Eliciting farmers’ preferences towards agriculture education in Northern Ireland

Abstract

Purpose: Agriculture education promotes farmers and societal welfare through a more efficient use of resources and the adoption of sustainable farming practices. Nevertheless, farmers’ educational attainment is limited across countries. This study explores farmers’ intention to participate in formal agriculture education. Design/methodology/approach: A discrete choice experiment survey with 363 farmers exploring their preferences for different specifications within a diploma in agriculture was employed. We focus on Northern Ireland, a country with a relatively large agricultural sector and were farmers have a low level of formal education. Findings: Our results show that farmers exhibited a preference for short courses delivered in the evenings, with 75% of the teaching time delivered online, favouring educational topics linked to farm performance against those related to socio-environmental outcomes. Part-time younger farmers, operating in small farms located in less favoured areas, reported the highest willingness to pay for the course. However, farmers that had previously participated in a Young Farmer Payment Scheme reported the lowest interest in undertaking the course. Practical implications: The study provides useful information to education providers in relation to the design of agriculture courses to better meet farmers’ preferences and therefore encourage levels of uptake. Secondly, the study can help policymakers to make informed decisions about policy instruments incentivising farmers to engage in education. Theoretical implications: By drawing from random parameter choice models, the study highlights that the heterogeneity of farmers’ preferences should be considered when modelling their decision to engage in agriculture education. Originality/value: This is the first study that elicits farmers’ preferences towards agriculture education via a discrete choice experiment. Secondly, the study explores preference heterogeneity based on farmers and farms’ characteristics.