Acessibilidade / Reportar erro

Conversion to organic farming: a dynamic opportunity for Pakistani smallholders of fresh fruit

Conversão para a agricultura orgânica: uma oportunidade dinâmica para pequenos produtores de frutas frescas do Paquistão

ABSTRACT:

Exporting the organic fresh fruit (FF) to Europe and America could be regarded as great opportunity for smallholders and suppliers of Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan. Yet, the global organic farmland and the number of organic producers are continued to grow. To date, little is known about the behavior of Pakistani farmers towards organic fresh fruit production. This study examined the factors that influence the decision-making of fresh fruit smallholders concerning the conversion to organic farming (COF). This study uses Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior (TPB) to predict the behavior of Pakistani smallholders of fresh fruit. Path analysis examined the utility of the extended version of the TPB model to anticipate 277 small-scale farmers’ behavioral intentions towards the adoption of organic farming (AOF) and their prospect of converting their farm to organic produce within the next three years. The present study reported that the smallholders’ attitude (ATT), subjective norms (SN), perceived behavior control (PBC), and farmer’s group participation (FGP) were positively correlated with farmer’s intention to adopt organic farming, while group participation of farmers has significant correlation with their behavior regarding production of organic fruits. The present study justifies using the model of farmers’ group participation in policies that deliberately cheer up smallholders of fresh fruit to adopt organic farming, to raise farm incomes and to alleviate poverty.

Key words:
organic farming; farm conversion; theory of planned behavior; PLS structural equation modeling; group participation

Universidade Federal de Santa Maria Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Centro de Ciências Rurais , 97105-900 Santa Maria RS Brazil , Tel.: +55 55 3220-8698 , Fax: +55 55 3220-8695 - Santa Maria - RS - Brazil
E-mail: cienciarural@mail.ufsm.br