Climate Adaptation in Agriculture through Technological Option: Determinants and Impact on Efficiency of Production

The climate variability has a direct influence on the quantity and quality of agricultural output. In response to changing climate, adaptation is becoming an urgent priority because large reductions in negative impacts of climate change are feasible when adaptation is fully implemented. This study is based on the data collected from 180 farmers in the Western Zone of Tamil Nadu, where climate variability is high. The determinants of climate adaptation technologies have been studied using a multinomial logit model. The education level, sex, household size, farm size, extension contact, temperature and rainfall have been founded to influence the adoption of technologies to mitigate the impact of climate variability. The impact of technology adoption on technical efficiency of production of major crops using stochastic frontier production function has shown that technical efficiency is higher among technology adopters. The lack of finance, lack of knowledge about technology and high cost of adaptation have been reported to be the constraints to climate adaptation. The study has concluded that technology adoption significantly helps the smallholder farmers to continue farming in the changing climate.