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186 Agriculture Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples

Are you looking for the best agriculture topics to write about? You’re at the right place! StudyCorgi has prepared a list of important agriculture research topics. On this page, any student can find essay questions and project ideas on various agricultural issues, such as food safety, genetically engineered crops, and sustainable farming practices.

👨‍🌾 TOP 7 Agriculture Research Topics – 2024

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• Globalization Impact on Sustainable Agriculture
• Agriculture and Its Role in Economic Development
• Agricultural Biotechnology and Its Pros and Cons
• Food Safety Issues in Modern Agriculture
• Commercial Agriculture, Its Role and Definition
• Agriculture: Personal Field Visit
• The Impact of Pesticides’ Use on Agriculture
• In Support of Robotics Use in Agriculture Robotic technologies have vast potential to be used in the agricultural sector due to the multi-dimensional nature of their applications and the possibilities for ongoing improvement.
• Agricultural Influences on the Developing Civil Society Agriculture had a significant influence on developing societies, ranging from creating trade to bringing industrialization, education, and social classes.
• Agriculture: Application of Information Technology IT application in agriculture has contributed to food security in most modern communities. Farming has become easier than before as new inventions are made.
• Food and Agriculture of Ancient Greece The concepts of agriculture and cuisine both have a deep connection to Greek history, culture, development, and social trends.
• Agriculture and Food in Ancient Greece The paper states that agricultural practices and goods from Greece extended to neighboring countries in the Mediterranean as the dominance increased.
• Soil: The Essential Aspect of Agriculture Soil is an integral part of human life as it determines one’s quality of life. The health of the soil is reduced by erosion and degradation due to human activities.
• Industry and Agriculture: Use of Technology Industry and agriculture are among the areas that have experienced a vast rise in effectiveness and performance quality due to the integration of new types of technology into them.
• Agriculture the Backbone of Ancient Egypt’s Economy In pre-industrial societies, agriculture was the backbone of most economies. This is true in ancient times and very much evident in ancient Egypt.
• Population Growth and Agriculture in the Future The current industrial agriculture needs to be advanced and developed in combination with sustainable agricultural practices.
• Hunting and Gathering Versus Agricultural Society The hunting and gathering society is considered the most equitable of all seven types, while the agricultural community gives rise to the development of civilization.
• Agricultural Role in African Development Diao et al. attempt to determine the role of agriculture in overcoming the challenge of poverty in rural areas of Africa compared to alternative theories of economic growth.
• Virtual Water Trade and Savings in Agriculture This essay discusses the savings associated with virtual water trade in agriculture and touches on the effects of a shift to local agricultural production on global water savings.
• Repeasantization: Impact on Agriculture The repeasantization led to fundamental changes that created a new system of agriculture that is still relevant today.
• The Big History of Civilizations – Origins of Agriculture: Video Analysis This paper aims to analyze the origins of agriculture – what was a foraging economy and way of life like, as well as compare foragers and farmers.
• Improving Stress Resistance in Agricultural Crops The essay suggests that stress-resistant crops are needed to ensure yield stability under stress conditions and to minimize the environmental impacts of crop production.
• History of Agricultural Technology Development Agricultural technologies were majorly developed during the Medieval period to ensure sufficient product yields for growing populations around the world.
• Sustainable Agriculture Against Food Insecurity The paper argues sustainable agriculture is one way to reduce food insecurity without harming the planet because the number of resources is currently decreasing.
• Climate Changes Impact on Agriculture and Livestock The project evaluates the influences of climate changes on agriculture and livestock in different areas in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
• Colonialism and Economic Development of Africa Through Agriculture The colonial period is characterized by the exploitation of the agricultural sector in Africa to make a profit and provide Western countries with raw materials.
• The Neolithic Era: Architecture and Agriculture The improvements to agriculture, society, architecture, and culture made during the Neolithic period had an undeniable impact on aspects of the world.
• Agriculture Development and Related Theories There are two main domestication models used to describe the development of agriculture: unconscious and conscious.
• Agriculture in Honduras: Existing Challenges and Possible Solutions This paper tackles the issue of existing challenges and possible solutions to the problems of agriculture in Honduras.
• Food Safety: A Policy Issue in Agriculture Today Food safety constitutes proper preparation, storage and preservation of all foods. Markets are increasingly calling for improvement in the quality and safety standards of food crops.
• Market Revolution: Agriculture and Global Trade In the era of traders, the vast land area and rich natural resources created many economic opportunities. Most people lived in rural areas and were engaged in agriculture.
• Agriculture, Water, and Food Security in Tanzania This paper evaluates the strategies applicable to the development and further maintenance of agriculture, water, and food security in Tanzania.
• The Australian Agriculture Company’s Financial Analysis The Australian Agriculture Company shows a positive sign for investment due to its financial analysis indicating company resilience and strong prospects of growth.
• Agriculture and Food Production in the Old Kingdom
• Agriculture and the Transition to the Market in Asia
• Agrarian Reform and Subsistence Agriculture in Russia
• Agriculture, Nutrition, and the Green Revolution in Bangladesh
• Agriculture Business and Management
• Agriculture, Horticulture, and Ancient Egypt
• Agriculture and Food Production in the Old Kingdom of Egypt
• Administrative and Transaction-Related Costs of Subsidising Agriculture
• Agriculture and Economic Growth in Argentina, 1913-84
• Agriculture and Economic Development in Brazil, 1960-1995
• Agriculture and Greenhouse Gas Cap-And-Trade
• Croatian Agriculture Towards World Market Liberalization
• Adapting Credit Risk Models to Agriculture
• Agriculture and European Union Enlargement
• Agriculture and Food Security in Pakistan
• Cash Flows and Financing in Texas Agriculture
• Current Problems With Indian Agriculture
• Agriculture and Its Drain on California
• Agriculture and the Economic Life of India
• Agriculture and Global Climate Stabilization
• Achieving Regional Growth Dynamics in African Agriculture
• Agriculture and Non-agricultural Liberalization in the Millennium Round
• Corporate Agriculture and Modern Times
• Agriculture and Rural Employment Agricultural in Bolivia
• Climatic Fluctuations and the DI¤Usion of Agriculture
• Agriculture Global Market Briefing
• Agriculture and the Industrial Revolution of the Late 1700s
• Agriculture and Animal Husbandry in Ecuador
• Biofuels, Agriculture, and Climate Change
• Aggregate Technical Efficiency and Water Use in U.S. Agriculture
• Governmental Price Control in Agricultural Sector The consequences of real-life governmental price control are the evolutionary nature of transformations in the agricultural sector.
• The Agriculture Industry’s Digital Transformation This study seeks to explore the dynamics of digital technology in agriculture over the past two decades, focusing on the perspectives and perceptions of the farmers.
• Aspects of Pesticide Use in Agriculture This paper investigates socio-environmental factors connected with pesticide use in agriculture and food production. It has a destructive impact on the environment
• Agriculture-Led Food Crops and Cash Crops in Tanzania This paper aims to explore the contributions of the agriculture sector in Tanzania to the country’s industrialization process by using recent data about its food and cash crops.
• Cuisine and Agriculture of Ancient Greece There are many reasons for modern students to investigate the development of cuisine and agriculture in Ancient Greece.
• Agriculture and Food Safety in the United States Agriculture in the United States has grown progressively centralized. The shortcomings in the 2018 U.S. farm legislation resulted in multiple challenges in the food system.
• Sustainable Agriculture and Future Perspectives Sustainable agriculture is essential to the earth’s environment. When farmers take care of their land and crops, they are taking care of environmental sustainability.
• Agricultural Adaptation to Changing Environments The paper discusses the impact of climate change on agriculture in Canada. This phenomenon is real and has affected the industry over at least the last three decades.
• Trade Peculiarities in Food and Agriculture Food trading is a peculiar area, as food is the basis for surviving the population. The one who controls food production and trading routes, also controls all populations.
• Multinational Agricultural Manufacturing Companies’ Standardization & Adaptation The most popular approaches that multinational companies use to serve their customers from various countries are standardization and adaptation.
• Agricultural Technology Implementation by Medieval Europeans and West Africans The paper examines how West Africans and Medieval Europeans were affected by their corresponding climates and why their methods were unique to their respective locations.
• Impacts of Climate Change on Agriculture and Food This paper will examine four aspects of climate change: variation in the rainfall pattern, water levels, drought, temperature, and heatwaves.
• Canadian Laws Regarding Agricultural Sector The unions in Canada are the concept over which there has been an excessive dispute involving court proceedings and questioning the constitutional rights of citizens.
• Agricultural Traditions of Canadians In Canada there is a very good agricultural education, so young people can get higher education in agriculture and use it on their own farms.
• Sharecropping. History of Racial Agriculture Sharecropping became a variation of racialized agriculture, that which has negative impact on the capabilities of the black population to generate and pass down wealth.
• Food Additives Use in Agriculture in the United States Food additives in agriculture become a debatable issue because their benefits do not always prevail over such shortages like health issues and environmental concerns.
• Radio-Frequency Identification in Healthcare and Agriculture Specifically, radio-frequency identification (RFID) has gained traction due to its ability to transmit data over distance.
• Mechanism of US Agricultural Market The fact that lower interest rates increased the number of potential customers for real estate in the 2000s shows that housing prices should have increased.
• A Biological Terror Attack in Agriculture The United States is highly vulnerable to terror attacks of biological nature in agriculture yet such an occurrence can cripple the economy.
• The Economics of Race, Agriculture and Environment This research paper is going to answer the question; do public policies reduce or enhance racial inequality in agricultural and environmental affairs?
• Impact of Bioterrorism on the U.S Agriculture System The paper describes that the term bioterrorism has several definitions depending upon the origin of the attack but in general terms, it refers to any form of terrorist attack.
• Impacts of Genetic Engineering of Agricultural Crops In present days the importance of genetic engineering grew due to the innovations in biotechnologies and Sciences.
• The Effects of Genetic Modification of Agricultural Products Discussion of the threat to the health of the global population of genetically modified food in the works of Such authors as Jane Brody and David Ehrenfeld.
• Climate Change and Its Potential Impact on Agriculture and Food Supply The global food supply chain has been greatly affected by the impact of global climate change. There are, however, benefits as well as drawbacks to crop production.
• Agriculture and Mayan Society Resilience The Yucatan peninsula had a vast landscape which was good for agriculture thus making agriculture to be the main economic base for the Mayans.
• Homeland Security in Agriculture and Health Sectors Lack of attention to the security and protection of the agricultural sector in the U.S. economy can create a serious threat to the health and safety of the population.
• Water Savings and Virtual Trade in Agriculture Water trade in agriculture is not a practice that is unique to the modern generation. The practice was common long before the emergence of the Egyptian Empire.
• Virtual Water Trade of Agricultural Products Virtual water trade is a concept associated with globalization and the global economy. Its rise was motivated by growing water scarcity in arid areas around the world.
• Virtual Water Savings and Trade in Agriculture The idea of virtual water was initially created as a method for assessing how water-rare nations could offer food, clothing, and other water-intensive products to their residents.
• European Invasion and Agriculture in the Caribbean The early invasion of the Europeans in the Caribbean did not prompt the employment of the slave trade in the agricultural activities until the development of the sugar plantations.
• Freedom in American Countryside and Agriculture This paper portrays how freedom has been eliminated in the countryside by the state agriculture department, and whether the farmer has a moral right to do his farming practices.
• Agricultural Problems in Venezuela Agriculture has been greatly underdeveloped in Venezuela, yet it is a country that has vital minerals and resources required for the global economy.
• America’s Agriculture in the Period of 1865-1938 This paper analyzes America’s contribution in prevention of natural calamities, decline of soil quality, promotion of production outlay and provision of sufficient food.
• Capital Taxes and Agriculture
• Canadian Trade With the Chinese Agriculture Market
• Agriculture and Its Impact on Economic Development
• Bacteriocins From the Rhizosphere Microbiome From an Agriculture Perspective
• Agriculture and Its Impact on Financial Institutions
• Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food in the Irish Economy
• Adoption and Economic Impact of Site-Specific Technologies in U.S. Agriculture
• Cash Rents and Land Values in U.S. Agriculture
• Crises and Structural Change in Australian Agriculture
• Biotechnology and Its Application in Agriculture
• Alternative Policies for Agriculture in Europe
• Agriculture and Food Security in Asia by 2030
• Agriculture and Coping Climate Change in Nepal
• Agriculture and Ethiopia’s Economic Transformation
• Culture: Agriculture and Egalitarian Social
• Adaptation, Climate Change, Agriculture, and Water
• Agriculture and the Literati in Colonial Bengal, 1870 to 1940
• Agriculture and Barley Farming Taro
• Agriculture and Agricultural Inputs Markets
• Agriculture and Environmental Challenges
• Challenges for Sustainable Agriculture in India
• Agriculture and German Reunification
• Agriculture and Tourism Relationship in Malaysia Tourism
• 21st Century Rural America: New Horizons for U.S. Agriculture
• Canadian Agriculture and the Canadian Agricultural Industry
• California Agriculture Dimensions and Issues
• Advancements and the Development of Agriculture in Ancient Greece and Rome
• Agriculture and Early Industrial Revolution
• Aztec: Agriculture and Habersham County
• Agriculture and Current Deforestation Practices
• How Has Agriculture Changed From Early Egypt, Greece, and Rome to the Present?
• What Are the Advantages of Using Pesticides on Agriculture?
• Are Digital Technologies for the Future of Agriculture?
• How Did Agriculture Change Our Society?
• Does Agriculture Help Poverty and Inequality Reduction?
• Can Agriculture Prosper Without Increased Social Capital?
• Are Mega-Farms the Future of Global Agriculture?
• How Can African Agriculture Adapt to Climate Change?
• Does Agriculture Really Matter for Economic Growth in Developing Countries?
• Can Conservation Agriculture Save Tropical Forests?
• How Can Sustainable Agriculture Be Better for Americans?
• Are U.S. and European Union Agriculture Policies Becoming More Similar?
• Should Pollution Reductions Count as Productivity Gains for Agriculture?
• Can Market Access Help African Agriculture?
• How Does Genetic Engineering Affect Agriculture?
• Does Individualization Help Productivity of Transition Agriculture?
• Can Spot and Contract Markets Co-Exist in Agriculture?
• How Has Biotechnology Changed Agriculture Throughout the Years?
• Does Trade Policy Impact Food and Agriculture Global Value Chain Participation of Sub-Saharan African Countries?
• Can Sustainable Agriculture Feed Africa?
• How Can Multifunctional Agriculture Support a Transition to a Green Economy in Africa?
• Does Urban Agriculture Enhance Dietary Diversity?
• How Did Government Policy, Technology, and Economic Conditions Affect Agriculture?
• Can the Small Dairy Farm Remain Competitive in US Agriculture?
• What Are the Main Changes in French Agriculture Since 1945 and What Challenges Does It Face Today?
• How Can Marketing Theory Be Applied to Policy Design to Deliver Sustainable Agriculture in England?
• Will African Agriculture Survive Climate Change?
• How Has Agriculture Changed Civilizations?
• Does Urban Agriculture Improve Food Security?
• Can US and Great Plains Agriculture Compete in the World Market?
• The effect of climate change on crop yields and food security.
• Sustainable agricultural practices for soil health.
• Precision agriculture techniques and applications.
• The impact of genetically engineered organisms on crop yields and safety.
• The benefits of agroforestry systems for the environment.
• Current challenges in water management in agriculture.
• The environmental impact of organic farming.
• The potential of urban agriculture to address food insecurity.
• Food waste in the agricultural supply chain.
• Comparing the effectiveness of aquaponic and hydroponic systems.
• Organic vs. conventional farming.
• Can regenerative agriculture combat climate change?
• Agricultural subsidies: pros and cons.
• Should harmful pesticides be banned to protect pollinators?
• Should arable land be used for biofuels or food production?
• Do patent protections of seeds hinder agricultural innovation?
• Agricultural robots: increased efficiency or displaced rural labor?
• Should GMO labeling be mandatory?
• Do the benefits of pesticides outweigh their potential health harms?
• Is it unsustainable to grow water-intensive crops in arid regions?
• The economics of organic farming.
• The need for climate-adaptive crops.
• The role of bees in agriculture and threats to their survival.
• Smart agriculture: transforming farming with data and connectivity.
• The journey of food in modern agricultural supply chains.
• The role of agri-tech startups in agricultural innovation.
• Youth in agriculture: inspiring the next generation of farmers.
• Why should we shift to plant-based meat alternatives?
• The importance of preserving indigenous agricultural practices.
• Smart irrigation systems: optimizing water use in agriculture.

