Mineral fertilizers are crucial inputs for ensuring food security, yet their excessive use poses severe environmental challenges. The widespread overuse of chemical fertilizers in China’s agricultural production has led to soil nutrient imbalance, reduced soil fertility, water pollution, and deteriorated air quality. To address this issue, organomineral fertilizer (OMF), a new type of green fertilizer, has been promoted. By combining organic materials with a small amount of mineral fertilizers, OMF not only balances nutrients and reduces environmental pollution but also improves crop yield and quality. However, due to information asymmetry—especially smallholder farmers in remote areas having insufficient awareness of OMF and limited understanding of its technical requirements—the adoption rate of OMF has remained relatively low.
In recent years, digital agricultural technology extension services (DATES), leveraging Internet platforms such as WeChat official accounts and mobile applications, have gained popularity, providing a new pathway for agricultural technology dissemination. This service overcomes the temporal and spatial limitations of traditional agricultural technology extension, enabling farmers to conveniently access planting knowledge. Then, can DATES effectively encourage farmers to adopt OMF and contribute to the green transformation of agriculture? Professor Minjuan Zhao from the College of Economics and Management, Northwest A&F University, and her team addressed this question through a survey of farmers in major apple - producing areas in China. The related research has been published in Frontiers of Agricultural Science and Engineering (DOI: 10.15302/J-FASE-2024590).
The research team selected 1167 apple - growing households from Shaanxi and Gansu provinces as research samples. The survey revealed that local fruit farmers generally hold the belief that “the more fertilizer applied, the higher the yield” and are accustomed to using large quantities of mineral fertilizers. This practice has resulted in prominent issues related to food safety, public health, and the environment. Through scientific analysis of the sample data, the study found that farmers who used DATES had a 7.2%–10.2% higher probability of adopting OMF compared to non - users, and the adoption intensity of OMF increased from 7.0% to 9.9%. This indicates that digital agricultural technology extension services can effectively drive farmers to shift towards more environmentally friendly fertilization methods.
Most previous studies have focused on the overall impact of DATES on green technologies, while this research specifically focuses on OMF. It also conducts an in-depth analysis of the specific mechanisms through which DATES promotes the adoption rate of OMF from two dimensions. On one hand, DATES enhances farmers’ cognition of the value of OMF. Data shows that farmers using DATES have a better understanding of the economic, ecological, and social values of OMF. Through digital platforms, farmers learn about the practical benefits of OMF, such as increasing income, improving soil quality, and enhancing the rural ecological environment, which makes them more willing to try OMF. On the other hand, DATES reduces the cost for farmers to obtain agricultural information. Internet platforms allow farmers to easily access planting technologies and market dynamics, reduce information asymmetry, lower the risks of trial and error, and cut down transaction costs, further boosting their enthusiasm for adopting OMF.
The study also found that the effectiveness of DATES varies depending on the characteristics of farming households. Farmers with higher social capital enjoy faster information dissemination and lower technology learning costs, so DATES has a more significant role in promoting their OMF adoption rate. Farmers with better economic conditions have stronger risk-bearing capabilities and are more willing to invest funds in trying new technologies, thus the effect of DATES is also more pronounced. This suggests that policy promotion should take into account the heterogeneity of farming households and implement targeted measures.
This study provides empirical evidence for promoting the sustainable development of agriculture. The research suggests that efforts should be made to strengthen the construction of rural digital agricultural infrastructure and improve the accessibility of DATES. It is also recommended to combine online and offline channels to comprehensively popularize knowledge about green production technologies. Additionally, differentiated strategies should be formulated for farmers with different levels of social capital and economic status. Priority should be given to guiding farmers with high responsiveness to take the lead in demonstrating the use of OMF, while helping farmers with low responsiveness overcome bottlenecks in funds and information.
DOI: 10.15302/J-FASE-2024590