Adoption behaviour of private cocoa farmers in Trinidad and Tobago 138

Black pod disease, (Phytophthora palmivora) causes as much as 70% losses on cocoa holdings in Trinidad and Tobago. A package of control practices has been recommended for its control for a long time. Evidence has shown that many farmers have not adopted the package although they still experience severe losses. This study investigated the technological and farming system variables that have affected the adoption of this control package. A survey was conducted with a sample of 140 farmers drawn from a population of approximately 6000 cocoa farmers by stratified random sampling. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the significance of the factors influencing adoption levels. The results showed that no farmer adopted the entire package and selective adoption at varying levels was dominant. The technological variables were by far more important explanatory variables of adoption levels than farming system variables. Perceived riskiness was the most important explanatory variable generally explaining over 60% of the variation in adoption levels.