Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana

Benjamin Tetteh Anang; Joseph Amikuzuno

doi:doi:10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana

Benjamin Tetteh Anang, Joseph Amikuzuno

Published in Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Volume 4, Issue 2)

Received: 23 March 2015 Accepted: 3 April 2015 Published: 15 April 2015

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Abstract

Rice production is an important economic activity among smallholder farmers in northern Ghana serving as source of income and household food security. The production of rice is often associated with the use of pesticides to control harmful pests of rice, a practice which also poses environmental and human health risks. The study sought to investigate the factors which influence smallholder rice farmers’ use of pesticides in rice farming in northern Ghana. Rice farmers were selected from three irrigation schemes in northern Ghana, namely the Botanga, Tono and Vea Irrigation Schemes. A multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used to identify 300 rice farmers who were interviewed with a semi-structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed both descriptively and inferentially. A probit model was used to study the determinants of pesticide use. The study showed that farm size, farm income, mechanization, extension contact, distance to source of pesticide and production system were the influencial factors in rice producers’ choice to use pesticide in rice farming. The study recommends extension education to farmers on pesticide use in order to avoid misuse and the risks factors associated with improper application.

Published in	Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Volume 4, Issue 2)
DOI	10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19
Page(s)	77-82
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2015. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Northern Ghana, Pesticide Use, Probit Model, Rice Production, Smallholder Farmers

References

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[2]	Pan African Regulation (PAR), 2000. Pan Africa Regulation of Dangerous Pesticides in Ghana. Pan African Monitoring and Briefing Series No. 5, Dakar, Senegal, 16Pp.
[3]	Alavanja M. C. R., Ross M. K., and Bonner M. R,.2013. Increased Cancer Burden Among Pesticide Applicators and Others Due to Pesticide Exposure. CA Cancer J Clin 2013 (63):120–142. doi:10.3322/caac.21170. Available online at cacancerjournal.com.
[4]	Goel A. and Aggarwal P., 2007. Pesticide poisoning. The National Medical Journal of India, Vol. 20, No. 4. Review Article 182. July/August 2007.
[5]	Horna D, Smale M., Al-Hassan R., Falck-Zepeda J., and Timpo S. E.,2008. Insecticide Use on Vegetables in Ghana: Would GM Seed Benefit Farmers? IFPRI Discussion Paper 00785, August 2008.
[6]	Obeng-Ofori, D., 1998. Post Harvest Science. Crop Science Department. University of Ghana, Legon, October, 1998. 71 Pp.
[7]	Kent, J., 1991. Education and Training in Farm Chemical Management. Proceedings of Conference on Agriculture, Education and Information Transfer. Murrumbidge College of Agriculture, 1991.
[8]	Gerken, A., Suglo, J.-V. and Braun, M., 2001. Crop Protection Policy in Ghana. Pokuase-Accra, Ghana: Integrated Crop Protection Project, PPRSD/GTZ.
[9]	Obeng-Ofori, D., Owousu, E. O. and Kaiwa E. T., 2002. Variation in the level of carboxylesterase activity as an indicator of insecticide resistance in populations of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella (L.) attacking cabbage in Ghana. Journal of the Ghana Science Association 4 (2): 52–62.
[10]	Ministry of Food and Agriculture, 2002. Food and agriculture sector development policy. Accra: Government of Ghana.
[11]	Collett D., 1991. Modelling Binary Data, London: Chapman and Hall.
[12]	Agresti A., 1990. Categorical Data Analysis, New York: John Wiley & Sons.
[13]	Sebopetji TO, Belete A., 2009.An Application of Probit Analysis to Factors Affecting Small-Scale Farmers’ Decision to take Credit: a Case Study of Greater Letabo Local Municipality in South Africa. Afri. J. Agric. Res. 4(8):718-723.
[14]	Al-hassan, S., 2008. Technical Efficiency of Rice Farmers in Northern Ghana. AERC Research Paper 178, African Economic Research Consortium, Nairobi. April 2008.
[15]	Yasin G, Aslam M, Parvez I. and Naz S., 2003. Socio-economic Correlates of Pesticide Usage: The Case of Citrus Farmers. Journal of Research (Science), Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan 14 (1):43-48, June 2003.
[16]	Alabi O. O., Lawal A. F., Coker A. A. and Awoyinka Y. A., 2014. Probit Model Analysis of Smallholder’s Farmers Decision to Use Agrochemical Inputs in Gwagwalada and Kuje Area Councils of Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria. International Journal of Food and Agricultural Economics 2(1):85-93.
[17]	Idris A, Rasaki K., Folake T., and Hakeem B., 2013. Analysis of Pesticide Use in Cocoa Production in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, Nigeria. Journal of Biology, Agriculture and Healthcare 3(6):1-9.
[18]	Rahman, A. M. A. and Hamid, M E., 2013. Impact of FFS on Farmer's Adoption of IPM Options for Onion: A Case Study from Gezira State, Sudan. World Journal of Agricultural Sciences 9 (1): 38-44. DOI: 10.5829/idosi.wjas.2013.9.1.1720.