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StudyCorgi . "186 Agriculture Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples." March 1, 2022. https://studycorgi.com/ideas/agriculture-essay-topics/.

StudyCorgi . 2022. "186 Agriculture Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples." March 1, 2022. https://studycorgi.com/ideas/agriculture-essay-topics/.

These essay examples and topics on Agriculture were carefully selected by the StudyCorgi editorial team. They meet our highest standards in terms of grammar, punctuation, style, and fact accuracy. Please ensure you properly reference the materials if you’re using them to write your assignment.

This essay topic collection was updated on January 21, 2024 .

Thesis Helpers

Find the best tips and advice to improve your writing. Or, have a top expert write your paper.

156 Hot Agriculture Research Topics For High Scoring Thesis

Are you preparing an agriculture research paper or dissertation on agriculture but stuck trying to pick the right topic? The title is very important because it determines how easy or otherwise the process of writing the thesis will be. However, this is never easy for many students, but you should not give up because we are here to offer some assistance. This post is a comprehensive list of the best 156 topics for agriculture projects for students. We will also outline what every part of a thesis should include. Keep reading and identify an interesting agriculture topic to use for your thesis paper. You can use the topics on agriculture as they are or change them a bit to suit your project preference.

What Is Agriculture?

Also referred to as farming, agriculture is the practice of growing crops and raising livestock. Agriculture extends to processing plants and animal products, their distribution and use. It is an essential part of local and global economies because it helps to feed people and supply raw materials for different industries.

The concept of agriculture is evolving pretty fast, with modern agronomy extending to complex technology. For example, plant breeding, agrochemicals, genetics, and relationship to emerging disasters, such as global warming, are also part of agriculture. For students studying agriculture, the diversity of the subject is a good thing, but it can also make selecting the right research paper, thesis, or dissertation topics a big challenge.

How To Write A Great Thesis: What Should You Include In Each Section?

If you are working on a thesis, it is prudent to start by understanding the main structure. In some cases, your college/ university professor or the department might provide a structure for it, but if it doesn’t, here is an outline:

• Thesis Topic This is the title of your paper, and it is important to pick something that is interesting. It should also have ample material for research.
• Introduction This takes the first chapter of a thesis paper, and you should use it to set the stage for the rest of the paper. This is the place to bring out the objective of the study, justification, and research problem. You also have to bring out your thesis statement.
• Literature Review This is the second chapter of a thesis statement and is used to demonstrate that you have comprehensively looked at what other scholars have done. You have to survey different resources, from books to journals and policy papers, on the topic under consideration.
• Methodology This chapter requires you to explain the methodology that was used for the study. It is crucial because the reader wants to know how you arrived at the results. You can opt to use qualitative, quantitative, or both methods.
• Results This chapter presents the results that you got after doing your study. Make sure to use different strategies, such as tables and graphs, to make it easy for readers to understand.
• Discussion This chapter evaluates the results gathered from the study. It helps the researcher to answer the main questions that he/she outlined in the first chapter. In some cases, the discussion can be merged with the results chapter.
• Conclusion This is the summary of the research paper. It demonstrates what the thesis contributed to the field of study. It also helps to approve or nullify the thesis adopted at the start of the paper.

Interesting Agriculture Related Topics

This list includes all the interesting topics in agriculture. You can take any topic and get it free:

• Food safety: Why is it a major policy issue for agriculture on the planet today?
• European agriculture in the period 1800-1900.
• What are the main food safety issues in modern agriculture? A case study of Asia.
• Comparing agri-related problems between Latin America and the United States.
• A closer look at the freedom in the countryside and impact on agriculture: A case study of Texas, United States.
• What are the impacts of globalisation on sustainable agriculture on the planet?
• European colonisation and impact on agriculture in Asia and Africa.
• A review of the top five agriculture technologies used in Israel to increase production.
• Water saving strategies and their impacts on agriculture.
• Homeland security: How is it related to agriculture in the United States?
• The impact of good agricultural practices on the health of a community.
• What are the main benefits of biotechnology?
• The Mayan society resilience: what was the role of agriculture?

Sustainable Agricultural Research Topics For Research

The list of topics for sustainable agriculture essays has been compiled by our editors and writers. This will impress any professor. Start writing now by choosing one of these topics:

• Cover cropping and its impact on agriculture.
• Agritourism in modern agriculture.
• review of the application of agroforestry in Europe.
• Comparing the impact of traditional agricultural practices on human health.
• Comparing equity in agriculture: A case study of Asia and Africa.
• What are the humane methods employed in pest management in Europe?
• A review of water management methods used in sustainable agriculture.
• Are the current methods used in agricultural production sufficient to feed the rapidly growing population?
• A review of crop rotation and its effects in countering pests in farming.
• Using sustainable agriculture to reduce soil erosion in agricultural fields.
• Comparing the use of organic and biological pesticides in increasing agricultural productivity.
• Transforming deserts into agricultural lands: A case study of Israel.
• The importance of maintaining healthy ecosystems in raising crop productivity.
• The role of agriculture in countering the problem of climate change.

Unique Agriculture Research Topics For Students

If students want to receive a high grade, they should choose topics with a more complicated nature.This list contains a variety of unique topics that can be used. You can choose from one of these options right now:

• Why large-scale farming is shifting to organic agriculture.
• What are the implications of groundwater pollution on agriculture?
• What are the pros and cons of raising factory farm chickens?
• Is it possible to optimise food production without using organic fertilisers?
• A review of the causes of declining agricultural productivity in African fields.
• The role of small-scale farming in promoting food sufficiency.
• The best eco-strategies for improving the productivity of land in Asia.
• Emerging concerns about agricultural production.
• The importance of insurance in countering crop failure in modern agriculture.
• Comparing agricultural policies for sustainable agriculture in China and India.
• Is agricultural technology advancing rapidly enough to feed the rapidly growing population?
• Reviewing the impact of culture on agricultural production: A case study of rice farming in Bangladesh.

Fun Agricultural Topics For Your Essay

This list has all the agricultural topics you won’t find anywhere else. It contains fun ideas for essay topics on agriculture that professors may find fascinating:

• Managing farm dams to support modern agriculture: What are the best practices?
• Native Americans’ history and agriculture.
• Agricultural methods used in Abu Dhabi.
• The history of agriculture: A closer look at the American West.
• What impacts do antibiotics have on farm animals?
• Should we promote organic food to increase food production?
• Analysing the impact of fish farming on agriculture: A case study of Japan.
• Smart farming in Germany: The impact of using drones in crop management.
• Comparing the farming regulations in California and Texas.
• Economics of pig farming for country farmers in the United States.
• Using solar energy in farming to reduce carbon footprint.
• Analysing the effectiveness of standards used to confine farm animals.

Technology And Agricultural Related Topics

As you can see, technology plays a significant role in agriculture today.You can now write about any of these technology-related topics in agriculture:

• A review of technology transformation in modern agriculture.
• Why digital technology is a game changer in agriculture.
• The impact of automation in modern agriculture.
• Data analysis and biology application in modern agriculture.
• Opportunities and challenges in food processing.
• Should artificial intelligence be made mandatory in all farms?
• Advanced food processing technologies in agriculture.
• What is the future of genetic engineering of agricultural crops?
• Is fertiliser a must-have for success in farming?
• Agricultural robots offer new hope for enhanced productivity.
• Gene editing in agriculture: Is it a benefit or harmful?
• Identify and trace the history of a specific technology and its application in agriculture today.
• What transformations were prompted by COVID-19 in the agricultural sector?
• Reviewing the best practices for pest management in agriculture.
• Analysing the impacts of different standards and policies for pest management in two countries of your choice on the globe.

Easy Agriculture Research Paper Topics

You may not want to spend too much time writing the paper. You have other things to accomplish. Look at this list of topics that are easy to write about in agriculture:

• Agricultural modernization and its impacts in third world countries.
• The role of human development in agriculture today.
• The use of foreign aid and its impacts on agriculture in Mozambique.
• The effect of hydroponics in agriculture.
• Comparing agriculture in the 20th and 21st centuries.
• Is it possible to engage in farming without water?
• Livestock owners should use farming methods that will not destroy forests.
• Subsistence farming versus commercial farming.
• Comparing the pros and cons of sustainable and organic agriculture.
• Is intensive farming the same as sustainable agriculture?
• A review of the leading agricultural practices in Latin America.
• Mechanisation of agriculture in Eastern Europe: A case study of Ukraine.
• Challenges facing livestock farming in Australia.
• Looking ahead: What is the future of livestock production for protein supply?

Emerging Agriculture Essay Topics

Emerging agriculture is an important part of modern life. Why not write an essay or research paper about one of these emerging agriculture topics?

• Does agriculture help in addressing inequality in society?
• Agricultural electric tractors: Is this a good idea?
• What ways can be employed to help Africa improve its agricultural productivity?
• Is education related to productivity in small-scale farming?
• Genome editing in agriculture: Discuss the pros and cons.
• Is group affiliation important in raising productivity in Centre Europe? A case study of Ukraine.
• The use of Agri-Nutrition programs to change gender norms.
• Mega-Farms: Are they the future of agriculture?
• Changes in agriculture in the next ten years: What should we anticipate?
• A review of the application of DNA fingerprinting in agriculture.
• Global market of agricultural products: Are non-exporters locked out of foreign markets for low productivity?
• Are production technologies related to agri-environmental programs more eco-efficient?
• Can agriculture support greenhouse mitigation?

Controversial Agricultural Project For Students

Our team of experts has searched for the most controversial topics in agriculture to write a thesis on. These topics are all original, so you’re already on your way towards getting bonus points from professors. However, the process of writing is sometimes not as easy as it seems, so dissertation writers for hire will help you to solve all the problems.

• Comparing the mechanisms of US and China agricultural markets: Which is better?
• Should we ban GMO in agriculture?
• Is vivisection a good application or a necessary evil?
• Agriculture is the backbone of modern Egypt.
• Should the use of harmful chemicals in agriculture be considered biological terror?
• How the health of our planet impacts the food supply networks.
• People should buy food that is only produced using sustainable methods.
• What are the benefits of using subsidies in agriculture? A case study of the United States.
• The agrarian protests: What were the main causes and impacts?
• What impact would a policy requiring 2/3 of a country to invest in agriculture have?
• Analysing the changes in agriculture over time: Why is feeding the world population today a challenge?

