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Purpose: Rice agroecosystems must grow sustainably to meet the increasing demand for food. A fish-rice co-culture was introduced to conserve rice agroecosystems in farming communities. This study aims to assess the technical, socio-economic and environmental outcomes as the pillars of sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: This study employs a mixed qualitative-quantitative approach to assess a sustainable intensification programme's impact on sustainability. Data were collected using group discussions and self-assessment surveys. The study sites cover East Java and West Java provinces. Findings: This study found that rice-fish co-culture improved the sustainability of the farming system. Farmers applied pest and disease management and partially substituted inorganic fertilisers with organic ones. The outcomes were apparent in the diversity of harvested products. Economically, the rice yield increased, the production costs decreased and the resultant increased income. Environmentally, the fish-rice co-culture was sound because of ecological inputs. The population of natural enemies of pests increased. Socially, fish-rice co-culture was acceptable to the community since there was no conflict with the local governments, local norms and religions and the existing farming practices of other crops. Research limitations/implications: This study was based on five groups as case studies, such that the result might not represent the general condition. Originality/value: The study's methodology was supported by valid economic theories and data directly gathered from farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smallholder farmers in Ghana’s Savannah ecological zone face multiple climate stressors. Government and non-governmental organizations have introduced educative demonstrations on sustainable agriculture practices to help them cope. However, the effectiveness of these strategies in enhancing smallholder farmers’ climate resilience needs examination. Our study, guided by the Resilience Theory (RT), aimed to explore factors that shape smallholder farmers’ climate resilience and how their participation in Farmer Field Schools (FFSs) and Climate Action Plans (CAPs) affect their resilience to climate change. We analyzed data from a cross-sectional survey of 517 smallholder farmers in the Upper West region of Ghana using ordered logistic regression. Our findings showed that smallholder farmers’ “good” climate change resilience was associated with participation in Farmer Field Schools (OR: 7.809, p < 0.001) and active involvement in Climate Action Plans (OR: 1.976, p < 0.01). In addition, household food security (OR: 4.412, p < 0.001), access to credit (OR: 1.761, p < 0.01), and larger household sizes (OR: 2.255, p < 0.01) were associated with “good” climate resilience. However, larger land size (OR: 0.988, p < 0.01) and attainment of primary education (OR: 0.497, p < 0.01) showed a lesser likelihood of having “good” climate resilience. The study highlights the importance of practical learning platforms and participatory planning in improving climate resilience among smallholder farmers. Policies and programs should support these initiatives, improve resource accessibility, and tailor educational approaches. Our recommendations include expanding FFSs, integrating CAPs with agricultural services, developing scalable, adaptable, and sustainable agricultural practices, enhancing resource accessibility, and implementing monitoring and evaluation systems for these initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study assessed the Farmer Field Schools (FFS) activities as a strategy to enhance capacity building of rural smallholder cocoa farmers in Kwara State, Nigeria. A descriptive survey to enhance the capacity to conduct the research. A purposive sampling procedure was used to select 160 smallholder rural cocoa farmers who participated in the FFS activities in Kwara State. A structured interview schedule was used to collect the data from the respondents. Data were gathered on the socio-economic characteristics of smallholder cocoa farmers and the skills provided by FFS to smallholder cocoa farmers. Data was analyzed using mean, frequency counts, percentages, and chi-square at 0.05 level of significance. The result revealed that 91.3% were male, while 8.7% were female. The result showed that all the skills needed were provided by FFS. The results showed that FFS activities had a significant relationship with the FFS skills provided and the training needs of the rural smallholder cocoa farmers with a p-value of 0.001 being < 0.05. The findings concluded that farmer field school activities had a positive relationship between the skills provided and the training needs of cocoa farmers and this is because the skills provided by FFS are in line with the training needs of cocoa farmers. The study recommends that the Kwara State Ministry of Agriculture through the FFS should continue to serve as a training base that involves more farmers in the program and encourage extension service delivery to encourage capacity building and increase productivity.

The spread of ill information with or without the intention of deceiving or causing harm has negatively impacted agricultural development both in social and digital spaces. This has led to a lack of trust in adopting new technologies and practices, which has hindered the process of facilitating agricultural development. Although the study of agri-food misinformation is still in its early stages, this paper draws on a scoping review of existing literature and lessons learned from other fields, such as political science and public health, which have extensive experience in combating misinformation in social settings. The article explores how Farmer Field Schools (FFS), a popular participatory and community-based approach, can incorporate media literacy education and how a local agricultural information hub, platform approach and a relatively new approach called technology stewardship in agricultural extension can help those working in the agri-food industry combat misinformation.

