Effect of Adopting Agricultural Technology on Farm Income of Commercial Vegetable Growers in Bagamati Province of Nepal

Abstract

Improved agricultural technologies are being promoted among commercial vegetable growers to improve yield and income in Nepal. However, the rate of adoption of agricultural technologies is low. This study aims to assess the magnitude of the adoption of selected agricultural technologies and their effect on farm income in Bagamati Province, Nepal. We adopted a multi-stage sampling method and surveyed 180 randomly selected households. We used multiple ordinary least square regression model to measure the effect of the adoption of agricultural technology on farm income in the study area. The results indicate that the most adopted technologies in the study area are improved varieties, mini tillers, sprayers, water pumps, and integrated pest management whereas the least adopted are plastic tunnel, drip irrigation, agriculture mobile application, plastic mulching, and rainwater harvesting. Few households have adopted more technologies. The results also revealed that if the number of technology adopted increases by one unit, the farm income increases by 20.6%. This is significant at the 1% level. The result showed that farm size (p=0.008), and membership in farmer’s group/cooperative (p=0.01) also have a significant positive impact on farm income. Promoting broader adoption of appropriate technologies among farmers helps to boost income generation. Policymakers and stakeholders are suggested to encourage technology adoption among commercial vegetable growers through training, access to inputs and technologies, and organizing them in groups or cooperatives.