Persuasive Agriculture Project Topics

If you have difficulty writing a persuasive agricultural project and don’t know where to start, we can help. Here are some topics that will convince you to do a persuasive project on agriculture:

• What is the extent of the problem of soil degradation in the US?
• Comparing the rates of soil degradation in the United States and Africa.
• Employment in the agricultural sector: Can it be a major employer as the population grows?
• The process of genetic improvement for seeds: A case study of agriculture in Germany.
• The importance of potatoes in people’s diet today.
• Comparing sweet potato production in the US to China.
• What is the impact of corn production for ethanol production on food supply chains?
• A review of sustainable grazing methods used in the United States.
• Does urban proximity help improve efficiency in agriculture?
• Does agriculture create economic spillovers for local economies?
• Analysing the use of sprinkle drones in agriculture.
• The impact of e-commerce development on agriculture.
• Reviewing the agricultural policy in Italy.
• Climate change: What does it mean for agriculture in developed nations?

Advanced Agriculture Project Topics

A more difficult topic can help you impress your professor. It can earn you bonus points. Check out the latest list of advanced agricultural project topics:

• Analysing agricultural exposure to toxic metals: The case study of arsenic.
• Identifying the main areas for reforms in agriculture in the United States.
• Are developed countries obligated to help starving countries with food?
• World trade adjustments to emerging agricultural dynamics and climate change.
• Weather tracking and impacts on agriculture.
• Pesticides ban by EU and its impacts on agriculture in Asia and Africa.
• Traditional farming methods used to feed communities in winter: A case study of Mongolia.
• Comparing the agricultural policy of the EU to that of China.
• China grew faster after shifting from an agro to an industrial-based economy: Should more countries move away from agriculture to grow?
• What methods can be used to make agriculture more profitable in Africa?
• A comprehensive comparison of migratory and non-migratory crops.
• What are the impacts of mechanical weeding on soil structure and fertility?
• A review of the best strategies for restoring lost soil fertility in agricultural farmlands: A case study of Germany.

Engaging Agriculture Related Research Topics

When it comes to agriculture’s importance, there is so much to discuss. These engaging topics can help you get started in your research on agriculture:

• Agronomy versus horticultural crops: What are the main differences?
• Analysing the impact of climate change on the food supply networks.
• Meat processing laws in Germany.
• Plant parasites and their impacts in agri-production: A case study of India.
• Milk processing laws in Brazil.
• What is the extent of post-harvest losses on farming profits?
• Agri-supply chains and local food production: What is the relationship?
• Can insects help improve agriculture instead of harming it?
• The application of terraculture in agriculture: What are the main benefits?
• Vertical indoor farms.
• Should we be worried about the declining population of bees?
• Is organic food better than standard food?
• What are the benefits of taking fresh fruits and veggies?
• The impacts of over-farming on sustainability and soil quality.

Persuasive Research Topics in Agriculture

Do you need to write a paper on agriculture? Perfect! Here are the absolute best persuasive research topics in agriculture:

• Buying coffee produced by poor farmers to support them.
• The latest advances in drip irrigation application.
• GMO corn in North America.
• Global economic crises and impact on agriculture.
• Analysis of controversies on the use of chemical fertilisers.
• What challenges are facing modern agriculture in France?
• What are the negative impacts of cattle farms?
• A closer look at the economics behind sheep farming in New Zealand.
• The changing price of energy: How important is it for the local farms in the UK?
• A review of the changing demand for quality food in Europe.
• Wages for people working in agriculture.

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85 Farming Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best farming topic ideas & essay examples, 👍 good essay topics on farming, 💡 most interesting farming topics to write about.

• The Farmers’ Market Analysis For the farmers the benefit lies in the cost saving of the production transportation and in the ability of the wholesale with the large grocery companies.
• Natureview Farm’s Strategic Plans The chief executive officer of Natureview analyzed the market stance and tasked his team to develop strategic plan to ensure that the revenue growth increase by over 50% at the end of the year 2001.
• Natureview Farm: Problem Case It is in this regard that Wagner advised the management to increase the firm’s revenues from $13 million to $20 million before the end of 2001.
• Dairy Meal as an Important Concentrate in Dairy Cow Farming The number of times that the dairy meal is fed to cows depends on the management regime of the cow. The dairy meal is one of the feeds that guarantee better productivity to the farmer.
• Smart Farming and Sustainable Agriculture Smart farming allows for a wide range of options, from robotization and satellite imagery to the Internet of Things and the blockchain technology that increases the efficiency of crop cultivation by optimizing the use of […]
• The Entomo Farms Company’s Analysis Such an approach contributes to improved control over the company’s development and ensures that Entomo can incorporate customers’ feedback for enhancement.
• Food Processing and Farming Methods Afoakwa, Budu, and Merson note that nutrient loss in canned food depends on the amount of heat that is applied during the pre-treatment step, the type of tin, and the type of nutrients in the […]
• Fish Farming Impacts on the Environment To begin with, according to Abel and Robert, fish farming has been generalized to have adverse effects on the environment, which ranges from the obliteration of the coastal habitats which are sensitive in the environment, […]
• Kimango Farm Enterprises: Business Plan Cultural values in a country guides business operations as well as it is important to be sensitive and understanding of these norms and attitudes.
• Agriculture and Farming in Abu Dhabi Many researches have been done on soil taxonomy in the UAE, with the invention of a non-absorbent type of soil that was one of the breakthroughs that have greatly influenced agriculture in Abu Dhabi.
• The Process of Raising Factory Farm Chickens The lives of the chickens that are raised in the factory farm begin at the hatching machines. As such, the welfare of the chickens is secondary to profitability.
• Food and Farming: Urban Farming Benefits the Local Economy Urban farming and foraging play essential roles not only in the lives of communities but in the ecosystems as well. Such responsive attitudes allow people to protect the environment and create more opportunities for local […]
• Decline in the Honeybee Population and Farmers in the United States The analysis of farming in the country shows that the added revenue to crop production because of the pollinators’ activity is about $18 billion. Statistics evidence the topicality of the problem and the necessity to […]
• The Ethics of Farm Animal Biotechnology From an Anthropological Perspective Biotechnology is one of the most important branches of science, the results of which are used in many areas. The use of animals in the context of biotechnology is a daily routine for researchers.
• “The Biggest Little Farm” Movie Critique The film is a documentary and shows the real life and the desire of the husband and wife to create their wonderful farm where they can grow vegetables and fruits, as well as have different […]
• Prices at Farmers Markets vs. Grocery Stores When evaluating the items ordered at grocery retail locations to those acquired at local traders’ marketplaces, it is revealed that the commodities purchased at hypermarkets are more reliable and outstanding in form and structure.
• Smart Farms Hiring People with Disabilities Although Smart Farms is a non-profit organization and benefits from donations, the workers play their role in income generation by working on the farms and sales.
• Marketing of Indoor Farming in the UAE Adding to that, the delivery service, health benefits, and availability of Local Leaves products can be advertised on all social media platforms to help the company get the recognition it needs in a short period […]
• Demand for Indoor Farming Services in the UAE For any business, it is essential to be sure of the readiness of customers to buy the product. The likelihood of buying the service may be defined by the data, indicating the popularity of the […]
• Sunrise Farm’s Research of Its Customers Needs In this regard, the exploratory mixed methods approach was chosen to study the possibilities of diversifying the activities of Sunrise Farm. In particular, a semi-structured approach to the interviews was chosen that is suitable for […]
• Role of Technology in the Future of Farming The role technology has to play in farming in the future needs to be in great as it has been in the transportation sector in the past.
• Offshore Wind Farms (OWFs) and Their Development The process involves the establishment of the limiting factors like site boundary, the maximum number of facilities to be installed, identification of dwellings that rotor blade shadows may affect, and a minimum spacing of the […]
• Cato’s “On Farming”, a Translated Part of Famous Treatise “De Agri Cultura” Review From this point of view, Cato’s recommendations are ideal: the location of the willow tree immediately after the vineyard and the garden is not accidental, since in this passage a scale of the main and […]
• Farm-to-Table Food: Dissemination Portfolio Modern American families try to adhere to the principles of Healthy People 2020 with its promotion of the so-called farm-to-table food and farm-to-school programs.
• Law: Legislation Regarding Marijuana Farming To evaluate the applicability of the proposed marijuana farming bill, the current marihuana production legislation needs to be reviewed, and the changes in social norms regarding criminal behavior are to be analyzed.
• Artificial Intelligence in Drone Technology for Farming Automated drones fitted with spraying features are used in the monitoring of agricultural processes and crops to schedule tasks and expeditiously address the observed issues throughout plant life.
• Problems Facing American Farmer Workers The owners of farms will continue to exploit these people since they are not afraid of any law that is in place and working as it should to protect this group of people.
• Face Recognition in Farming: The Multi-UAV Framework Indeed, the consumer wants a delicious and quality meat product, and it is known that the absence of stress in the life of an animal directly affects the structure of the meat.
• Using IoT Low-Cost Sensors for Smallholder Farms It is, therefore, essential for the users and IoT systems and devices developers to collectively ensure that the internet and the users of such components are not exposed.
• Fish Farming in the United States In the present day, the potential of the country’s fish farming is substantively limited by national, state, local, or tribal policies and opposition by national and local interest groups. Nevertheless, the supporters’ recent efforts and […]
• Artificial Intelligence in Smart Farming Owing to the development of the smart farming concept and precision agriculture, farmers all over the world gained a chance to implement digital tech to their daily operations and utilize AI to support some of […]
• Building a Sky Garden: Vertical Farming System Business Plan It helps farmers to appreciate the benefits of valuing more the depth of land fertility than the size of land holdings.
• United States History in 1864-1900 Years: Industrialization, Urbanization, and the Commercialization of Farming The Western frontier advanced in the years 1864 and 1900 by the establishment of democracy in America, industrialization, urbanization and the commercialization of farming.
• Competitive Market: Farm Income and Costs Connecting the farms in the US to the concept of the perfectly competitive market, the definition and the characteristics of such a market should be outlined.
• Agro-Food Geographies: Food, Nature, Farmers and Agency Therefore, the important thing in food and nature depends on the geographies of food and the beneficially is the subject, Currently, agro-food study is affected continuously by the current improvements in the agro-food geographies, especially […]
• Standards for Confining Farm Animals One major concern that has been brought to the attention of animal farmers, in general, is the issue of whether or not it is appropriate to confine all or certain farm animals.
• Linking Small-Scale Farmers to Input-Output Markets Output markets refer to the markets that are used by the farmers or businessmen to market their products while the input market is used by the same group to access products that are to be […]
• How to Reduce Carbon Footprint by Using Solar Farms In fact the living beings on the earth use solar energy in many ways already, but now scientists and technologists have started thinking about the ways and means which could help us in tapping the […]
• Organic Farming and Agriculture Those combinations that are selected will constitute the best part of the genetic make-up of subsequent generations, resulting in the development of ecotypes adapted to local ecological conditions. On the whole, yield performance of organic […]
• Farmers Exchange Bank’s Strategic Human Resources Every employee of the bank is bounded to maintain the secrecy of the customers. This principle of the bank has greatly contributed to the success of the firm and increased the profitability of the business.
• Why the Best Soil in the Province of BC Is Not Used for Farming The opportunity cost for farming is, therefore, lower than the opportunity cost for the warehouses/airports. So you have got no opportunity cost for this because this is the best option for your building and it […]
• Hog Farming Industry: Global Economic Impact China and the United States are the largest producers of pork products from the hog farming industry. This is due to the fact that the United States is a major exporter of pork products.
• Fish Friendly Farming Case FFF viewed farmers as people with a vast amount of knowledge about the land and agricultural practices and those who were interested in supporting their lands fertile and farming productively. The case of FFF and […]
• New Zealand Farming Industry. Organization Theory and Design One of the most critical issues that the Guy fielding farm is facing is the organizational structure of the company. The gathering of 2009 and Macdonald’s fear that he will be left out, heated the […]
• Farming and Regulations in California The American government made multiple attempts to control the flow of immigrants to the county and the degree of their involvement in work in the agricultural industry.
• 3rd World Farmer: Interactive Resources An educator’s main task is to explain the main causes of the appearance of these problems and the background that preconditions the formation of a particular environment.
• The Farm Labor Organizing Committee Movement Chapter 3 of the book by Barger, Reza, and Velasquez is dedicated to the history of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee and the movement associated with this labor union and the promotion of immigrant farmworkers’ […]
• Sprouts Farmers Market Company’s Entry to Canada The proportion of older people in Canada is also increasing thanks to improved living standards and access to affordable health care.
• Farmers and Their Role in the American Agriculture The recent changes in the world’s largest countries’ economies can be a good illustration of the exclusive role of agriculture which can enable a state to play an important role in the world.
• Farmer’s Market as a Food Event: Fresh and Straight From the Farm If I were to describe the entire scene an apt description would be to call it a scene of ordered chaos in that despite the sheer amount of people crisscrossing in front of me there […]
• Moral Status of Animals at Factory Farming Stewart is concerned about the extent to which human beings are willing to mechanize animal farming to meet their needs. As human beings, we are faced with moral dilemmas of whether to compromise an animal’s […]
• Kimango Farms Environmental Factors In 2015, the government established the Tanzania Agriculture Development Bank which is focused on assisting in developing the agricultural sector and assisting in the implementation of policies.
• Farmers Views: Should Organic Food Be Promoted From? Organic food is grown and produced using natural methods, and it is believed that such products are safer and more nutritious than conventionally processed ones due to the rejection of the use of any artificial […]
• Kimango Farm Enterprises: Business Analysis of Tanzania The primary motivation and purpose of the company is to grow healthy and organic foods through sustainable farming techniques and to offer the world a piece of Tanzania.
• Impact of Antibiotics on Farm Animals One of the primary reasons for this condition in people is the use of antibiotics in farming. However, the use of antibiotics is associated with the occurrence of antibiotic resistance in people.
• Pre-Industrial Societies and Farming Patricia Crone has created a work where she discusses the trends and elements of pre-industrial societies in the world, particularly those that existed in the West. Farming was a key element in the pre-industrial era […]
• Susan Ferriss: United Farm Workers in “The Fight in the Fields” The focus of the reading is on the identity of Chavez and the evolution of the United Farm Workers, which is also the major event in the book.
• The Impact of Factory Farming The fish population is also subject to this problem, as the long-term overcrowding may lead to the higher competition for food and result in stress and decline of the immune defense, which can cause the […]
• Bernard Matthews’ Farm Marketing Issues Valuable prizes and practical involvement should elicit in the customers the necessity to purchase Bernard Matthews’ products and actively participate in the life of the brand. Nonetheless, the key changes should be performed in the […]
• Farm, Companion, Laboratory Animals in Canada This paper will give facts on four categories of animals kept in Canada; the farm animals, animals used in experiments, animals used as companions to people and those used in entertainment. The category of wild […]
• Native Americans’ History, Farming, Agriculture Nowadays, the task of primary importance is to educate the society and convey the idea that the rich past of the American Indians should be remembered.
• Farm Security Administration and New York Photo League The disagreement regarding the focus of the Film and Photo league served as the basis for the emergence of The Photo League in 1936.
• Tasty Farms’ Changes and Communication Networks Following all the steps of effective change management models is crucial in ensuring that available resources are properly aligned to meet the objectives of change. Due to the resistance from the employees, the process of […]
• Laying Hens Farm: Peach Farm and Olive Farm In the Peach Farm, the chain feeders are placed at a lower position than the average height of the hens. Therefore, if the perch space is sufficient, as in the Olive Farm, the hens are […]
• Managing Farm Dams to Support Waterbird Breeding The frequent fires and forest clearance in these areas have led to extensive migration of different species of birds. For example, they should take some of the endangered birds and breed them separately in a […]
• Agriculture Improvement: The US Farm Bill Nadine Lehrer, who has been studying the bill, asserts, “The bill was developed in the wake of 1930’s farm crisis to bring farm incomes up to the par with the required minimum incomes”.
• The US Farm Bills and Policy Reforms This law is very good in that it considers the health of the nation, the bill will a continuation of the 2002 Farm Bill.
• What Kind of Energy Can Be Produced from Corn in Farms Over the years, corn has been used to produce alcohol in the form of ethanol, a major raw material for the production of energy.
• Organic Farming for Sustainable Food Production The article is titled “Will Organic Agriculture Feed the World,” and it provides its readers with an overview of the statistics that apply to the sustainability of organic farming.
• Farming and Ranch Management Considering the varied nature of the job of a Farm or Ranch Manager, the college offers “the Farm and Ranch Management Degree and the Agriculture Management Certificate”.
• Farming Effects on Golden Sun Moth Agriculture has led to the destruction of the natural habitat of the moth. Farming practices have led to the dramatic reduction of the grass needed for the survival of this moth.
• Farmer Definition and Culture The era of information the has led, to the creation of the particular image of success, and mass media created an image of a successful and stylish businessman.
• Genetically Modified Organisms in Farming Farming is one of the backbones of the US economy given the fact the country is the leading exporter of various agricultural products.
• The Near-Shore Wind Farm Controversy Case The developers and the investors made the decision to persuade the residents to accept their position regarding the importance of the wind turbines.
• Farm Standard Council Case: Cost Allocation Some costs cannot be classified as either fixed or variable costs and yet they have to be allocated somewhere in the process of allocating costs to different cost centers.
• Greater Gabbard Wind Farm Mega Project The project management unit must understand the needs of all the stakeholders identified in the first stage, and how these needs are aligned to the needs of the project.
• Large-Scale Organic Farming and Food Supply The issue of environmental sustainability comes up due to the emerging ways of farming like the great shift of the farmers to the use of organic methods of farming.
• Compensation System of State Farm Insurance With the philosophy, State Farm should provide insurance brands to students and young adults falling in this age gap in order to detach them from other insurance and make them independent.
• Irrigation Systems in Farming Because of the changing climate, and the region landscape, most farmers use irrigation schemes to support their practices of subsistence farming.
• Swidden Agriculture: Shift Farming Although this farming technique has been efficient in the past, it has proved to be unsustainable with the current increase in the global population.
• Small Scale Farm-Household System In general, a farm household system is comprised of the various parameters that govern the operation and sustainability of the system.
• Farming and Animal Consumption In essence, debate on farming methods and animal consumption has been a challenge not only to farmers but also to the society. It is, therefore, necessary to consider that numerous changes would be required to […]
• Large-Scale Shift to Organic Farming to Increase World Food Supply However, the acceptance of non-organic farming as the solution to the world’s food problem is not unanimous and there has emerged a vocal group advocating for the use of organic farming.
• Rearing of Cattle: Deprecating the Beef Farming It is for this reason that the whole world has to pose as ask the question “What are the causes of global warming?” The answer is simple, climate change and resultant global warming has to […]
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Four stages of agricultural development