The study assessed the levels of usage of conservation agriculture technology in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angonia, Mozambique. A structured questionnaire was randomly administered to 192 farmers in each study site to collect data through a multistage sampling process. The study employed descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression to examine possible relationships among the study parameters. The results showed that land size used for conservation agriculture was a significant predictor in both study sites. Farmers’ intention to adopt depended on the services of vulgarisation of conservation agriculture technology. The results further showed that Kisangani farmers do not use the three-conservation agriculture technology at the same time, but they use crop rotation (54%). However, farmers use the three technologies (30%) simultaneously and soil cover (38%) in Angonia. The results suggest that efforts to promote adoption in Kisangani should be based on equal provision of extension services in all locations, and that the current farmer field schools (FFS) approach should be redesigned for contextualisation. For both study sites, the results imply that the use of FFS should be adapted to the use of farmer-to-farmer extension services, which can improve the upscaling of conservation agriculture to increase food security in a sustainable manner

Agricultural extension is a key instrument to bridge the gap between new technologies and farmers. As a popular extension approach, farmer field schools (FFS) usually improve farmers' knowledge and crop productivity. This study aims to quantify the heterogeneous impact of FFS on the cognition and adoption of multiple new agricultural technologies. In this study, we apply Tobit models to estimate the impact of FFS on technology extension regarding farmers' cognition and adoption rates of different technologies, using data collected for 274 tomato and cucumber farm households in Beijing, China. We find that the FFS programmesignificantly increased farmers' cognition and adoption of new agricultural technologies. We also find that the effects of FFS on extension vary in different categories of new technology. Particularly, we find that the extension of facility technologies is difficult, and new varieties are easy to disseminate but difficult to adopt by farmers. We conclude that FFS is an important channel for the extension of new agricultural technologies. At the same time, attention should be paid to the design of the FFS programme, adjusting to the attribute of different technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an ex-ante cost-benefit analysis of introducing sustainability standards to smallholder oil palm farmers in the province of Jambi, Sumatra, Indonesia. Sustainability standards are defined as a set of oil palm management practices derived from the Indonesia Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) scheme. Economic and environmental benefits of ISPO are derived from a panel data set from some 185 oil palm smallholders collected in 2010, 2012 and 2013. We explore two basic strategies for the introduction of ISPO namely: (1) a conventional extension campaign and (2) a farmer field school approach. Our calculations show that the farmer field school approach results in a higher economic rate of return compared to conventional agricultural extension campaigns. A major conclusion from this analysis is that the Government of Indonesia should invest if ISPO standards are to be adopted on a large scale by smallholder farmers.

ABSTRACT: The current study determined the factors influencing the perception of tea farmers towards organic tea production in Rulindo District, Rwanda. This study used both qualitative and quantitative data from face to face interviews and questionnaires completed with 156 tea farmers and other key informants in the tea sector who were randomly selected in 2019. Using function step AIC in R’s MASS package, the final multiple logistic regression model showed that generating income from tea production, participation in Umuganda, conveying messages at Ihangari, participation to agricultural shows, and receiving training from Farmers Field Schools (FFS) influenced farmers’ perceptions towards organic tea production. Thus, the results of this study could be useful to stakeholders in Rwanda’s tea sector, such as policymakers and decision-makers. They can act as a source of information when developing a more sustainable research-based tea extension program. Moreover, the results of this study can be used during the capacity building of farmers about organic tea production.

