of formulated fertilization technologies; LSFs’ adoption raises rice yields, however, the impact of extension contact on reducing nutrient use amount does not pass the significance test. The findings add to the theoretical literature on technology extension, and we used them to suggest policies to encourage tailored agricultural extension systems by constructing rural technological extension networks.

Agricultural extension service, technology adoption, and production risk nexus: Evidence from Bangladesh

“…The perceived attributes of technology can drive individual variations in the propensity to adopt [ 32 ], thus resulting in different adopters and non-adopters in our conceptual model. Extension services can positively influence technology adoption among farmers [ 10 , 33 ]. Further, we assume adoption influences production risk, a significant issue of concern for rice farmers.…”

The Impact of Different Uses of the Internet on Farmers′ Adoption of Soil Testing and Formulated Fertilization Technology in Rural China

“…Another is the household characteristics of farmers, including household size [14], household income, part-time employment, and non-farm labor [15][16][17][18]. The third one is the production and operation characteristics, including farming experience [19], land operation scale [20], land fragmentation [21], land right stability [22], land ownership [23], land transfer [24], cooperative membership [7,25], extension contact [26], and peer effects [27].…”