Agriculture advanced in four major stages that were closely linked with other key historical periods. The first, the Neolithic or New Stone Age, marks the beginning of sedentary farming. Although much of this history is lost in antiquity, dating back 10,000 years or more, anthropologists believe farming arose because of increasing population. The major technological development of this ancient time was the plow. Appearing in Mesopotamia (an ancient region in southwest Asia) around 4000 B.C., the plow allowed farmers to plant crops in rows, saving time and increasing food production.

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The second major advance came as a result of Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus’s voyages to the New World in the late fifteenth century. The connecting of the New World and the Old World saw the exchange of farming products and methods. From the New World came maize (Indian corn), beans, the “Irish” potato, squash, peanuts, tomatoes, and tobacco. From the Old World came wheat, rice, coffee, cattle, horses, sheep, and goats. Several Native American tribes adopted new lifestyles, notably the Navajo as sheepherders and the Cheyenne as nomads (wanderers) who used the horse to hunt buffalo. In the twentieth century, maize is a staple food in Africa.

The Industrial Revolution of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries both contributed to and was supported by agriculture. The greatest agricultural advances came in transportation, where canals, railroads, and then steamships made possible the shipment of food. This in turn increased productivity, but most important, it reduced the threat of starvation. Without these massive increases in food shipments, the exploding populations could not have been fed and the greatly increased demand for labor by emerging industries could not have been met.

As a consequence, the Industrial Revolution introduced major advances in farm technology, such as the cotton gin, mechanical reaper, threshing machine, mowing machine, improved plows, and, in the twentieth century, tractors and trucks. These advances enabled fewer and fewer farmers to feed larger and larger populations, freeing workers to fill demands for factory labor and the growing service industries.

Finally, scientific advances of the twentieth century—the refrigeration of meat, the development of hybrid crops, research into genetics— have greatly benefitted agriculture. Great potential exists for the development of crop and animal varieties with greatly improved dietary characteristics, such as higher protein or reduced fat.

Drawbacks to the rise of agriculture

The agricultural revolution is also associated with some of humankind’s darker moments. In the tropical and subtropical climates of the New World, slave labor was used extensively in farm fields in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In the late twentieth century, the mass production of animals, especially in close quarters, has been extremely controversial. While farmers view new breeding practices as useful means to producing more food, animal rights activists protest them as showing a disregard for animals’ comfort and welfare. Additionally, the widespread use of fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals in agriculture have led to serious pollution crises in many areas of the world.

Famine throughout history shows mankind’s desperate dependence on agriculture. Advances in farming, especially in the last few centuries, have led to increases in population. Growing populations—made possible by food surpluses—have forced agricultural expansion onto less and less desirable lands. Because agriculture drastically simplifies ecosystems (communities of plants and animals) and greatly increases soil erosion, many areas such as the Mediterranean basin and tropical forestlands have severely deteriorated.

The future of agriculture

Some argue that the agricultural revolution masks the growing hazards of an overpopulated, increasingly contaminated planet. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, agriculture more than compensated for the population explosion. Through scientific advances in areas such as genetic engineering, there is hope that the trend will continue. However, the environmental effects of the agricultural progress could soon undermine any advances if they are not taken seriously.

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A theoretical framework for tracking farmers’ innovations to support farming system design

• Research Article
• Published: 30 August 2021
• Volume 41 , article number  61 , ( 2021 )

Cite this article

• Chloé Salembier   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6027-9822 1 , 2 , 3 ,
• Blanche Segrestin 4 ,
• Benoît Weil 4 ,
• Marie-Hélène Jeuffroy 5 ,
• Stéphane Cadoux 6 ,
• Claire Cros 7 , 8 ,
• Elise Favrelière 8 ,
• Laurence Fontaine 9 ,
• Marine Gimaret 10 ,
• Camille Noilhan 11 ,
• Audrey Petit 12 ,
• Marie-Sophie Petit 11 ,
• Jean-Yves Porhiel 13 ,
• Hélène Sicard 9 ,
• Raymond Reau 5 ,
• Aïcha Ronceux 8 &
• Jean-Marc Meynard 1  

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Over the last few years, an increasing number of agricultural R&D actors have sought to discover and get to know farmers’ practices that they consider as innovative, unconventional, or promising. We refer to these approaches, all of which aim to support the design of farming systems, as ‘farmer innovation tracking’. There is still a lack of knowledge, however, about the specificities of the approaches adopted to track innovations and how they contribute to design processes. To explore these questions, we studied 14 initiatives in France led by actors from different R&D networks. We analysed the data collected using agronomy and design science concepts. Three outcomes emerge from this work. (1) We shed light on the common features of innovation tracking. We outline five stages that structure all the approaches: formulating an innovation tracking project, unearthing innovations, learning about them, analysing them, and generating agronomic content. (2) We characterize six contributions of farmer innovation tracking to design processes: giving rise to creative anomalies, shedding light on systemic mechanisms to fuel design processes on other farms, uncovering research questions, stimulating design in orphan fields of innovation, circulating innovation concepts, and connecting farmer-designers with each other. (3) Finally, we highlight three tracking strategies: the targeted tracking of proven practices, the targeted tracking of innovations under development, and the exploratory tracking of proven practices. This article is the first to propose a theorization of the farmer innovation tracking approaches, thus enriching the agronomic foundations supporting farming system design. The purpose of our paper is not to provide a turnkey method, but to highlight concepts, mechanisms, and points of reference for actors who might wish to develop farmer innovation tracking in different contexts in the future. By revealing their contributions to design processes, this article seeks to contribute to the institutionalization of innovation tracking.

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1 Introduction

Today, a growing number of initiatives involve agricultural research and development (R&D) actors seeking to discover and get to know farmers’ practices which they consider innovative (Gupta et al. 2019 ; Verret et al. 2020 ), unconventional (Blanchard et al. 2017 ; Figure 1 ), deviant (Modernel et al. 2018 ), or promising (Elzen et al. 2017 ). These actors always engage in these activities with a view to supporting innovation in other farming systems. In line with Salembier et al. ( 2016 ), we refer to all these approaches as ‘farmer innovation tracking’.

“Those farmers considered crazy”. Excerpt from Entraid’ journal no. 310, December 2017. “Unlike those who consider that going off the beaten track is insane, in December 2017, insanity inhabits us. Like those farmers considered crazy but who are spearheading progress in farming. Thirty years ago, they were the first ones to buy a milking robot, to join forces to work together, to embark on the adventure of direct sowing… Today, it doesn’t surprise anyone anymore. But at the time, it took courage, instinct and conviction to take the leap. What about today? Who are our new madmen? Those we frown upon and who, in a few years, will have redefined the norm?” (Fig. 1 courtesy of Entraid').

Such innovation tracking is emerging alongside the development of new agricultural projects, such as agroecology (Altieri 1999 ) which calls for designing farming systems that are more equitable, use fewer resources, and are more respectful of the environment (Hill and Mac Rae 1996 ; Meynard et al. 2012 ). From R&D actors’ point of view, supporting the design of these systems on farms raises new challenges, such as venturing off the paths historically explored in research (linked to the productivist paradigm); producing knowledge by navigating the many unknowns on agroecological systems (Brugnach et al. 2008 ); and taking into account the diversity inherent to the situations in which farming is practised (Bell et al. 2008 ). In order to address these challenges, many authors argue that farmers themselves should design farming systems tailored to their own socio-technical and ecological situations (Dolinska and d'Aquino 2016 ; Waters-Bayer et al. 2009 ; Dogliotti et al. 2014 ; Douthwaite and Gummert 2010 ). Moreover, scientists as well as public policies have stressed the importance of studying and scaling out farmers’ innovative practices to fuel and foster agricultural innovation systems/agricultural knowledge and innovation systems (Šūmane et al. 2018 ; Klerkx et al. 2010 ; Fieldsend et al. 2021 ; EIP Agri EU, 2020). Despite these scientific and political injunctions, studying and scaling out these innovations deeply challenges dominant R&D practices, by recognizing that innovation emerges on farms (thus questioning dominant top-down models of innovation, Joly 2017 ), as well as knowledge production standards, which are largely based on controlled experiments. Many long-standing questions have still not received significant attention, such as how to unearth and study farmers’ innovative practices to boost innovation in other farming contexts.