Research has repeatedly confirmed that farmer field schools (FFS) can serve as a bridge between science and farm practice, enhancing simultaneously rural social energy. However, even though social capital is a burgeoning topic in FFS research, it is not clear whether and how it mediates FFS performance. In this mixed-methods study, using data from two FFS projects conducted in Greece, we examined if social capital among trainees facilitates the co-creation of knowledge and the co-development of agricultural innovations by farmers. A thematic analysis was performed to analyse qualitative data, whereas regression models were employed for the quantitative strand of analysis. Results revealed that social capital evolves progressively during FFS, enabling the achievement of the project's aims by enhancing in-group communication, establishing affective ties, instilling a sense of community, and triggering motivational contagion among participants. Statistical analyses confirmed that the "softest" sides of social capital (bonding and connection) significantly contribute to knowledge and innovation co-production. Although this work was based on data derived only from two FFS projects that took place in Greece, our findings underline the importance of social capital for the success of any FFS project and emphasise the need for identifying routes to nurture social capital within FFS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last few decades, the use of Farmer Field Schools (FFS) have been considered one of the best approaches to disseminate integrated pest management (IPM) practices that aim to reduce reliance on and misuse of chemical pest control methods in agriculture. However, the published empirical literature has been decidedly mixed in terms of the effectiveness of the IPM‐FFS approach to improve economic outcomes in the short‐term (e.g. reduce chemical use, improve profits), and the potential for scaling‐up and IPM dissemination in the medium‐term. This article briefly explores the empirical IPM‐FFS literature and draws implications for future research directions that can potentially enhance IPM knowledge diffusion methods (including IPM‐FFS) and increase the economic impact of IPM techniques in low‐income countries. We find that promising research directions to improve understanding of IPM dissemination and IPM impacts will need to involve: (i) interdisciplinary long‐run studies using rigorous evaluation methods; (ii) in‐depth assessments of spillover effects; (iii) careful examination of IPM and IPM‐FFS impact heterogeneity; (iv) evaluation of novel IPM packages with herbicide‐ and genetics‐centered components; (v) piloting and impact assessments of alternative IPM knowledge diffusion structures; and (vi) piloting and impact analysis of IPM dissemination and learning programs with private sector involvement. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Fonio (Digitaria exilis (Kippist) Stapf) and Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc.) are native crops grown at a small scale in Mali that have potential to support agricultural productivity under climate change. A community biodiversity management approach was explored in this study as a means to reinforce the cultivation of these crops by increasing farmers' access to intraspecific diversity and developing capacities of community institutions for their management. The research involved six communities in Ségou and Sikasso regions. Multiple varieties of fonio (10–12) and Bambara groundnut (8–12) were established in diversity fields in each site over 2 years where farmers engaged in experiential learning over the crop cycle. Significant adoption of fonio and Bambara groundnut was detected in several study sites. The precise drivers of adoption cannot be definitively determined but likely include increased seed access and awareness gained through the diversity field fora, seed fairs and community seed banks. No significant yield advantage was detected for any of the varieties in the diversity fields, which showed variable performance by site and year. The number of varieties registered and managed by community seed banks in each site increased from 1–5 varieties of each crop to 11–12 varieties following the interventions. The number of Bambara groundnut varieties cultivated in farmers' fields also increased, while there was evidence of a slight decline in fonio diversity in some communities. The results of this study can inform efforts to strengthen seed systems and cultivation of neglected and underutilized species in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, pigs and pork have been the central elements of Chinese agricultural systems, food security, and diet. China’s rapid income growth has induced a significant change in food consumption patterns, and hog production has received utmost attention from both, the Chinese government and the public. While the impact of Farmer Field Schools (FFS) on crop cultivation has been widely studied, few studies have examined the impact of FFS on hog production. This study uses data collected from 222 hog farmers in Beijing to examine the impact of FFS on the productivity of hog production, focusing on its three main indicators: feed conversion ratio and the mortality of sows and piglets. We found that farms that participated in FFS programs significantly improved the feed conversion ratio of hog production, particularly in small scale hog farms. On average, FFS reduced the feed conversion ratio for herd sizes of 1000, 500, and 200 by 6.8%, 10.7%, and 14.0%, respectively. We did not find evidence that farms that participated in FFS programs had a significant impact on minimizing the mortality of sows and piglets. This study suggests that the knowledge training model of the FFS program could also work in fields other than crop cultivation. Furthermore, we suggest that more attention could be paid to extension services diffusing knowledge of vaccination and disinfection in hog FFS programs.

The increased use of sustainability standards in the international trade in cocoa challenges companies to find effective modes of service delivery to large numbers of small-scale farmers. A case study of the Sustainable Tree Crops Program targeting the small-scale cocoa producers in Côte d’Ivoire supplying international commodity markets shifts attention from mechanisms of private governance to the embedding of service delivery in the institutional dynamics of the state. It demonstrates that, despite a recent history of violent conflict and civil unrest, the introduced Farmer Field Schools programme achieved a surprising scale in terms of numbers and geographical spread. The analysis of this outcome combines political science and anthropological studies of effective and developmental elements in the state with the interest in institutional work found in organization science. The scaling of a new form of service delivery is explained by the skilful practices of institutional work by managers of a public–private partnership. They have been professionally associated with the sector for a long time and had the capacity to embed new forms of service delivery in persistent pockets of bureaucratic effectiveness in a failed state.

