Farmers’ preferences for attributes of rice varieties in Sierra Leone

Farmers’ preferences and needs are crucial in improving the development of rice varieties to increase rice production and improve food security. However, research on farmers’ preferences for crop attributes is scarce in Africa. This study contributes to bridging this gap by focusing on farmers’ preferences for rice variety attributes based on a nationwide survey conducted in Sierra Leone. Results from a Best-Worst Scaling analysis revealed that potential yield, maturity, pest and disease resistance, and seed longevity, were the most preferred attributes of a rice variety. The least preferred attributes were ease of threshing, fertiliser response, and shattering. After applying a latent class model, farmers were found to align with six distinct classes: “majority farmers”, “price sensitive”, “conservationists”, “sustainable farmers”, “output maximisers”, and “subsistence”. These classes showed differences in terms of the farmers’ characteristics (e.g. sex, education, income, farm farming experience, and farmland size) and in the importance given to extrinsic factors (e.g. access to market, extension services, and membership in farmers’ organisations). Among these classes, the “majority farmers” were more likely to have relatively more farmland, easier access to other farm resources (e.g., chemical fertilisers and market information) and are more likely to prefer potential yield. The “price sensitive” class placed high importance on seed price and consisted of farmers who were low income, and had better access to extension services and membership to farming organisations. Furthermore, preferences were distinct for “conservationists” who have environmental and sustenance concerns.