Since the emergence of the movements for Farming System Research (Byerlee et al. 1982 ) and Comparative Agriculture (Cochet 2015 ), different ways of studying farmers’ practices have been formalized (Landais et al. 1988 ; Ruthenberg 1971 ; Jiggins 2012 ). The best known include agronomic diagnosis (e.g. Doré et al. 1997 ), the modelling of farmers’ reasonings (e.g., Girard and Hubert 1999 ; Mérot et al. 2008 ; Zhang et al. 2019 ), and agrarian diagnosis (Barral et al. 2012 ). These approaches generally apply to the study of populations of fields or farms within a micro-region: (i) to identify problems that need to be solved and deviations from recommended practices (e.g. Zandstra 1979 ), (ii) to monitor the adoption of an innovation proposed by R&D (e.g. Chenoune et al. 2016 ), (iii) to highlight and analyse the diversity of existing practices in an area (e.g. Choisis et al. 2012 ), or (iv) to assess the dominant practices or types of farming systems in a geographical area (e.g. Andersen 2017 ; Steinke et al. 2017 ; Lacoste et al. 2018 ). In these works, R&D actors seek to study more frequent on-farm practices, or their diversity; unconventional, and deviant practices are encountered merely by chance.

Other authors—mostly social scientists—have explored agricultural innovation processes, as well as the outscaling and upscaling of grassroot innovations, highlighting their characteristics and development conditions. The ‘learning selection model’ (Douthwaite 2002 ; Douthwaite and Gummert 2010 ), for example, identifies several steps in technological innovation processes, inspired by evolutionary science. Several authors have studied innovation journeys and shown that these processes require adaptive management, so as to handle and foster reformism within institutional environments, local contexts, and the mindsets of actors and their relations with one another (Klerkx et al. 2010 ; Hornidge et al. 2011 ; Djanibekov et al. 2012 ; Hermans et al. 2013 , 2016 ; Wigboldus et al. 2016 ; Cofré-Bravo et al. 2019 ). These studies provide precious results for analysing and fostering innovation processes. To the best of our knowledge, however, from an agronomic point of view, they have paid little attention to the approaches used to unearth and study grassroot innovations, as well as these approaches’ impact on design processes.

Innovation tracking approaches have been mentioned in two types of scientific work. In the first body of studies, researchers have described and characterized innovations that were previously unknown to them. Studies presented in the books of Chambers et al. 1989 ) and Scoones and Thompson ( 2009 ) are emblematic of this body of work. Other examples include the work of Feike et al. ( 2010 ), who studied how Chinese farmers implemented multispecies intercrops; Jagoret et al. ( 2012 ), who studied agroforestry practices with cocoa trees; Barzman et al. ( 1996 ), who studied ant domestication practices for lemon growing; and Abay et al. ( 2008 ); and Tafesse et al. ( 2018 ) and Modernel et al. ( 2018 ), who studied innovations in seed and potato disease management and in animal husbandry. In all these cases, each author developed his/her own method with few references to the others. A second category of studies on innovation tracking has produced methodological recommendations. This is the case of Elzen et al. ( 2017 ), who proposed an approach for building a ‘portfolio of promises’ by identifying niche innovations, and Salembier et al. ( 2016 ), Blanchard et al. ( 2017 ), and Penvern et al. ( 2019 ), who have all discussed some of the desirable features of the methods they developed. For example, Salembier et al. ( 2016 ) have highlighted the importance of taking farmers’ own evaluation criteria into account in the analysis of their cropping systems. These studies report a steady rise in the adoption of such approaches in research but also among development organizations (e.g. advisory services, technical institutes), and the need to ‘take a step back’ to take stock of this diversity and develop theoretical guidelines.

In this research, we posit that tracking farmers’ innovations contribute to enriching agronomy and its methods, with a view to supporting the design of farming systems. Given the growing number of initiatives in a wide variety of R&D contexts, we endeavoured to add to the theorization of the underlying approaches and their little-known contributions to innovation. To this end, we explored the following questions: what are the common features of innovation tracking approaches, and how do they contribute to farming systems design?

The article outlines our conceptual framework, the method we adopted, and the cases we studied. We then present and discuss the results.

2 Conceptual framework and research method

2.1 conceptual framework.

Given the diversity of terminologies used to refer to the approaches, we studied (e.g. spotting promising, deviant, innovative practices), in line with Salembier et al. ( 2016 ), we propose to refer to all of these as ‘farmer innovation tracking’. This notion emphasizes ‘tracking’, an active process leading to the discovery of innovations (in contrast with encountering them ‘by chance’). We study innovation tracking as an investigative process driven by intentions, involving data collection and analysis and the production of outputs and outcomes.

We use the term ‘innovation’ to designate a novel object that is either emerging or has already been developed and implemented. This object can be a basic technique (e.g. an intercrop), equipment, or an agricultural system (e.g. cropping system, livestock system, couples of equipment, and cropping systems). We use the term ‘innovation process’ to refer to the process underlying the emergence and development of a novel object and its adoption in one or several farming situation(s).

We consider ‘design’ as a process driven by a desire to generate something that does not yet exist. This process is a particular look at an innovation process and consists of the gradual emergence of an innovation, either material or immaterial, and its integration into socio-technical environments (Papalambros 2015 ; Wynn and Clarkson 2018 ; Hatchuel et al. 2017 ).

The innovation tracking processes we studied were initiated and steered by R&D actors to support the design of farming systems. Salembier et al. ( 2018 ), Le Gal et al. ( 2011 ), and Martin et al. ( 2013 ) show that these actors’ involvement in agricultural design processes can be threefold: (i) they can co-design these systems, in situ, with farmers (e.g. Prost et al. 2018 ); (ii) they can foster distributed design processes, often by generating and circulating generic agronomic content for a large number of farmers (e.g. decision-making rules, types of cropping systems prototypes, optimization tools); and (iii) they can themselves design farming systems, for instance, to test them on station.

To study the contributions of tracking to design, we draw on the concept-knowledge (CK) theory of design reasoning (Hatchuel and Weil 2003 ) and the work of Schön ( 1983 ) on the interconnections between design, situations, and action. As Hatchuel and Weil ( 2003 ) show, design is a process of exploration of the unknown, intimately linked to what the designers know and learn. A design process involves the formulation of a target which refers to an unknown and desirable object (Le Masson et al. 2017 ). In other words, what exists is insufficient for the designer, who wants something new to emerge (that is desirable), but does not yet know what that is (it is unknown). Again, according to Hatchuel and Weil ( 2003 ), the emergence of the new object relies on the definition of its identity, through the exploration and gradual characterization of its properties: its composition, and the use that can be made of it, by whom, when, in what conditions, etc. In design reasoning, the exploration and gradual definition of properties are intimately linked to the designers’ representation of the objects emerging, to the choices and decisions they make in the process (e.g. choosing one option over another), and to the mobilization and acquisition of knowledge (evidence of causality, evaluation of the object’s performance, new models, etc.). Furthermore, these developments arise through negotiations between the designers and other stakeholders. Thus, the design process is highly dynamic and collective and evolves through encounters with new situations over the course of the action (Schön 1983 ).

Studying the way tracking contributes to design therefore means investigating (1) the contributions (i.e. generative functions, Hatchuel et al. 2013 ) of tracking to farming system design processes (e.g. co-design, distributed design, pilots designing themselves farming systems, and contributions such as formulating new design targets, exploring and defining properties of an innovation, and gaining knowledge on this innovation, etc.), and (2) the different ways of implementing this approach that afford these contributions (e.g. data collection, data analysis).

2.2.1 A multiple-case study analysis

Our objects of study are ‘approaches’ developed by different R&D actors to track farmers’ innovations, with a view to fostering the design of other farming systems. In other words, we study the studies of others and some of their contributions to design processes. We adopt a theory-building approach (Eisenhardt and Graebner 2007 ) based on a multiple-case study with embedded units of analysis (Yin 2003 ). This method explores the convergences and divergences between cases to contribute to a common theoretical construct. We selected the cases based on the following criteria: (1) R&D actors had set up innovation tracking processes to support the design of farming systems; (2) innovation tracking related to a range of innovations (e.g. cropping systems, basic techniques, agricultural equipment. for winegrowing, field crops and market gardening, both organic and conventional); and (3) the tracking initiatives emerged in diverse institutional settings, as part of agricultural research or within development bodies (Table 1 ). We refer to the R&D actors who carried out the various tasks associated with innovation tracking as ‘pilots’.

2.2.2 Description of the cases

The 14 cases studied have diverse characteristics (Table 1 ).

The tracking of case 1 took place over a 6-month period, in 2015, led by INRAE researchers in Occitanie (South of France). The project was initiated to explore the way in which market gardeners developed protected vegetable intercrop systems to manage plant health while minimizing the use of pesticides. As protected vegetable intercropping is little known on a scientific level, the pilots’ objective was to learn from on-farm practices in order to design original vegetable cropping systems which they could test on station.

Case 2, also studied by INRAE, was part of a project which sought to study the conditions for legume development in farming systems, with a view to reducing the use of inputs (nitrogen and pesticides). Within this project, intercropping species emerged as a particularly interesting technique to avoid the problems associated with legumes in pure culture (e.g. lack of competitiveness with weeds, risks of lodging) and to leverage niche complementarity between species. Multispecies intercrops were tracked to learn from farmers’ practices and to enrich scientific knowledge, which had until then focused on a small number of intercrops (e.g. pea-wheat, pea-barley).

The tracking of cases 3 and 8 was initiated as part of a project (2013–2017) led by Agro-Transfert Ressources-et-Territoires (AGT-RT) and its local partners (e.g. advisory services) to contribute to the development of organic farming in the Hauts-de-France region (North of France). Based on a regional diagnosis, the project focused on organic nitrogen management and weed control in arable crops. Two kinds of innovation tracking were carried out in the project. The first (case 3) aimed to identify and study cropping systems which addressed these challenges, within a preexisting farmer collective. The other (case 8) consisted in identifying and evaluating on-farm intercrops with protein crops, an original (but little-known) option to manage nitrogen and weeds in organic farming.

Case 4 was steered by engineers from Terres Inovia (French technical institute of the vegetable oil and protein sector) and was launched in 2005 in the Berry region (Central France), at the initiative of local farmers who wanted to change their oilseed rape management practices in order to overcome technical hurdles (lower yields, increasing difficulty to manage weeds and pests). Based on an agronomic diagnosis of their practices, the engineers and the farmers collectively explored, implemented, and analysed innovations in oilseed rape management tailored to each farm.

Case 5 (2015-2019), which focused on reducing the use of synthetic nitrogen in field crops, was led by the Chamber of Agriculture and involved research organizations and consultancies in the Champagne Crayeuse region (North-East of France). In calcareous soils with low mineralization, which are slow to warm in the spring, farmers use large quantities of mineral nitrogen, which is financially costly and energy-intensive and leads to water and air pollution. Working with several farmers eager to innovate in their farming systems, the pilots explored innovative cropping systems to reduce the use of mineral nitrogen.

Case 6 was initiated in 2008, within the network of the Chambers of Agriculture (farming advisory bodies) of the Brittany region (Western France) and then extended to all regions under the name ‘InnovAction’. Through farm open days, this tracking focused on identifying and sharing testimonies about farmer innovations uncovered by local farming advisers. Innovations (crop management systems, equipment, collective organisation, etc.) were presented on the basis of ‘farmers talking to farmers about their innovations’. We studied this tracking in the regions of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté (Eastern France) and Brittany (Western France).

Case 7 was initiated in 2010 by the consultancy Solagro. Through an online platform and farm visits, this long-term project called ‘Osaé’ (OSez l’AgroEcologie) shared innovative cropping and farming systems developed by farmers who had changed their practices to transition towards agroecology.

Case 9 focused on the Agri’Novateurs network, which was created in 2013 by the Chamber of Agriculture of the Finistère region (Brittany) to locally share farmers’ innovative cropping and farming systems, to provide a space for dialogue between these farmers and a breeding ground for research questions to explore.

Cases 10 and 14 revolved around two forms of tracking implemented by the cooperative Atelier Paysan, which endeavours to stimulate the design of farming equipment for organic and small-scale farming. Case 10 consisted in identifying and describing equipment designed and used on farms and sharing them with other farmers. Case 14 focused on supporting farmers in the design of farm equipment tailored to vegetable systems in organic farming in Brittany.

Case 11 (2013–2017), led by the Institut Français de la Vigne et du Vin (IFV), involved pilots from research and advisory services. This project emerged from a twofold observation: little R&D work had focused on organic winegrowing, and the technical advice available was ill-suited to the wide range of farming situations in organic viticulture (sloping land, narrow vineyards, etc.). In order to ‘give ideas’ to winegrowers wishing to convert to organic farming, the project aimed to identify, analyse, and share farmers’ innovations (technique, cropping or farming systems) in organic winegrowing in three terroirs: Burgundy (East), Provence (South-East), and Bordeaux (South-West).

Case 12, like cases 3 and 8, was steered by AGT-RT and consisted in a tracking process for managing rumex, thistle, and sow-thistle in organic farming, across three regions. This tracking process was initiated to support the design of organic cropping systems for arable crops, in response to the scarcity of knowledge on different options to manage these perennial weeds.

Case 13 was led by the Institut de l’agriculture et l’alimentation biologiques (ITAB, Institute of Organic Farming and Food) and involved different research and advisory service partners. A tracking project was initiated across the whole of France to explore different methods, in organic farming, to manage thistle and rumex, two weeds identified as problematic by many organic farmers in France.

