Farmers’ use of sustainable production practices for yellow pepper crop in the Nsukka agricultural zone, Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

Abstract This study investigated farmers’ use of sustainable production practices for yellow pepper crop in the Nsukka agricultural zone, Enugu State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used in selecting 135 farmers and interview schedule using structured questionnaires was employed for data collection. Data generated were analysed with SPSS software using frequency and percentage, mean scores, standard deviation, factor analysis, and logistic regression. Findings revealed that the majority (91.1%) of the yellow pepper farmers had moderate knowledge on sustainable production practices and that some of the practices used were mass selection (97.0%), use of poultry manure (95.60%), use of improved varieties of yellow pepper (94.0%), crop rotation practices (91.10%), and minimum use of agrochemicals (78.50). Among the factors considered to be potential determinants of farmers’ use of sustainable production practices, only sex was statistically significant, at 5% level. Also, findings indicated that technical, institutional, and economic constraints affected farmers’ use of sustainable production practices. Furthermore, results indicated that sustainable production practices could be enhanced through the use of improved seeds (85.5%), access to credit facilities (77.8%), access to extension services (71.8%), and training of farmers (68.9%). The study therefore recommends that government and private sectors should provide services that will facilitate the development of sustainable production practices of Nsukka yellow pepper crop, as this will have a long-term effect on productivity and the production environment.