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Benjamin Tetteh Anang, Joseph Amikuzuno. (2015). Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana. Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, 4(2), 77-82. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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ACS Style

Benjamin Tetteh Anang; Joseph Amikuzuno. Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana. Agric. For. Fish. 2015, 4(2), 77-82. doi: 10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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AMA Style

Benjamin Tetteh Anang, Joseph Amikuzuno. Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana. Agric For Fish. 2015;4(2):77-82. doi: 10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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@article{10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19,
  author = {Benjamin Tetteh Anang and Joseph Amikuzuno},
  title = {Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana},
  journal = {Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries},
  volume = {4},
  number = {2},
  pages = {77-82},
  doi = {10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.aff.20150402.19},
  abstract = {Rice production is an important economic activity among smallholder farmers in northern Ghana serving as source of income and household food security. The production of rice is often associated with the use of pesticides to control harmful pests of rice, a practice which also poses environmental and human health risks. The study sought to investigate the factors which influence smallholder rice farmers’ use of pesticides in rice farming in northern Ghana. Rice farmers were selected from three irrigation schemes in northern Ghana, namely the Botanga, Tono and Vea Irrigation Schemes. A multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used to identify 300 rice farmers who were interviewed with a semi-structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed both descriptively and inferentially. A probit model was used to study the determinants of pesticide use. The study showed that farm size, farm income, mechanization, extension contact, distance to source of pesticide and production system were the influencial factors in rice producers’ choice to use pesticide in rice farming. The study recommends extension education to farmers on pesticide use in order to avoid misuse and the risks factors associated with improper application.},
 year = {2015}
}

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TY - JOUR
T1 - Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana
AU - Benjamin Tetteh Anang
AU - Joseph Amikuzuno
Y1 - 2015/04/15
PY - 2015
N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19
DO - 10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19
T2 - Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
JF - Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
JO - Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
SP - 77
EP - 82
PB - Science Publishing Group
SN - 2328-5648
UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19
AB - Rice production is an important economic activity among smallholder farmers in northern Ghana serving as source of income and household food security. The production of rice is often associated with the use of pesticides to control harmful pests of rice, a practice which also poses environmental and human health risks. The study sought to investigate the factors which influence smallholder rice farmers’ use of pesticides in rice farming in northern Ghana. Rice farmers were selected from three irrigation schemes in northern Ghana, namely the Botanga, Tono and Vea Irrigation Schemes. A multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used to identify 300 rice farmers who were interviewed with a semi-structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed both descriptively and inferentially. A probit model was used to study the determinants of pesticide use. The study showed that farm size, farm income, mechanization, extension contact, distance to source of pesticide and production system were the influencial factors in rice producers’ choice to use pesticide in rice farming. The study recommends extension education to farmers on pesticide use in order to avoid misuse and the risks factors associated with improper application.
VL - 4
IS - 2
ER -

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Author Information

Benjamin Tetteh Anang

Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, FACS, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana
Joseph Amikuzuno

Department of Climate Change and Food Security, FACS, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana

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APA Style

Benjamin Tetteh Anang, Joseph Amikuzuno. (2015). Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana. Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, 4(2), 77-82. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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ACS Style

Benjamin Tetteh Anang; Joseph Amikuzuno. Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana. Agric. For. Fish. 2015, 4(2), 77-82. doi: 10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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AMA Style

Benjamin Tetteh Anang, Joseph Amikuzuno. Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana. Agric For Fish. 2015;4(2):77-82. doi: 10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19

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@article{10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19,
  author = {Benjamin Tetteh Anang and Joseph Amikuzuno},
  title = {Factors Influencing Pesticide Use in Smallholder Rice Production in Northern Ghana},
  journal = {Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries},
  volume = {4},
  number = {2},
  pages = {77-82},
  doi = {10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.aff.20150402.19},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.aff.20150402.19},
  abstract = {Rice production is an important economic activity among smallholder farmers in northern Ghana serving as source of income and household food security. The production of rice is often associated with the use of pesticides to control harmful pests of rice, a practice which also poses environmental and human health risks. The study sought to investigate the factors which influence smallholder rice farmers’ use of pesticides in rice farming in northern Ghana. Rice farmers were selected from three irrigation schemes in northern Ghana, namely the Botanga, Tono and Vea Irrigation Schemes. A multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used to identify 300 rice farmers who were interviewed with a semi-structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed both descriptively and inferentially. A probit model was used to study the determinants of pesticide use. The study showed that farm size, farm income, mechanization, extension contact, distance to source of pesticide and production system were the influencial factors in rice producers’ choice to use pesticide in rice farming. The study recommends extension education to farmers on pesticide use in order to avoid misuse and the risks factors associated with improper application.},
 year = {2015}
}

Copy | Download