Supporting community food production is a key strategy for all the community-based partners in Food Dignity, a community-university research partnership dedicated to supporting and learning from food justice organizations. Participatory action research (PAR) may develop knowledge and skills for sustainable agriculture, thus building gardeners’ capacities to refine, implement, and share locally appropriate, sustainable food production practices. However, little research has explored the possibilities and challenges of PAR with urban gardeners. In the context of Food Dignity, I examine those possibilities in a case study of a PAR project on cover crops with gar­deners in Brooklyn, New York, USA. I address two questions: (1) How can PAR be designed in an urban community gardening context to achieve positive outcomes for science, education, and communities? and (2) What are the challenges, and how might facilitators address them? Several practices contributed to positive outcomes in our project. First, engaging gardeners in cover crop monitoring strengthened their knowledge of ecological processes (e.g., nitrogen fixation) and adaptive management skills (e.g., systematic observation). Second, facilitating oppor­tunities for participants to share their knowledge (e.g., field days) supported leadership development. Third, sustained, in-person support enabled gar­deners to implement cover cropping practices with benefits for crop production and environmental quality. Key challenges included addressing community-defined priorities within the constraints of a dissertation project and providing sufficient one-on-one research and education support with limited funding for community-based partners. Despite its challenges, PAR in urban gardening contexts may develop knowledge and skills that support improved stewardship practices and com­munity capacities. Implications for inspiring and sustaining more community-university research partnerships include strengthening institutional support for PAR at colleges and universities, funding community researcher/educator positions, and providing professional development for community and academic PAR partners.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a leading complement and alternative to synthetic pesticides and a form of sustainable intensification with particular importance for tropical smallholders. Global pesticide use has grown over the past 20 years to 3.5 billion kg/year, amounting to a global market worth $45 billion. The external costs of pesticides are $4–$19 (€3–15) per kg of active ingredient applied, suggesting that IPM approaches that result in lower pesticide use will benefit, not only farmers, but also wider environments and human health. Evidence for IPM’s impacts on pesticide use and yields remains patchy. We contribute an evaluation using data from 85 IPM projects from 24 countries of Asia and Africa implemented over the past twenty years. Analysing outcomes on productivity and reliance on pesticides, we find a mean yield increase across projects and crops of 40.9% (SD 72.3), combined with a decline in pesticide use to 30.7% (SD 34.9) compared with baseline. A total of 35 of 115 (30%) crop combinations resulted in a transition to zero pesticide use. We assess successes in four types of IPM projects, and find that at least 50% of pesticide use is not needed in most agroecosystems. Nonetheless, policy support for IPM is relatively rare, counter-interventions from pesticide industry common, and the IPM challenge never done as pests, diseases and weeds evolve and move.