2.2.3 Data collection and analysis

The data collection took place between January 2017 and February 2018. A total of 23 semi-structured interviews were carried out with the pilots of each initiative, each lasting two to 6 h (between one and three interviews per case, with additional interviews at the data analysis stage when necessary). Each interview was recorded and transcribed in full. The purpose of the interviews was for the pilots to explain which tracking processes they had deployed, for what reasons, in what situations, and what this had helped to generate. We also asked the pilots to share their thoughts on what they called ‘innovations’, in other words, what they deemed innovative, extraordinary, unconventional, deviant, etc., and we sought to grasp the reasons why they were interested in these particular practices. The following categories of questions were addressed during these discussions: how did the initiative emerge and in what context (individuals involved, institutions concerned, funding, timeline, etc.)? What did the pilot consider as an ‘innovation’? How did the tracking process unfold? How did they identify and analyse the innovations (basic techniques, cropping/farming systems, etc.)? Who was involved and how? What did they learn, what surprises did they encounter, and how did they respond? What were the outputs-outcomes of the process? Some interviews were supplemented with observations of events (10 events such as meetings to discuss results, farm open days, presentations at symposiums). For each case, we systematically collected documents presenting the initiatives, their progress, and their objectives (slideshows, documents submitted in response to calls for projects, websites, minutes of meetings, articles, PhD theses, Bachelor’s or Master’s theses), as well as the written material (fact sheets, testimony booklets, articles) and videos that had been produced. We stopped the data collection once we started obtaining the same information several times (data saturation). In February 2018, we presented a cross-cutting analysis of the cases to the pilots over one day. The discussions and feedback were recorded to be taken into account in the second stage of the analysis.

The analysis of the cases began during the interviews, the observations, and the study of the written documents. It was based on successive iterations of analyses specific to each case and cross-cutting analyses, to shed light on and categorize convergences and divergences between cases, following the multi-thematic coding approach (Dumez 2013 ). The analysis was organized into three stages:

(1) We first retrospectively analyse each tracking process. The study of each case, and its comparison with the other cases, revealed common features of the investigation process. After exploring the intentions of the pilots when they embarked on their respective tracking projects, we endeavoured to identify the key stages of reasoning that structured the different tracking initiatives and their conditions of development. For each of these stages (e.g. unearthing innovations), we categorized the variations in their implementation (e.g. unearthing innovations using snowball sampling, exploring existing databases or social networks, etc.). We also categorized the agronomic content generated and formalized during the process according to its properties (e.g. nature of the agronomic content, medium of circulation).

(2) Based on our conceptual framework rooted in design science, we then sought to shed light on the tracking processes’ contributions to the design of farming systems (i.e. their generative functions, Hatchuel et al. 2013 ). To this end, we first identified the type of design process to which the pilots were seeking to contribute when they implemented the tracking (e.g. co-design of a local farming system, design of farming systems by farmers scattered across the country, design of cropping systems to be tested on station). Through a retrospective analysis, we then highlighted how the tracking process and its results contributed to design activities (e.g. did it provide ideas to define the properties of an innovative farming system? Did it provide different options that could be used to envisage alternatives? Did it build new relations between designers seeking to collaborate? Etc.).

(3) Based on the results of the previous analyses, we built a typology (Dumez 2013 ) of innovation tracking strategies. First, for each case, we highlighted interconnections between the different stages of the tracking process (e.g. did different initial incentives to start the tracking affect the results produced?) and with the contributions to farming system design. We then looked for convergences and divergences between the cases, and to build strategy types, we grouped together the cases where the pilots had similar intentions across different situations, as well as similar implementation approaches and contributions to design processes.

3.1 Common features of the innovation tracking approaches

The analysis of the 14 cases revealed five key stages—always iterative—that structured all the tracking processes (Figure 2 ). We detail these by tracing how each of the stages unfolded, as observed in the different case studies.

The five stages that structured the tracking process, and different approaches to completing each stage, as observed in the different cases.

3.1.1 Defining an innovation tracking project: what are the pilots looking for?

The innovation tracking processes were initiated for a variety of purposes, and in different R&D contexts.

In some of the cases, tracking was initiated at the request of farmers who were experiencing problems that they were struggling to solve on their farms (e.g. weed management problems identified during a regional diagnosis in case 3). Sometimes, they were initiated when R&D actors identified an innovation concept with which they were not familiar (e.g. because it was very uncommon, or little expertise was available) but which they wanted to see developed in practice (e.g. multispecies intercrops, case 8). They thus undertook tracking to produce scientific knowledge and technical references to fuel farming system design in a region, or across France. These tracking processes were initiated by a few actors (two to eight), who chose to explore targeted innovations, related to specific on-farm techniques (e.g. species mixtures, case 1) or methods to manage a component of the environment (e.g. thistle in organic farming, case 13). As few stakeholders were involved, what they considered ‘innovative’ was defined according to their common frames of reference (e.g. the scientific literature; current on-farm practices in a territory).

In other cases, tracking was initiated to stimulate innovation in a geographical area: in response to a political injunction (e.g. to develop agroecology in a region, case 9), for developing a new service to farmers (e.g. to develop an initiative to get farmers to share their experiences with each other, case 6), and/or in support of on-farm design processes (e.g. to support the design of self-built equipment for organic and small-scale farming, case 10). These processes involved a variety of actors in the tracking’s implementation (from 10 to several dozen partners, including advisors, supply-chain actors, etc.). With this type of initiative, the tracking was exploratory. In other words, unlike in the previous cases, the specific innovations to track were not pre-defined. The pilots wanted different stakeholders, with different frames of reference, to be involved in the tracking process and to pool what they considered innovative. In several cases, what constituted an innovation was defined only as different from dominant practices in the area, and in others, it was defined with reference to general principles (e.g. agroecological principles, case 7). As a result, the innovations identified were often subject to debate within the collectives. For example, in case 11, Guyot-Poussard pruning was not known and was deemed novel in Provence to manage certain diseases in vineyard, whereas it was known and more developed in the Bordeaux and Burgundy wine regions (Table 2 ). And, as the results of the tracking were to be national in scope, the stakeholders considered that this pruning method could be deemed innovative. In some of the cases, the pilots also wanted the tracking process to contribute to connecting farmers engaged in innovation processes (e.g. the tracking in case 10 aimed to build a nationwide network of farmers designing farming equipment).

Whether targeted or exploratory, we observed that the pilots always looked for innovations that were unknown to them and that they considered desirable for the future of farming (Table 2 ). In the different cases, the innovations studied related to basic techniques, crop management sequences, crop or livestock systems, farming equipment, or organizations.

We observed that, in most cases (1, 2, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13), the pilots collected and assessed innovations ‘after their implementation on farm’ (retrospective analysis of proven practices). In other cases (3, 4, 5, 8, 14), tracking was implemented over the course of the farmers’ innovation processes (i.e. analysis of the innovations under development), and the pilots contributed to the process (e.g. giving feedback on the innovations assessed, or contributing to interpreting their effects and performance).

Based on their objectives and work contexts, the pilots chose to deploy tracking over different timeframes, often determined by their funding and the significance of this activity within the pilot organization (Table 1 ): 6 months to 1 year (cases 1, 2, 8, 11, 12, 13), or several years (cases 3, 5, 14). The end date was sometimes not set (cases 4, 6, 7, 9, 10). The pilots also chose to carry out the tracking in different geographical areas (Table 1 ), often informed by the missions of the pilot’s organization, the objectives of the tracking project and the type of funding available: one region (cases 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9), several regions (cases 2, 6, 11, 12, 13, 14), or the whole of France (cases 7 and 10).

On an organizational level, the implementation of the tracking (e.g. identifying farmers, analysing innovations) involved between 10 and 100 actors, sometimes from a wide range of professions and institutions. The distribution of tasks between the partners was either centralized (cases 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 14)—only a few actors guided the choices made and implemented the tracking tasks—or distributed (cases 6, 9, 10, 11, 13) among different actors with varying degrees of leeway in the implementation of certain tasks, depending on their institutions and working environments. For instance, in cases 1 and 2 (centralized processes), researchers defined the tracking target, contacted local advisors to unearth innovations, carried out interviews, and analysed the data gathered. By contrast, in case 11 (distributed process), partners from academia, advisory services, and technical institutes collectively defined priorities for organic vineyard innovation, and local advisors conducted interviews with farmers they spotted in different regions and shared the data with agents of technical institutes who analysed them and produced testimonies.

3.1.2 Unearthing on-farm innovations: how are farmers’ innovations identified?

Once the choice has been made to focus on certain areas of innovation, these had to be sought out. All the pilots mentioned that farmers developing innovations were often hard to find, and that they had to develop different approaches to spot them (Figure 2 ).

In most cases (Figure 2 (2.a)), the farmers were identified through snowball sampling, by asking targeted actors if they knew either farmers who were innovating or people who might know them (e.g. in case 1, by contacting advisory organic farming networks and going to markets, to find multispecies intercrops in vegetable production). In such cases, to leave room for surprise, the pilots often first asked the targeted actors a general question (e.g. in case 12, do you know innovative, original, or surprising practices to manage thistle in organic farming?). They then often specified their questions with predefined concepts of practices that they knew could surprise these actors (e.g. do you know farmers who manage thistle in organic farming without soil tillage?).

In other cases, the pilots systematically searched for innovations across a geographical area, as in case 6 where, throughout the year, farming advisers were asked to spot innovations which, in their eyes, could help to renew regional agriculture (Figure 2 (2.b)).

Some pilots also explored farmer networks known to be innovative (Fig. 2 (2.c)), as in case 12, where the pilots contacted the heads of a conservation agriculture network to identify farmers who managed thistle without tillage in organic farming (practices unknown to them).

In some cases, innovative practices and farmers were also identified exploring existing databases or social networks (Fig. 2 (2.d)). For instance, in case 13, the results of an online survey were used to find farmers who said they successfully managed thistle and who had several years of experience to share.

Finally, in several cases, the pilots invited farmers to come forward (Fig. 2 (2.e)), providing them with a platform for dialogue where they could share their innovation. This was the case of the website associated with case 10, where farmers could share their self-built equipment on a forum.

3.1.3 Getting to know innovations and innovation processes: what kind of information did the pilots collect?

This stage consisted in gathering data and acquiring knowledge from farmers, who virtually systematically agreed and were glad to share their experiences with others. In some cases, pilots got in touch with farmers they already knew, while others relied on intermediaries (e.g. advisors, researchers, sales representatives) and first made contact with the farmers over the phone. This initial call was often an opportunity to find out more about the innovations (useful information for preparing the upcoming meeting) and to get the farmers’ consent to share their experiences. In all cases, the pilots carried out individual or collective interviews (Figure 2 (3.a)), during which farmers were invited to explain what they had done—guided by questions from the interviewer or the group. Often, to triangulate and complete the information gathered, interviews were supplemented with observations, measurements, and discussions on the farm (e.g. field organization, crops implemented, equipment), during or after the implementation of the innovation (Fig. 2 (3.b)). Some pilots also produced videos and photographs and collected documents tracing what had been done. In two cases (1, 12), the pilots used drawing as a medium to interact with the farmer during the interview (e.g. crop management steps in a timeline, spatial arrangements of fields on the farm).

What was reported during the interviews varied from one case to another? The conversations always took as a starting point the innovations that had already been tried and tested, or that the farmer was in the process of developing (e.g. multispecies intercrops, case 2; a farming equipment, case 10). To obtain information on systemic innovations, pilots often relied on agronomic concepts such as ‘intercropping’ (cases 1, 2, and 8) or ‘crop management or cropping systems’ (cases 4, 5, 12, 13), which provided them with heuristic markers to guide the conversation. The interviews revolved around questions regarding seven fields:

the facts and actions surrounding the innovation—either a basic technique or a system (e.g. ‘What have you done? How?’);

the reasons or motivations for developing such an innovation (e.g. ‘For what reasons did you develop it?’);

the agronomic processes involved in the functioning of the innovation (e.g. ‘How did it work? How did these actions achieve these effects?’);

the assessment of the innovation (e.g. ‘Are you satisfied with the results? How do you assess them?’);

beyond the description of the innovation, other information—relating to other activities, the sector, the geographical area, the pedo-climatic and socio-economic context, etc.—was gathered in order for the interviewer to get to know the conditions of existence, development, and effectiveness of the innovation at hand, from the perspective of the farmer who had designed and implemented it;

the pilots also often asked the farmers to retrace the innovation process, that is, the trajectory of change in their practices (cases 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11) (e.g. ‘How did you arrive at these practices? Have you always done it this way?’);

some pilots also asked the farmers to outline their future projects, as well as share any advice they might have for other farmers willing to develop their innovation (cases 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10).

3.1.4 Analysing learnings: how do the pilots build evidence?

In all cases, the pilots analysed the innovation and the innovation process based on what the farmers told them. We defined four analytical categories corresponding to different objectives (Figure 2 and Table 3 ). As the pilots always discovered innovations that were unknown to them (and often to the scientific literature), the analysis involved mobilizing knowledge built on a wide variety of evidence, and the decision to use one source over another was at the discretion of the pilot (grey and scientific literature, colleagues’ expertise, farmers’ accounts, etc.).

Producing narratives of each innovation to shed light on the farmers’ action logics (Table 3 (4.a))

This work was carried out in 11 cases (Figure 2 ), to organize and prioritize what the farmer had explained. Such monographs highlighted the systemic relations that the farmers had established in their discourse, between their actions, their intentions and projects, their work environment, the effects they had observed, their assessment of what they had done, and their personal trajectory (Table 3 ).

