Welfare impact of pesticides management practices among smallholder cocoa farmers in Ghana

Background: Undoubtedly, vulnerability and adaptation of the agricultural sector to the adverse impacts of climate change are among the most crucial concerns of many developing countries where agriculture is largely rain-fed. In Ghana, the cocoa sector is the mainstay of the agricultural sector, contributing about 60% of agricultural GDP. The cacao tree is susceptible to the vagaries of climate, a fact which manifests in outbreak of pests and diseases and their pattern, loss of pods and early ripening of young pods, among others. Cocoa farmers have over the years used short-term (coping) strategies and long-term (adaptation) strategies to offset the effects of climate change on their production. Methods: A field survey of 444 cocoa farmers in Ghana was conducted, using a guided interview schedule. Results: Farmers’ coping strategies included those on crop, soil fertility and soil water management practices. Adaptation strategies included behavioural adjustments (spraying, fertilizer application, weed control, pruning) as well as institutional and technological adjustments (change in variety and increased extension services). Conclusion: The study showed that farmers who perceived that the climate had changed and had some effect on their production usually employed adaptation measures. Differences in farmers in terms of personal managerial and entrepreneurial capacities and family circumstances influence their responses to climate change. However, one major challenge is to separate the adaptations in response to climate change from adaptations in response to other stimuli, such as market price or government policy changes that farmers face in the real world. Assessing adaptation strategies also provides the information needed by cocoa farmers to increase their capacity to moderate potential damages and to take advantage of opportunities, if any, to survive in a changing climate.

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Soil fertility management practices of cocoa farmers in the Eastern Region of Ghana

Agriculture and Biology Journal of North America ◽

10.5251/abjna.2011.2.1.173.181 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 173-181 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Francis Baah ◽

Vincent Anchirinah ◽

Frederick Amon-Armah

Keyword(s):

Soil Fertility ◽

Management Practices ◽

Eastern Region ◽

Soil Fertility Management ◽

Fertility Management ◽

Cocoa Farmers

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Kontribusi Usahatani Kakao terhadap Pendapatan Rumah Tangga Petani di Desa Pangsan, Kecamatan Petang, Kabupaten Badung

Jurnal Agribisnis dan Agrowisata (Journal of Agribusiness and Agritourism) ◽

10.24843/jaa.2018.v07.i01.p15 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 141

Author(s):

ELTA DINA PARTIWI ◽

I WAYAN BUDIASA ◽

I WAYAN WIDYANTARA

Keyword(s):

Household Income ◽

Random Sampling ◽

Management Practices ◽

Net Income ◽

Average Income ◽

Total Household Income ◽

Postharvest Handling ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Cocoa Farmers

Contribution of Cocoa Farming to Farmers Household Incomein Pangsan Village, Petang District, Badung Regency The study aims to determine the sources of cocoa farmers' income, and the largecontribution of cocoa farming to the income of the farmers' households in PangsanVillage, as well as to find out the physical management practices and postharvesthandling applied by the cocoa farmers. The technique of determining the sample wasby using proportional random sampling and the sample was taken randomly to selectthe sample by lottery method with the number of samples of 34 cocoa farmers. Thedata collection was conducted from early February to the end of February 2017. Thestudy used farming analysis to calculate net income and total household income ofcocoa farmers during 2016. The results showed that cocoa farming has the highestcontribution of 70.10% of the total household income of farmers amounting to Rp.85,954,990.80 / year with an average income of Rp. 60,252,258 / year. The physicalmanagement practices of cocoa farming applied by cocoa farmers in Pangsan Villageare in accordance with the physical management practices in the cocoa GoodAgricultural Practices (GAP) guidelines, and it is known that farmers did not applyGood Handling Practices (GHP) to postharvest handling.

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Dialog dan Tindakan Kolektif Kelompok Tani dalam Program Sertifikasi Kakao di Provinsi Sulawesi Barat

Jurnal Komunikasi Pembangunan ◽

10.46937/16201825118 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 15-29

Author(s):

Nur Asia ◽

Sarwititi Sarwoprasodjo ◽

Dyah Gandasari

Keyword(s):

Collective Action ◽

Management Practices ◽

Descriptive Analysis ◽

Survey Method ◽

Development Communication ◽

Certification Standard ◽

Cocoa Production ◽

Farmer Groups ◽

Cocoa Farmers

The cocoa certification program is the implementation of cocoa management practices that meet sustainable agricultural standards. This program is part of the commitment of cocoa sector stakeholders to realize sustainable cocoa. West Sulawesi Province is one of cocoa production centers in Indonesia. The implementation of cocoa certification in this province is still low, about 8.4% of the total cocoa farmers. This study aims to determine the potential for sustainability of the adoption of Cocoa Certification from development communication aspect by conducting an assessment on dialogue and collective action of farmer groups. The research conducted in Luyo Sub-District Polewali Mandar District West Sulawesi Province using survey method with descriptive correlation analysis. The sample size is 41 groups with 205 respondents. Descriptive analysis shows the average index of the implementation of community dialogue and collective action of 56.05,50,88 and 65.72 from a maximum score of 100. The results indicated that perception of farmers on the observability of Cocoa Certification and the role of facilitators are significant related to dialogue and collective action of farmer groups. The dialogue in the group is significant correlated with their collective action. So, some farmer groups have potential to continue to adopt the Cocoa Certification standard but others have potential to quit.

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Rehabilitation and renovation of cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) agroforestry systems. A review

Agronomy for Sustainable Development ◽

10.1007/s13593-021-00717-9 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 41 (5) ◽

Author(s):

Eduardo Somarriba ◽

Felipe Peguero ◽

Rolando Cerda ◽

Luis Orozco-Aguilar ◽

Arlene López-Sampson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Management Practices ◽

Driving Forces ◽

Disease Outbreaks ◽

Agroforestry Systems ◽

Planting Density ◽

Extension Agents ◽

Implementation Processes ◽

Age Related ◽

Cocoa Farmers

AbstractCocoa farmers must decide on whether to rehabilitate (Rh) or to renovate (Re) a cocoa orchard when its productivity declines due to ageing, disease outbreaks or other causes. Deciding on Rh/Re is often a complex, expensive and conflictive process.In this review, we (1) explore the diversity of contexts, driving forces, stakeholders and recommended management practices involved in Rh/Re initiatives in key cocoa-producing countries; (2) summarise the often conflicting views of farmers and extension agents on Rh/Re programmes; (3) review the evidence of age-related changes in planting density and yield of cocoa, given the weight of these variables in Rh/Re decision processes; (4) describe the best known Rh/Re systems and their most common management practices; (5) propose an agroforestry Re approach that overcomes the limitation of current Rh/Re diagnosis protocols, which do not consider the regular flow of food crop and tree products, and the need to restore site soil quality to sustain another cycle of cultivation of cocoa at the same site; and (6) explore the effects of climate change considerations on Rh/Re decision-making and implementation processes.Each Rh/Re decision-making process is unique and highly context-dependent (household and farm, soil, climate, culture). Tailored solutions are needed for each farmer and context. The analysis, concepts and models presented for cocoa in this paper may also apply to coffee orchards.

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