Abstract Central America is one of the regions with the highest vulnerability to climate change, with negative effects projected to affect its economy and food security. To address this issue, an integrative farm management approach such as Climate-Smart Agriculture can help reorient agricultural practices towards climate adaptation and food security. Past studies have shown that several factors can either hinder or encourage the adoptions of Climate-Smart practices, including subjective expectations and perceptions. Building on this literature, we analyze farmers' climate awareness and their perceptions regarding the change in climate patterns as well as their choices of farming practices to adapt to these changes. We show that reforestation was the preferred adaptation strategy among interviewed farmers and that educational profiles and the size of landholdings drive the adoption of this and other practices. Soil management and introduction of new crops are preferred by literate farms with large farmlands, whereas illiterate farmers with smaller farmland tend to move towards farm intensification with an increase in the utilization of external inputs. Our findings provide evidence to support the design of capacity development interventions targeting specific groups of farmers according to their main crop and education profile. Highlights • We assessed farmers' awareness regarding climate change and their strategies to adapt farming systems. • Farmers demonstrated awareness to climate change and used new management practices to adapt under unfavorable climate. • Education of the head of the household and farm size influenced the decisions for adaptation practices. • Reforestation was the preferred climate adaptation strategy for the majority of interviewed farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supporting community food production is a key strategy for all the community-based partners in Food Dignity, a community-university research partnership dedicated to supporting and learning from food justice organizations. Participatory action research (PAR) may develop knowledge and skills for sustainable agriculture, thus building gardeners' capacities to refine, implement, and share locally appropriate, sustainable food production practices. However, little research has explored the possibilities and challenges of PAR with urban gardeners. In the context of Food Dignity, I examine those possibilities in a case study of a PAR project on cover crops with gardeners in Brooklyn, New York, USA. I address two questions: (1) How can PAR be designed in an urban community gardening context to achieve positive outcomes for science, education, and communities? and (2) What are the challenges, and how might facilitators address them? Several practices contributed to positive outcomes in our project. First, engaging gardeners in cover crop monitoring strengthened their knowledge of ecological processes (e.g., nitrogen fixation) and adaptive management skills (e.g., systematic observation). Second, facilitating opportunities for participants to share their knowledge (e.g., field days) supported leadership development. Third, sustained, in-person support enabled gardeners to implement cover cropping practices with benefits for crop production and environmental quality. Key challenges included addressing communitydefined priorities within the constraints of a dissertation project and providing sufficient one-on-one research and education support with limited funding for community-based partners. Despite its challenges, PAR in urban gardening contexts may develop knowledge and skills that support improved stewardship practices and community capacities. Implications for inspiring and sustaining more community-university research partnerships include strengthening institutional support for PAR at colleges and universities, funding community researcher/educator positions, and providing professional development for community and academic PAR partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food insecurity contributes to poor nutritional status of many populations, but long-term approaches to improving household food insecurity have not been widely evaluated. This study evaluates the effectiveness of four interventions, Women’s Empowerment Groups (WEG), Prevention of Malnutrition in Children under 2 Approach (PM2A), Farmer Field Schools (FFS), and the Farmer to Farmer approach (F2F), implemented in the context of a five-year Development Food Assistance Program in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. A community-matched quasi-experimental design was used. Primary outcome measures included Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) and the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS). Mean HDDS was significantly greater than the control group for three interventions (FFS, WEG, PM2A; ß: 0.69-0.88, p < 0.001 for all) as was the difference in proportion of households achieving target HDDS compared to the control group (12.3-21.7%, p < 0.001 for all). HFIAS score was significantly lower for all interventions compared to the control group, but smaller gains were seen in F2F (ß: -2.06 - -4.59, p < 0.001 for all). The adjusted difference in proportion of households improving in HFIAS category compared to controls was significant for all groups, but smallest among F2F (15.0-26.7%, p < 0.05 for all). WEG, PM2A, and FFS interventions had significant effects on improving household dietary diversity and food security; the F2F approach was less effective. Food insecurity remained prevalent despite the interventions, suggesting more research is needed to understand the pathways through which they were effective and how interventions could be strengthened to improve food insecurity in post-conflict settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the vulnerability of Jamaica's agricultural sector to climate change being well established, there is a compelling need to incorporate useful adaptation strategies. One such pro-adaptation strategy is the farmer field school (FFS) which is currently being used to promote climate-smart agricultural practices among Jamaican farmers through a number of social learning and capacity building initiatives. A hallmark of the field school methodology is its promotion of adaptation by empowering farmers to plan for and cope with the effects of climate change by improving knowledge, awareness