Adoption of farm management practices by smallholder cocoa farmers in Prestea Huni-Valley district, Ghana

As part of Ghana’s quest to increase cocoa production, Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana has recommended farm management practices to help boost production levels. However, adoption of these management practices had been low, leading to yield levels below potential. This study investigates the adoption intensity and factors explaining the variation in adoption among smallholder cocoa farmers in Prestea Huni-Valley district of Ghana. A sample size of 180 cocoa farm households from eight communities were randomly selected and interviewed through a well-structured questionnaire. Majority (80%) of the sampled farmers have adopted four to six out of seven cocoa farm management practices identified. The Poison regression model was used to examine the determinants of intensity of adoption of the farm management practices. The results generally revealed that, marital status of the farmer, household size, educational attainment, membership of farmer-based organization and farmer receiving extension services are all significant variables explaining farmer’s decision to adopt cocoa farm management practices. The study concludes by suggesting that farm level policies such as extension service delivery system should be strengthen in terms of staff and methodologies.