Assessing the effects/performance of innovations (Table 3 (4.b))

The pilots always sought to assess the effects/performances of innovations in order to demonstrate their value. To do so, they systematically relied on the farmers’ assessment criteria and on their perception of the results. For instance, in case 11, regarding the innovation ‘sheep in vineyards for weeding and stripping’, the farmers concerned assessed their practices in terms of workload reduction during a busy time of year, ease of implementation, and the initial investments required. In several cases (4, 5, 6, 7, 10), the pilots supplemented the farmers’ criteria with others to shed light on performance in terms of general interest considerations (e.g. impacts on the environment). In case 7, for example, the pilots used criteria such as greenhouse gas emissions, farm biodiversity (natural infrastructure, crop diversity, etc.), and levels of input use (nitrogen, phosphorus, water, etc.). In the different cases, the assessment involved indicators either proposed by the farmers (e.g. case 5, Table 3 ), already existing in the literature (e.g. case 7, using a range of digital agri-environmental indicators), or invented by the pilots (e.g. case 8, measuring weed development in a crop mixture). The assessment of the results (i.e. is it satisfactory?) was performed by the farmers and sometimes by the pilots as well (e.g.in case 11, the pilots compared the performance of innovations with that of more common practices—comparing the cost and quantities of pesticide applied using a sprayer from the industry, with one developed on farm).

Understanding the agronomic processes that condition the effects/performance of an innovation (Table 3 (4.c))

In many cases (Figure 2 ), the pilots were surprised by what the farmer had done, or by his/her description of the results obtained. To better understand the functioning of each innovation, the pilots looked for and drew links between existing knowledge (e.g. models, expertise) and farmers’ statements. For example, in case 11, the pilots drew on scientific and technical literature and expert opinions to shed light on the conditions under which adding a winter cereal in vine rows helped to improve the soil structure (Table 3 ). In some cases, this work allowed the pilots to formulate plausible hypotheses about the agronomic effects of the innovative practices. For example, in case 12, by comparing a model of the evolution of thistle root stocks with the period in which the farmer explained that he had topped this perennial in order to exhaust its reserves, the pilots established links that they had never made between a technique, the cycle of the weed, and an effect (topping at the flowering stage, exhausts root reserves and reduces weed population). Other times, however, they had no knowledge to compare with the effects of the innovation observed by the farmer. In such cases, some pilots made analogies or formulated new research questions.

Comparing variants in the operationalization of an innovation on several farms (Table 3 (4.d))

Such analysis focused on identifying points of convergence and divergence between the innovations described in specific situations. This involved different analysis methods (Figure 2 ). The first consisted in analysing the variants of an innovation in different conditions encountered during the tracking (e.g. two instances of a permanent clover cover crop to manage thistle, in different conditions, case 12). The second approach consisted in building decontextualized models of action logics, describing how several farmers activated agronomic processes by articulating the same techniques (e.g. techniques to foster a physical barrier to the dispersal of pests in vegetable production intercrops, case 1, Table 3 ). The third approach sought to establish typologies of technical systems (Table 3 ). Finally, a fourth approach, observed in cases 1, 2, 8, 12, and 13, analysed both (i) different ways of implementing an innovation to fulfil the same objective (e.g. case 2, limiting the development of weeds in crop mixtures by working with densities, sowing dates and patterns, and the associated species and/or their development cycles) and (ii) different previously unknown ways of implementing an innovation (Table 3 —different spatial arrangements of the species intercropped).

3.1.5 Generating and formalizing agronomic content for farmers and other R&D actors

In all cases, through tracking, the pilots generated agronomic content intended for a large number of farmers and, often, other R&D actors as well, always with a view to fostering innovation elsewhere (contributions to distributed design processes).

We identified five types of agronomic content (Figures 2 and 3 ):

Illustrations of the five types of agronomic content generated over the course of innovation tracking projects. Box a shows excerpts from the testimony, case 11 (Petit et al. 2018 ). Box b presents a repertoire of technical options, case 2 (Jeuffroy et al. 2018 ). Box c presents a generic action logic, case 1 (Dupré 2015 ). Box d presents excerpts about functional knowledge illustrated in practice, case 5. Box e presents a decision-making rule concerning the type of seed and distribution, recommended based on the seed drill and sowing method used in rapeseed-frost-sensitive legume associations, case 4 (Cadoux and Sauzet 2016 ).

Testimonies (Figures 2 (5.a) and 3a) were drawn directly from the narratives describing the farmers’ action logics (Fig. 2 (4.a)) and the assessment of innovations, to capture the systemic logic informing a farmer’s reasoning in his/her situation. In all these cases (with the exception of certain testimonies in case 11), the farmers’ narratives included assessments of the innovation, functional knowledge linked to that innovation, its conditions of existence and effectiveness, and sometimes, tips to tailor the innovation to conditions other than those of the innovating farmer. These testimonies were produced to ‘inspire’ other farmers; they were formalized into written documents, shared in videos, or presented by the innovating farmers at open days on their farms.

Repertoires of technical options (Figure 2 (5.b)), established by comparing variants in the operationalization of an innovation across several farms, provided an overview of options, organized in such a way as to reflect the range of techniques mobilized by farmers to reach a particular objective. In some cases, methods for implementing these techniques were also described (e.g. Figure 3b ). These repertoires, built on the innovations tracked, provided the farmers addressed with an overview of a range of known options that could be implemented to achieve specific objectives.

The generic action logics (Figure 2 (5.c)) generated in cases 1, 2, and 12 were conceptual models of combinations of techniques which, mobilized together, activate certain agronomic processes in the field (e.g. fostering a physical barrier to the dispersal of pests with a species mixture, Figure 3c ). They provided decontextualized combinations of actions, which could help a farmer to think about the activation of a process in their own situation. These generic action logics were the output of a comprehensive analysis of the innovations (Fig. 2 (4.c)), often based on comparisons (Fig. 2 (4.d)).

Functional knowledge illustrated in practice (Figure 2 (5.d)), gained by understanding the agronomic processes that condition the effects of an innovation, focused on a component of the agro-ecosystem to manage (e.g. organic matter, case 5; perennial weeds, case 3). The functional knowledge presented in writing was coupled with examples of farmers’ innovations which, according to the pilots, allowed for sustainably managing this component of the environment (e.g. Figure 3 ). This content was circulated to help farmers understand how certain components work (decontextualized knowledge), while showing them how some farmers had used that information to change their practices.

Decision-making rules (Figures 2 (5.e) and 3e) combined technical options with conditions of production (e.g. tools, soil, climate) to reach performance objectives. These predictive rules followed the formalism ‘if (conditions met), then (action)’ and were formulated in such a way to be applied by a farmer based on his/her situation. Most of the time, they related to basic techniques.

3.2 Six contributions of innovation tracking to farming system design

Our analysis of the interconnections between tracking and design processes, across the cases revealed six contributions of tracking to the design of farming systems (i.e. six generative functions).

3.2.1 Giving rise to creative anomalies

In all cases, the study of farmers’ innovations gave rise to creative anomalies, which had the effect of renewing the pilots’ representations. In other words, the discovery and analysis of innovations tried and tested on farms highlighted the pilots’ fixations (i.e. cognitive biases that cause a person to only consider certain options when innovating) and fostered profound change in their representations of the management of certain farming systems. Moreover, this process opened up and led to further exploration of new fields of knowledge and/or new fields of innovation. For example, in case 12, while tracking thistle control strategies in organic farming, the study of on-farm innovations revealed that some farmers considered that these perennials could be helpful (e.g. as indicators of the agro-ecosystem status, a shelter for auxiliaries, or a source of fodder). This finding revealed that, in their cropping system design activity, the pilots implicitly thought of thistle as a pest to be destroyed. This observation led the pilots and their partners to refocus their design project from ‘managing these perennials as pests to be controlled’ to ‘living with these perennials because they could be useful’.

3.2.2 Uncovering new research questions, the exploration of which could fuel future design processes

In all cases, the pilots explained that, when analysing innovation processes, comparing farmers’ accounts with available agronomic knowledge enabled them to identify knowledge gaps. In other words, they found that no publications (scientific or grey literature) offered information that corroborated what the farmers explained. In some cases, as they knew that answers to these questions could fuel design processes on other farms, the pilots formulated new questions that they themselves explored or that they passed on to research organizations. For example, in cases 11 and 12, respectively, after studying on-farm innovations, the pilots asked themselves: ‘through which mechanisms does spraying horsetail preparations promote the healing of vines after hail?’, and ‘when thistle is topped—which seems to exhaust its underground reserves—is a branching effect always observed and under what conditions?’.

3.2.3 Highlighting systemic links between techniques, agronomic processes, their conditions of implementation, and their performance to fuel the design of other farming systems

In all cases, the pilots discovered innovations that were unknown to them, and their analysis highlighted new systemic links between techniques, performance, and farmers’ working conditions. These systemic links constituted a resource, which the pilots accumulated to fuel farming systems design. To foster distributed design processes, they freely circulated this content through websites, newspapers, newsletters, public presentations, and/or courses. For instance, in case 1, repertoires of options for the arrangement of different vegetable species in a shelter, and their assessment by the farmers, provided alternative options for the design of market gardening cropping systems based on intercrops. In case 2, the analysis of the convergences between species mixtures encountered on farms revealed that all farmers who established species mixtures that cover the soil well (e.g. intercrops with forage pea, or with more than two species), and increased seeding densities, weeded less often. The pilots, therefore, proposed to combine a high density, a high number of species, and competitive species to reduce weeding, a time-consuming technique, especially in organic farming (Lamé et al. 2015 ).

3.2.4 Stimulating design in orphan fields of innovation

In orphan fields of innovation (i.e. little explored in R&D), some pilots (cases 9, 11) used innovation tracking as a way to orient R&D work based on what was starting to be explored and tested by certain farmers. For example, in case 9, the pilot initiated innovation tracking when he was put in charge of developing agroecology within his department. Given the multitude of R&D directions available, he set up an information-exchange network for innovative farmers which, according to him, provided an ‘innovation breeding ground’. This network of farmers thus helped local R&D to establish their research agenda on the topic of ‘agroecology’, and farmers’ practices demonstrated what could be done in this orphan field of innovation.

3.2.5 Connecting geographically scattered farmer-designers

In several cases (cases 6, 7, 9, 10), the purpose of tracking was also explicitly to contribute to building new networks of farmers innovating with their farming systems. To this end, the pilots set up mechanisms to enable the farmers they had identified to make themselves known, to meet, or to make contact with each other. For example, in case 10, the pilots provided an interactive map on their website showing the contact details of farmers and the agricultural equipment they had designed on their farms ( https://www.latelierpaysan.org/Cartes-des-autoconstructeurs ). In case 9, the pilots helped farmers connect by organizing annual forums, where farmers presented their innovation process to a wide audience, and by publishing a magazine ( http://www.bretagne.synagri.com/synagri/la-revue-des-agri-novateurs%2D%2D-edition-2016 ).

3.2.6 Circulating innovation concepts to give designers in other contexts ideas

In all cases, the pilots shared innovation concepts with farmers and other R&D actors, reporting on innovations which they could not necessarily appraise or understand, but which they still considered desirable for the future of agriculture. In so doing, they sought to attract the interest of other farmers who might test and even improve the concepts they shared. Many of the testimonies circulated related to innovation concepts, such as the sheep used in a vineyard’s inter-rows to defoliate the vines and control grass cover (case 11) or the use of animal traction, for animal-powered tillage in vineyards (case 7).

3.3 Three strategies for tracking innovations in design processes

In this section, we present three innovation tracking strategies that emerged from a cross-cutting analysis of the 14 cases studied (Table 4 , Figure 4 ).

This figure visually captures the contrasts between the three strategies which differ, along the x -axis, in the formulation of the tracking project (targeted or exploratory) and the organization of tasks (centralized or decentralized), and along the y -axis, in the ways of gaining knowledge about and analysing the innovations, whether proven or under development.

3.3.1 Strategy 1—targeted tracking of proven innovative practices

These tracking processes focused on targeted innovations (e.g. intercrops with legumes, ways to manage thistle in organic farming) in a context where the scientific literature or local advisors only considered a few methods to implement a technique (e.g. scientific knowledge on crop mixtures focused on pea with wheat or barley, case 2) or concentrated on a specific problem (e.g. controlling weeds as pests, case 12). In that context, tracking innovations aimed to renew and enrich the scarce knowledge about these targeted innovations. The process gave rise to creative anomalies: what was discovered on farm challenged and caused a shift in the pilots’ representations of the technique (e.g. whereas, in the scientific literature, crop mixtures in market gardening generally include two different species, farmers associate up to seven different species, case 1) or of the ways to approach a problem to be managed (e.g. from perennials as pests to perennials as helpful, case 12).

In some of these tracking processes, all tasks were centralized among two to three actors (Table 1 ). They agreed on what innovations to look for and decided to study them after they had been implemented and assessed by farmers. These tracking initiatives were carried out within short timeframes (about 6 months), to rapidly gain knowledge about the innovation with which they wished to support the design on other farms. The pilots identified farmers through snowball sampling, exploring networks of farmers known for innovating. As their tracking was targeted, they were also able to find innovations through databases and social networks. Since the innovations shared a common base (a technique, a component of the environment), the pilots were able to conduct cross-cutting analyses and generated generic action logics (highlighting new systemic links— sect. 3.2.2.) and/or generated repertoires of technical options. The farmers interviewed were sent written feedback about the results of the analysis, and sometimes, they were invited to project meetings on the topic explored in the tracking.

3.3.2 Strategy 2—targeted tracking of innovations under development

By contrast, other tracking processes followed a twofold objective: to foster innovation processes under development on several farms and to use the learnings about the process and the innovation to generate generic agronomic content addressed to a wide range of farmers.

These tracking initiatives also focused on targeted concepts and lasted at least 3 years. Real-time discussions both among farmers and with the pilot, as well as their observations of the agroecosystem, helped to explore and hierarchically organize knowledge useful for understanding and evaluating the interactions between techniques, the socio-ecological context, the processes involved, and their effects. Thus, both the pilots and the farmers benefited from the analyses, and the latter was able to use them to decide on how to proceed in the following year (co-design process). Based on what they learned, the pilots generated generic agronomic content such as decision-making rules or functional knowledge, which they illustrated with examples of successful innovations. As a result, these tracking process helped both the pilots and the farmers to uncover new knowledge that could be mobilized in the design of agricultural systems. Furthermore, these tracking processes served to give rise to creative anomalies and to uncover new research questions.

