Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania

Smallholder farmers’ decisions to adopt improved varieties are expected to be critically governed by their preferences and willingness to pay for different traits of these varieties. This study examined farmers’ preferences for sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) variety attributes and estimated t...

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Main Authors: Miriti, Philip, Regassa, Mekdim D., Ojiewo, Christopher Ochieng, Melesse, Mequanint B.
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Informa UK Limited 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/128765
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author Miriti, Philip
Regassa, Mekdim D.
Ojiewo, Christopher Ochieng
Melesse, Mequanint B.
author_browse Melesse, Mequanint B.
Miriti, Philip
Ojiewo, Christopher Ochieng
Regassa, Mekdim D.
author_facet Miriti, Philip
Regassa, Mekdim D.
Ojiewo, Christopher Ochieng
Melesse, Mequanint B.
author_sort Miriti, Philip
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Smallholder farmers’ decisions to adopt improved varieties are expected to be critically governed by their preferences and willingness to pay for different traits of these varieties. This study examined farmers’ preferences for sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) variety attributes and estimated their willingness to pay (WTP) for these attributes using choice experiment data from >1,300 sorghum farmers in Tanzania. Empirical findings showed that farmers had strong preferences for sorghum varieties that were tolerant to environmental stresses, high yielding, early maturing, fetching higher grain prices, and white in color. Significant heterogeneity was observed in farmers’ preferences across various traits. The WTP estimates revealed that farmers were willing to pay the highest premium for tolerance to environmental stresses, amounting, on average, to three times higher than the WTP for other traits. Our results have important implications for demand-driven variety development that could contribute to improving crop productivity and household welfare.
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publishDate 2023
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spelling CGSpace1287652025-12-08T09:54:28Z Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania Miriti, Philip Regassa, Mekdim D. Ojiewo, Christopher Ochieng Melesse, Mequanint B. experimentation variety choice willingness to pay sorghum breeding programmes Smallholder farmers’ decisions to adopt improved varieties are expected to be critically governed by their preferences and willingness to pay for different traits of these varieties. This study examined farmers’ preferences for sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) variety attributes and estimated their willingness to pay (WTP) for these attributes using choice experiment data from >1,300 sorghum farmers in Tanzania. Empirical findings showed that farmers had strong preferences for sorghum varieties that were tolerant to environmental stresses, high yielding, early maturing, fetching higher grain prices, and white in color. Significant heterogeneity was observed in farmers’ preferences across various traits. The WTP estimates revealed that farmers were willing to pay the highest premium for tolerance to environmental stresses, amounting, on average, to three times higher than the WTP for other traits. Our results have important implications for demand-driven variety development that could contribute to improving crop productivity and household welfare. 2023-03-04 2023-02-20T11:52:05Z 2023-02-20T11:52:05Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/128765 en Open Access application/pdf Informa UK Limited Miriti, P., Regassa, M.D., Ojiewo, C.O. and Melesse, M.B. 2022. Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania. Journal of Crop Improvement
spellingShingle experimentation
variety choice
willingness to pay
sorghum
breeding programmes
Miriti, Philip
Regassa, Mekdim D.
Ojiewo, Christopher Ochieng
Melesse, Mequanint B.
Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania
title Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania
title_full Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania
title_fullStr Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania
title_full_unstemmed Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania
title_short Farmers’ preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties: Informing product development and breeding programs in Tanzania
title_sort farmers preferences and willingness to pay for traits of sorghum varieties informing product development and breeding programs in tanzania
topic experimentation
variety choice
willingness to pay
sorghum
breeding programmes
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/128765
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