GASPRO International Journal of Eminent Scholars

ABSTRACT

This study aimed at strategically finding out the adoption and perceived benefits of organic farming by vegetable farmers in Calabar Agricultural Zone of Cross River State. The study was carried out in Calabar Agricultural Zone of Cross River State which comprised seven Local Government Areas. Specifically, three Local Government Areas – Calabar South, Calabar Municipality and Odukpani were purposively selected and used for the study on the basis of intensity and scale of vegetable production in those LGAs.  The population of the study comprised all the vegetable farmers in the study area.  The sample was drawn using purposive and random sampling techniques, with a sample size of two hundred and fifty (250) respondents. Data for analysis were collected from the respondents through the use of a structured questionnaire and oral interview.  The instrument was face and content validated by experts in the field. The questionnaire was tested for reliability using rest retest technique. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings from the study revealed that the rate of adoption of the various organic farming practices varied widely among vegetable farmers in Calabar agricultural zone of Cross River state.  The findings also showed that the most widely adopted practices were manual tillage, while the least was the use of animal droppings as manure, also production of healthy vegetables, maintenance of soil fertility, conservation of environment, longer shellfire of crops, lower economic costs of production and compatibility are ensured with adoption of organic farming. It was recommended that the government should make policies that guard against agricultural practices that degrade the environment while encouraging and enforcing the adoption and practice of organic farming. The provision of incentives could also go a long way to boost the rate of adoption.