FARMERS’ SWITCHING BEHAVIOR FROM CROP TO FISH PRODUCTION: CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES

Abstract

The major purposes of this research study were to: determine the extent of switching behavior of the farmers from crop to fish production, determine the causes and consequences of farmers’ switching behavior and also to explore the relationships between each of fifteen selected characteristics of the farmers and their extent of switching from crop to fish production. Data were collected from randomly selected 74 farmers of 12 villages of Shyamnagar and Kaligonj upazila under Satkhira district by using an interview schedule during the period from August 20 to November 25, 2021. Finding revealed that majority proportion (78.4 percent) of the farmers’ switched crop production to fish production into a lower amount of land compared to 13.5 percent of them switched from crop to fish production into a medium amount of land and 8.1 percent of the farmers switched from crop to fish production into a high amount of land. In practical situation, all the potential area of a farmer was not switched from crop to fish production. According to cause index for switching from crop to fish production “higher profit in fish production ranked first cause” followed by “salinity problem for crop production”, “irrigation problem in kharip season”, “less production in crop cultivation”, “climatic hazard”, “less physical attachment in fish production” and “lower diversity in local cropping pattern”. For switching from crop to fish production farmer were facing some positive and negative consequences. According to consequences index in positive direction, “increasing economic return of the farmers” ranked first consequences followed by “increase pesticide free dyke vegetable cultivation” and “preservation of rain water for future use”. Based on consequence index in negative direction, “decreasing crop production” ranked first consequences followed by “increasing soil salinity after shrimp cultivation” and “high risk of return from fish production”. Out of fifteen selected characteristics of the farmers, BCR from fish production, extension contact, fish production knowledge, fish production practices of the farmers had significant positive relationship with their switching behavior from crop to fish production, while age of the farmers had significant negative relationship with their switching behavior. Rest ten characteristics i.e. education, farm size, family size, BCR from crop production, crop production knowledge, organizational participation, cosmopolitanism, training exposure, problem faced in crop cultivation, problem faced in fish production, had non-significant relationship with their switching behavior from crop to fish cultivation. Advisory service providers of crop and fisheries sector should take necessary actions to increase crop and fisheries productivity in a logical way in the study area for the betterment of the farmers and the country.