and adoption of best practices, while providing a viable income stream to participants. Though the FFS program has been touted as a huge success, with several community groups sustaining their income diversification and adaptation efforts even after the formal project has ended, the extent of participation in these field schools has however been uneven and limited in numbers. Amidst claims of the program's achievements to date, and plans to replicate and upscale the field school methodology in Jamaica as a climate adaptation strategy, a comparative assessment of the role participation plays in shaping local farmers' cognitive and behavioural responses towards climate change is very timely. The case study reported in this paper is informed by a comparative mixed methods approach, undertaken in three communities in northern Clarendon, Jamaica. The study assesses the particular ways that participation in the farmer field school program has influenced the knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of FFS trainees about climate change compared to their non-FFS counterparts. Preliminary results indicate that FFS participants perceive themselves as having a higher adaptive capacity in comparison to non-field school participants, amidst both groups having access to similar stocks of assets. Ultimately, our results highlight that cognitive factors (e.g. perceptions of adaptive capacity) and involvement in social networks may be as important as the more commonly researched asset-based indicators in shaping individual adaptive behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmer field schools (FFS) represent an alternative lifelong learning approach aimed at enhancing farmers' competences and skills through nonformal education. In this study we examined if farmers' participation in FFS is motivated by their social-psychological needs and whether these needs can be fulfilled through participation in FFS. Findings revealed that the possibility to participate in FFS is higher for farmers who experience lower levels of closeness and connectedness with their community peers and for those who score low on belongingness satisfaction. Furthermore, our analysis confirmed that FFS attendance increases felt community acceptance and facilitates the satisfaction of the belongingness need. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change, population growth and social conflict have left many farmers and pastoralists in sub-Saharan Africa at near constant crisis conditions. Participatory climate resilience assessments can help farmer and pastoralist communities to identify, measure and prioritize actions to improve the climate resilience of their agricultural systems. Self-evaluation and Holistic Assessment of climate change Resilience of farmers and Pastoralists (SHARP) has been developed as a dual-purpose tool, employing participatory methods to help farmers and pastoralists to discuss and understand threats and opportunities, and to prioritize individual and collective actions aimed at improving overall resilience. Additionally, SHARP provides government and programme management with qualitative and quantitative information on a wide variety of important economic and development factors. The development of SHARP faces many challenges inherent to assessing resilience in terms of the complex nature and wide-reaching impacts of climate change. SHARP presents a unique assessment that combines resilience literature and indicators with a participatory self-assessment from the farmers and pastoralists. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The objective of the Savings, Agriculture, Governance, and Empowerment for Health (SAGE4Health) study was to evaluate the impact of a large-scale multi-level economic and food security intervention on health outcomes and HIV vulnerability in rural Malawi. The study employed a quasi-experimental non-equivalent control group design to compare intervention participants (n = 598) with people participating in unrelated programs in distinct but similar geographical areas (control, n = 301). We conducted participant interviews at baseline, 18-, and 36-months on HIV vulnerability and related health outcomes, food security, and economic vulnerability. Randomly selected households (n = 1002) were interviewed in the intervention and control areas at baseline and 36 months. Compared to the control group, the intervention led to increased HIV testing (OR 1.90; 95 % CI 1.29-2.78) and HIV case finding (OR = 2.13; 95 % CI 1.07-4.22); decreased food insecurity (OR = 0.74; 95 % CI 0.63-0.87), increased nutritional diversity, and improved economic resilience to shocks. Most effects were sustained over a 3-year period. Further, no significant differences in change were found over the 3-year study period on surveys of randomly selected households in the intervention and control areas. Although there were general trends toward improvement in the study area, only intervention participants' outcomes were significantly better. Results indicate the intervention can improve economic and food security and HIV vulnerability through increased testing and case finding. Leveraging the resources of economic development NGOs to deliver locally-developed programs with scientific funding to conduct controlled evaluations has the potential to accelerate the scientific evidence base for the effects of economic development programs on health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased use of sustainability standards in the international trade in cocoa challenges companies to find effective modes of service delivery to large numbers of small-scale farmers. A case study of the Sustainable Tree Crops Program targeting the small-scale cocoa producers in Côte d’Ivoire supplying international commodity markets shifts attention from mechanisms of private governance to the embedding of service delivery in the institutional dynamics of the state. It demonstrates that, despite a recent history of violent conflict and civil unrest, the introduced Farmer Field Schools programme achieved a surprising scale in terms of numbers and geographical spread. The analysis of this outcome combines political science and anthropological studies of effective and developmental elements in the state with the interest in institutional work found in organization science. The scaling of a new form of service delivery is explained by the skilful practices of institutional work by managers of a public–private partnership. They have been professionally associated with the sector for a long time and had the capacity to embed new forms of service delivery in persistent pockets of bureaucratic effectiveness in a failed state. