IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i8p3367-d1631477.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Farmers’ Preferences and Practices Regarding Bio-Based Fertilizers: A Croatian Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Mihaela Šatvar Vrbančić

    (Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetošimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia)

  • Lepomir Čoga

    (Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetošimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia)

  • Ana Marija Špicnagel

    (IPS Konzalting, Ante Starčevića 66, 44000 Sisak, Croatia)

  • Natalija Vugrin

    (IPS Konzalting, Ante Starčevića 66, 44000 Sisak, Croatia)

  • Erik Meers

    (Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Copure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium)

  • Tajana Čop

    (Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetošimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia)

Abstract

Sustainable agriculture requires a shift from mineral to bio-based fertilizers (BBFs), but farmer adoption has not been sufficiently studied in Croatia. This study examines Croatian farmers’ preferences, practices and barriers to adopting BBFs using a nationwide survey and regression analysis, filling gaps in research on fertilizer use. The results show that while farmers are satisfied with conventional options, they want more variety and express concerns about nutrient concentration and soil impact. Interest in BBFs is high—particularly for low-cost or high-impact products—but uptake is hindered by financial constraints and limited information. Notably, most farmers are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly fertilizers, despite being price sensitive. By highlighting key drivers and barriers, this study provides actionable insights that could provide strategies for policy makers, farmers and industry representatives to support Croatia’s transition to sustainable fertilizer practices, with implications for similar agricultural regions.

Suggested Citation

  • Mihaela Šatvar Vrbančić & Lepomir Čoga & Ana Marija Špicnagel & Natalija Vugrin & Erik Meers & Tajana Čop, 2025. "Farmers’ Preferences and Practices Regarding Bio-Based Fertilizers: A Croatian Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-21, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:8:p:3367-:d:1631477
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/8/3367/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/8/3367/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:8:p:3367-:d:1631477. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.