Acceptance and diffusion of hybrid corn seed in Vojvodina/Serbia

Abstract

The paper analyzes the modernization process of agricultural production in Serbia/Vojvodina, observed through the intensification of mercantile corn production that takes place by introducing the genetics of high-yielding seeds. This process is analyzed for the period of last 20 years through the theoretical-hypothetical framework of the theory of diffusion of innovations, in this case, the diffusion of seeds of non-Serbian seed companies (after 2000), which resulted in more intensive production, higher yields and different production practice of farmers in Serbia. The empirical research was conducted on a sample of 110 farmers and very similar to previous research on this topic, proved the innovativeness of certain producer groups and the relations between the diffusion of this innovation and the size of farms, values, habits and behaviour patterns of farmers.U radu se analizira proces modernizacije poljoprivredne proizvodnje u Srbiji/Vojvodini sagledan kroz intenzifikaciju proizvodnje merkantilnog kukuruza koja se odvija uvođenjem genetike visokoprinosnih semena. Ovaj proces analiziran je za period od 20 godina putem teorijsko-hipotetičkog okvira teorije difuzije inovacija, u konkretnom slučaju, difuzije semena inostranih semenskih kuća (nakon 2000. godine), a koja su za posledicu imala intenzivniju proizvodnju, veće prinose i drugačiju proizvodnu praksu kod farmera u Srbiji. Empirijsko istraživanje izvedeno je na uzorku od 110 farmera i vrlo slično ranijim istraživanjima ove tematike, dokazalo je inovativnost određenih grupa proizvođača i veze širenja ove inovacije sa veličinom poseda, vrednosnim stavovima, navikama i obrascima ponašanja farmera.