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Small-scale farmers in developing countries use hazardous pesticides taking few or no safety measures. Farmer field schools (FFSs) teaching integrated pest management (IPM) have been shown to reduce pesticide use among trained farmers. This cross-sectional study compares pesticide-related knowledge, attitude, practice (KAP), potential exposure, and self-reported poisoning symptoms among 35 FFS farmers, 44 neighboring farmers, and 35 control farmers after an IPM intervention in Uganda (2011-2012). The FFS farmers were encouraged to teach their neighboring farmers. Data were based on standardized interviews and were analyzed using a linear trend test and logistic regression. The results showed that FFS and neighboring farmers used significantly fewer pesticide applications (P = .021) and used more safety measures. No differences were found on the hazardousness of pesticides used or self-reported symptoms. The study supports IPM as a method to reduce pesticide use and potential exposure and to improve pesticide-related KAP among small-scale farmers in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Pesticide use in the Indian cotton industry has decreased with the introduction of Bt cotton, but rates are still high in comparison with other countries. The adoption of alternative strategies, such as integrated pest management, has been slow, even though benefits are potentially high, more so if the full costs of the external effects of the technologies are taken into account. In order to estimate true societal benefits of different strategies, we compare their external costs and economic performance under external cost taxation, using a state-of-the-art partial equilibrium model of the Indian agricultural sector. RESULTS Pesticide externalities lower social welfare in the Indian cotton sector by $ US 400-2200 million, depending on the technologies employed. A full internalisation reduces producer revenues by $ US 100 ha−1 if only Bt cotton is used, and by $ US 30 ha−1 if IPM is another option. Consumers do not start to lose surplus until 20-70% are internalised, and losses are smaller if all technologies are available. CONCLUSION External pesticide costs can be internalised partially without substantially affecting consumer surplus while still increasing social welfare, but producers need to have access to and the knowledge to employ all available cotton production technologies to minimise losses. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study to determine the impacts of farmers field schools (FFS) on smallholders’ adoption of good agricultural practices in tea and to assess sustainability of smallholder tea production was conducted in the highlands of Kenya. Input-output data on tea management and on sustainability indicators (score 0-10) were collected from a sample of 120 FFS participants at the beginning of the study and from 60 randomly selected FFS participants and a comparison group of 60 non-FFS participants at the end of the study, 18 months later. The study showed that the smallholder tea systems are moving towards social sustainability and economic returns were positive. Sustainability indicator scores, for FFS members, increased by 4% from the base period. The FFS participants also attained a significantly higher level of farm sustainability, knowledge gains on good agricultural practices (GAP) and higher yields and farm and tea income than their non-FFS counterparts. These findings indicate that FFS methodology had a positive contribution to enhancing farmer learning and adoption of good agricultural practices in tea and improved farmers’ livelihoods.

Forest benefit analysis is vital in ensuring sustainable community-based natural resources management. Forest depletion and degradation are key issues in rural Zimbabwe and strategies to enhance sustainable forest management are continually sought. This study was carried out to assess the impact of forests on communities from Nyanga, Guruve and Zvimba districts of Zimbabwe. It is based on a Big Lottery Fund project implemented by Progressio-UK and Environment Africa. Itfocuses on identifying replicable community forest and landmanagement strategies and the level of benefits accruing to the community. Analysis of change was based on the Income and Food Security and Forest benefits, which also constitutes the tools used during the research. The study confirms the high rate of deforestation and the increased realisation by communities to initiate practical measures aimed at protecting and sustaining forest and land resources from which they derive economic and social benefits. The results highlight the value of community structures (Farmer Field Schools and Environmental Action Groups) as conduits for natural resource management. The interconnectivity among forests, agricultural systems and the integral role of people are recognised as key to climate change adaptation. Keywords: Forest benefits; sustainability,;livelihoods; farmer field schools

Four FFSs concerning integrated crop–livestock systems were implemented by a R&D project namely “Adaptation to Climate Change in West Asia and North Africa (WANA) Marginal Environments through Sustainable Crop and Livestock Diversification (ACC project)” during the summer season 2013 in three villages namely Village 4, Village 7 and Village 1750 in Sinai Peninsula. This study aimed to do the following: (1) assess the learning impacts of farmer field schools of integrated crop–livestock package and (2) explore the factors that affect the respondents’ learning index. Data were collected from the enrolled farmers (96 farmers) using an ex-post facilitator-made knowledge and implementation test during the period from April to October 2013. Mean, mode, standard deviation, range, frequencies, percentages, Learning Index (LI), and Chi-Square were used for data analysis and presentation. The study revealed that the mean scores of each item of the studied package were raised as a reason of respondents’ attendance of learning modules of FSSs. With regard to learning index, results showed that the mean scores reached about 38.25 