Determinants and Intensity of FARO Rice Variety Adoption among Smallholder Farmers in South West Nigeria

Abstract

Rice is a paramount food staple throughout West Africa and a primary source of rural livelihood in Nigeria. Raising productivity through the adoption of better varieties and related technologies is at the heart of any national food security and rural development strategy. This study explored the determinants of FARO Variety Adoption and Intensity among Smallholder Rice Farmers in South-West Nigeria. Primary data were collected using a structured interview schedule as the main instrument in an endeavour to achieve the work. Data was collected from a total of 240 rice farmers using a multi-stage sampling method. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The result indicated that most of the farmers are in the 41–50 years age group. The mean farm size is 4.8 ha, with a mean of 12.6 years of experience in farming. FARO 44 has extremely high adoption (88.8 %) due to its yield potential, early maturity, and high knowledge among farmers. FARO 52 (33.3 %) and FARO 55 (20.4 %) undergo discontinuity due to handicaps such as poor grain quality and heterogeneous ripening. Significant barriers to adoption are poor access to credit, poor seed availability, poor extension services, poor land access, pest and disease issues, flooding risk, and poor market outlets. Interestingly, farm experience alone was statistically significant (r = 0.15; p = 0.02) in relation to FARO adoption,  while age, education, family size, farm size, and distance to farm were not significant. These findings are in line with broader evidence in South-West Nigeria, in which farm experience, education, exposure to extension, credit access, and access to improved seeds significantly influence the adoption. More broadly, this study underscores the central contributions of variety attributes, experience, and institutional facilitation in driving FARO rice adoption. The study recommended that fortifying extension services, enhancing access to credit and seeds, facilitating farmer associations, highlighting high-performing types, establishing market linkages, and capacity building will improve the adoption of the FARO rice variety among smallholder farmers.