Peat Land Oil Palm Farmers’ Direct and Indirect Benefits from Good Agriculture Practices

Abd Hair Awang, Iskandar Zainuddin Rela, Azlan Abas, Mohamad Arfan Johari, Mohammad Effendi Marzuki, Mohd Noor Ramdan Mohd Faudzi and Adri Musa
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Abd Hair Awang: Development Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
Iskandar Zainuddin Rela: Department of Agricultural Extension, Halu Oleo University, Kampus Hijau Bumi Tridharma, Kendari 93132, Sulawesi Tenggara, Indonesia
Azlan Abas: Environmental Management, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
Mohamad Arfan Johari: Malaysia Palm Oil Board (MPOB), Mukah 96400, Sarawak, Malaysia
Mohammad Effendi Marzuki: Malaysia Palm Oil Board (MPOB), Mukah 96400, Sarawak, Malaysia
Mohd Noor Ramdan Mohd Faudzi: Environmental Management, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
Adri Musa: Malaysia Palm Oil Board (MPOB), Mukah 96400, Sarawak, Malaysia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 14, 1-18

Abstract: With economically unsustainable metroxylon sagu (sago palms) found in peat lands, small scale farmers are gradually converting their land to oil palm cultivation. Good agriculture practices (GAP) were inculcated to peat land farmers to ensure that the environmental ecosystem is conserved and oil palm productivity is enhanced, along with the farmer’s well-being. The present study examined the effect of GAP on farm performance and the perceived economic well-being of the peat land oil palm farmers. We interviewed randomly selected farmers with assistance from a locally trained native enumerator to complete the survey questionnaire. We conducted partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to incorporate direct and indirect benefits on farmers’ economic well-being to estimate the significance of GAP. The empirical results show that GAP have direct positive effects on farm performance. Such practices lead to significant positive impacts on the economic well-being of peat land oil palm farmers. This solid evidence makes it much easier for small-scale farmers to convert from conventional farming to environmentally friendly farming, and ensures safe and healthy oil palm cultivation.

Keywords: farm performance; economic well-being; environmental sustainability; good agriculture practice; sustainable development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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