for knowledge (KLI) and decreased to 32.98 for implementation (ILI). The majority of respondents (61.5%) have moderate level of KLI. Similarly around one half of respondents (51%) have also moderate level of ILI. With respect to factors affecting respondents’ learning index, the study findings indicated that number of family members, large animal ownership, leadership degree, and tendency to change were significantly related to respondents’ KLI, while large animal ownership, belonging degree, leadership degree, and tendency to change were significantly related to respondents’ ILI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excessive use of irrigation and fertilizers aggravates water shortage and challenges environmental sustainability. Although environment friendly technologies save water and fertilizer, yet their adoption rate remains low. One possible reason for this is the lack information about them, which necessitates effective information-delivering agricultural extension modes. Using data from 274 tomato and cucumber farm households in Beijing, this study examined the effect of farmer field schools (FFS) on promoting the adoption of environment friendly irrigation and fertilization technologies. We found evidence that FFS training significantly increases the adoption rate of environment friendly irrigation and fertilization technologies. The results suggest that the FFS program is an effective approach to extend environment friendly irrigation technologies to partially solve the problem of water shortage and nitrate leaching. We propose extending the FFS program to fields other than integrated pest management. • Using data from 274 tomato and cucumber farm households in Beijing. • We examine the effect of farmer field school on promoting the adoption of technologies. • This training is an effective extension approach for improving agriculture • More policy implication on farmer field school training program are suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving and maintaining a high herd health and welfare status is an important aim in organic livestock farming. The varying farming systems across and within countries call for models that are relevant for different farming types and that can be integrated into local practice. In stable schools, farmers take responsibility for health and welfare planning by identifying issues, setting goals, and acting to improve the health situation based on farm-specific data, e.g. milk production. This paper reviews the results from intervention studies that used a modified 'farmer field school' approach for animal health and welfare planning, providing an overview of ongoing activities and their implementation into advisory situations in selected European countries. Studies on stable schools as an intervention tool showed improvements regarding the specific project aim on the majority of the participating farms. Farmers and facilitators were convinced of the approach and benefits for dairy herds. Farmers' attitude and attention towards their herds and their ownership of the process appear to be crucial success factors for herd health and welfare situations. In some European countries, this method has been implemented in advisory practice, and in other regions, there are relevant and promising opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a leading complement and alternative to synthetic pesticides and a form of sustainable intensification with particular importance for tropical smallholders. Global pesticide use has grown over the past 20 years to 3.5 billion kg/year, amounting to a global market worth $45 billion. The external costs of pesticides are $4-$19 (€3-15) per kg of active ingredient applied, suggesting that IPM approaches that result in lower pesticide use will benefit, not only farmers, but also wider environments and human health. Evidence for IPM's impacts on pesticide use and yields remains patchy. We contribute an evaluation using data from 85 IPM projects from 24 countries of Asia and Africa implemented over the past twenty years. Analysing outcomes on productivity and reliance on pesticides, we find a mean yield increase across projects and crops of 40.9% (SD 72.3), combined with a decline in pesticide use to 30.7% (SD 34.9) compared with baseline. A total of 35 of 115 (30%) crop combinations resulted in a transition to zero pesticide use. We assess successes in four types of IPM projects, and find that at least 50% of pesticide use is not needed in most agroecosystems. Nonetheless, policy support for IPM is relatively rare, counter-interventions from pesticide industry common, and the IPM challenge never done as pests, diseases and weeds evolve and move. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kitchen gardens may improve family food security and nutrition. While these gardens are the domain of women in Afghanistan, women face unique challenges accessing training and resources to maximize small-scale agricultural output. The University of Maryland's Women in Agriculture Project builds capacity among female extension educators to work with vulnerable women to implement and maintain kitchen gardens. Extension educators use experiential methods to teach vegetable gardening, apiculture, small-scale poultry production, post-harvest handling and processing, nutrition and marketing through workshops, demonstration gardens and farmer field schools. This paper explores contextual factors related to women's food security and agricultural opportunities, describes key project activities and approaches and discusses project success and challenges, sustainability and implications for future programs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Summary We estimate the impact of a Farmer Field School intervention among small-scale farmers in northern Tanzania on two main development objectives: food security and poverty. We employ a series of evaluation methodologies, including a Quasi-Difference-in-Difference setup, to account for potential selection into the project, despite lack of baseline data. We find strong positive effects on food security, but no effect on poverty. Investigating possible mechanisms for this result shows that reallocation of labor resources toward own agricultural production and improved production smoothing may have led to improved food security while poverty remained unaffected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]