3.3.3 Strategy 3—exploratory tracking of proven innovative practices

The third strategy differed from the first two, insofar as the tracking was exploratory and aimed to explore new innovation fields (e.g. agroecology in Brittany, case 9; innovation in organic winegrowing, case 11). These exploratory processes contributed to developing orphan fields of innovation by shedding light on innovations that could be further investigated in R&D projects and contributed to building innovation networks, by connecting geographically scattered farmer-designers and circulating innovation concepts.

In these processes, the tasks were often distributed among many actors, who studied innovations that had already been tried and tested by farmers, and within long-term projects, the innovations were often monitored over several years. Innovations were identified through snowball sampling, by systematically monitoring a network of known farmers and/or inviting farmers to share their experiences. What constituted an innovation was often subject to debate, given the diverse frames of reference of the actors involved in the identification process (e.g. agricultural advisers, researchers). In these tracking processes, the pilots shared the goal of circulating innovation concepts informed by what they had discovered, and they produced testimonies based on their accounts of their experiences. In several cases, these accounts were supplemented with evaluation results, insights into systemic links between techniques, environmental conditions, agronomic processes and effects, and tips for adapting innovations to other conditions.

4 Discussion

4.1 tracking farmers’ innovations: a particular way of studying farmers’ practices.

The current multiplication of initiatives in French agricultural R&D, on which this article is built, provides a testing ground for the development of approaches we proposed to call ‘farmer innovation tracking’. The present research contributes to the theorization of these approaches, which are still little known in the literature. We here discuss four dimensions of our findings in this respect.

1. Innovation tracking aligns with the approaches developed since the 1970s in the Farming System Research community (Byerlee et al. 1982 ; Biggs 1985 ; Zandstra 1979 ) and built around the drive to recognize both the diversity of on-farm practices and farmers as innovators (Chambers et al. 1989 ; Seyfang and Smith 2007 ). Innovation tracking differs in at least two ways from other approaches developed in this community. In standard on-farm studies, R&D actors seek to study the more frequent on-farm practices, or their diversity, and when they encounter unconventional, deviant practices, it is merely by chance. By contrast, the objective of innovation tracking is from the outset to discover practices that are singular, unknown, and desirable, and this approach involves steps to identify the innovations farmers to seek out.

2. Our results reveal common features of innovation tracking processes and shed light on three implementation strategies. These results make it possible to revisit other farmer innovation tracking processes explored in the literature, which are all organized according to the five stages we have described, and can be linked to the three strategies identified (e.g. Salembier et al. 2016 ; Feike et al. 2010 ; Blanchard et al. 2017 , and Verret et al. 2020 —targeted tracking of proven practices; Elzen et al. 2017 —exploratory tracking of proven practices). Some of these tracking processes also reveal other implementation approaches (e.g. Modernel et al. ( 2018 ) and Adelhart Toorop et al. ( 2020 ) used statistical tools to identify ‘positive deviant farms’). At the same time, these results show that there is no right way of tracking innovations; rather, the approach followed should be tailored to the objectives and institutional contexts in which it is deployed (as also observed by Klerkx et al. 2017 , about co-innovation approaches). Our results offer heuristic markers for actors who might wish to mobilize farmer innovation tracking in different contexts in the future; each of the five stages provides a space for these actors to imagine different ways of unearthing innovations, understanding them, analysing them, etc. The logics guiding each of the three strategies could also inspire future tracking.

3. The approaches we studied centred around agronomic R&D. Earlier research from the social sciences proposed complementary approaches for studying innovation processes (e.g. Klerkx et al. 2010 ; Djanibekov et al. 2012 ) on the scale of AIS, food systems or sectors, and from a non-agronomic perspective (e.g. taking into consideration the articulation of institutional, social, and commercial changes). In our results (sect. 3.1.4), we show that tracking pilots strive to take into account the social or institutional dimensions of innovative farming systems, with a view to understanding the reasons and conditions for their development and effectiveness. To this end, they ask questions such as ‘for what reasons did you develop this practice? What are the conditions for its development, or effectiveness?’. The information related to commercial, institutional, or even social issues is then merged into narratives, provided it was mentioned by the interviewee but without reference to associated theoretical underpinnings. As several authors have argued (e.g. Jansen and Vellema 2011 ; Duru 2013 ), a social science perspective would enrich agronomic approaches, and particularly tracking farmer innovation (e.g. Penvern et al. 2019 ).

4. Finally, our results confirm that the definition of what constitutes ‘innovation’ is not consensual, thus echoing the observation by Le Masson et al. ( 2006 ) that ‘the notion of innovation has no inherent meaning, and faced with an innovative proposition, two observers will have varying judgements’. Innovation tracking raises two questions: who defines what constitutes an ‘innovation’ and an innovation process? And how? Our results show that there is no right way to define what ‘innovation’ is; it is a choice made by the stakeholders, based on their frames of reference (e.g. scientific literature, dominant practices in a geographical area, a farmer’s practice on his/her own farm) informing what, according to them, is unknown and desirable for the future of farming. They also highlight that, since tracking involves a variety of actors, this choice is often subject to debate. For future tracking processes, our results call for reflexivity in the choice of what to consider as ‘innovation’ based on the intended end use of the results of the tracking (e.g. who should be involved to define what is innovative, if the goal is to stimulate innovation in a given geographical area? And what about when the purpose of the tracking is to change historically inherited scientific representations?).

4.2 The contributions of farmer innovation tracking to the design of farming systems

Our results show that, in contexts where different stakeholders need to change together in order to innovate (e.g. agricultural advisers, farmers, researchers), innovation tracking contributes to the design of farming systems in different ways.

By giving rise to creative anomalies (we borrow this concept from Fallen 2012 ), tracking helps to shed light on the cognitive deadlocks induced by the productivist paradigm (Vanloqueren and Baret 2009 ) and fosters the emergence of alternative approaches to crop management or farm organization. Tracking thus contributes to challenging the representations of the actors involved in design processes, a key mechanism for driving creativity and exploring alternatives, as shown by Jansson and Smith 1991 (these authors speak about going beyond design fixations). As some of the pilots interviewed pointed out, this mechanism is all the more significant with tracking, as the innovations that give rise to these anomalies are being or have already been tried and tested by farmers, in ‘real situations’.

By developing orphan fields of innovation in R&D work and identifying new research questions, innovation tracking also helps R&D actors to determine their priorities, based on new expectations among farmers, and building on what some have already started to explore on their farms. This process thus allows for identifying what Ansoff ( 1975 ) calls weak signals, which can serve as a basis for developing innovative R&D programmes. Shedding light on systemic links—between techniques, their conditions of implementation, agronomic processes, and their performance—also opens avenues for further research and design. We should note that the other approaches for the study of practices, such as agronomic and agrarian diagnosis, also foster such systemic functional links (Doré et al. 1997 ; Cochet 2015 ).

Through the circulation of knowledge and of innovation concepts, and through the creation of farmer-designer networks, our results show that the innovation tracking approaches we studied contributed to stimulating open and distributed innovation processes (Chesbrough and Bogers 2014 ; Von Hippel 2005 ) in agriculture, with farmers considered no longer solely as end-users of R&D propositions, but as designers of farming systems (Joly 2017 ; Klerkx et al. 2010 ; Prost et al. 2016 ; Berthet et al. 2018 ). Tracking approaches contributed to circulating agronomic content (e.g. testimonies, generic action logics) to stimulate design on other farms.

Several tracking pilots offer examples of what Klerkx ( 2020 ) calls ‘grassroots advisory movement[s]’, which ‘develop in response to transitions which are induced from the bottom up’. Tracking pilots are vectors of innovation experiences, and we observed that this process often relies on digital technologies (such as forums, digital platforms, websites). As a result, R&D services move closer to what Le Masson and Weil ( 2016 ) call conceptive research and development, that is, R&D which contributes to supporting design capabilities among agricultural innovation systems. As mentioned by Keating and McCown ( 2001 ), this role challenges the standards of production of agronomic knowledge. The role of R&D organizations—particularly advisory services—is, thus, not just to produce validated and stabilized knowledge or models predicting the effects of techniques; we observed that they also circulate innovative ideas, knowledge built on few cases, hypotheses, intuitions, etc., to contribute to fostering innovation in different contexts. This observation captures the transition, described by Salembier et al. ( 2018 ), from ‘a decision-making paradigm’ in which agronomy supports farmers’ decision-making—i.e. helps them to find the best existing techniques to reach an expected effect—towards a ‘design paradigm’, where farmers are considered designers and thus use different resources to imagine and test solutions, gain knowledge, explore alternatives, etc., regarding their own farming systems.

4.3 Agronomic content based on on-farm innovations, intended for farmer-designers

There is now an abundance of agronomic content being circulated by agricultural R&D to support the evolution of farming systems towards greater sustainability, but little is known about the diversity of this content and how it is developed (Meynard 2014 ). Two contributions of the present work consist in shedding light on (i) the characteristics of content, which, to our knowledge, have been little described in the literature and (ii) the relationships between tracking approaches and the types of content produced.

The first type of content consists of decision-making rules , the best-known prescriptions in agronomy at present. These decision-making rules are usually produced through controlled experiments, which make it possible to repeat observations in time and space and produce predictive prescriptions using models (Keating and McCown 2001 ). Case 4 challenged this standard, since the pilots generated rules based on singular cases. In other words, they considered that a few observations—without statistical evidence—were sufficient to formulate decision-making rules (e.g. Figure 2 (2.e), recommended types of seeds and distribution based on the seeder and sowing method used). This result raises questions about the future of ‘decision-making rules’, and their interests and limits within the emergent ‘design paradigm’ (e.g. In which conditions do they contribute to farming system design? How can they take over uncertainties inherent to agroecological farming systems?).

Other types of content are intended as resources to help tailor an innovation to another situation, by stimulating the imagination: such content is based on original combinations of contextualized and decontextualized knowledge. Girard and Magda ( 2018 ) speak of a balance between the generic and the situated. This is the case of functional knowledge illustrated by practices , whereby practical cases are used to illustrate agronomic processes presented out of context (e.g. the functioning of organic matter). As Goulet ( 2017 ) points out, testimonies often show how farmers establish systemic relationships between their projects and experiences, their production situations, their actions, what they observed, the evolution of environmental conditions, etc. They capture the systemic logic of farmers’ practices in their respective situations. Some testimonies are coupled with knowledge that specifies the conditions under which a farmer’s situated actions have similar effects (the conditions of extrapolation, as mentioned by Sebillotte 1978 ), or even technical alternatives. Agricultural journals, the technical services of R&D organizations, and authors of websites are increasingly publishing written testimonies by farmers. Our results show that they involve knowing how to write narratives, by organizing and prioritizing the systemic relationships put forward by the farmer in their discourse. Written testimonies are the most common way of making these innovation processes and innovations rapidly available to other farmers. However, to our knowledge, more research is needed: (i) to map and compare the different types of testimonies that exist (e.g. videos, writings), (ii) to develop rules for writing or recording testimonies (e.g. informing users on the robustness of the hypotheses formulated by farmers), and (iii) to investigate how such narratives are used by farmers to implement change, or by agricultural advisors to support such change (as well as their articulation with demonstrations, e.g. Adamsone-Fiskovica et al. 2021 ).

These combinations of generic and situated knowledge are also found in repertoires of technical choices and generic action logics . Both are based on the comparative analysis of innovations encountered on diverse farms and assume that the user has the skills required to draw from the alternatives and tailor them to their situation. These two types of content are also informed by systemic reasoning: the repertoires rely on identifying relations between a targeted objective and a diverse range of associated technical responses, found in different innovations, while generic action logics derive from a hierarchical organization of techniques which, combined, can be used to manage a specific agronomic process (e.g. a physical barrier to the dispersal of pests).

Irrespective of the R&D tracking pilots, we observed that, when analysing innovations, all of these actors mobilized bodies of knowledge from a range of sources (scientific publications, grey literature, expert opinions, etc.). This observation raises questions that have received little attention in agronomy (Doré et al. 2011 ), on the use of different sources to build evidence (Which sources to choose? For what? Can knowledge from different sources be given the same weight? How to inform the users on the evidence-building process? Etc.).

5 Conclusion

This article proposes a theoretical framework for farmer innovation tracking as an approach to unearth and study farmers’ innovations and highlights the value of this approach for fostering the design of farming systems. It does not provide a turnkey method, but it brings to light concepts, mechanisms, and points of reference for actors who might wish to mobilize farmer innovation tracking in different contexts in the future. At present, however, R&D initiatives that mobilize innovation tracking remain a minority. The pilots we interviewed often stressed the difficulties they encountered in getting the value of this approach and the generic agronomic content generated (considered less ‘scientific’) recognized, and in gaining authorization from their superiors to implement such an approach. This is despite the growing injunction, in many calls for projects and public policy documents (e.g. EIP-Agri EU; H2020 ‘fuelling the potential of advisors for innovation’), to rely on farmers’ innovations. This work adds another building block to help develop tracking projects in different contexts and supports the institutionalization of this approach by recognizing its generative capabilities and shedding light on the wealth of knowledge production processes it involves.

Our findings point to questions and issues that will need to be carefully addressed by any actors who might decide to engage in such studies in the future, such as the benefits for the farmers interviewed, the recognition of the origin of contributions, transparency about the use of the results, and reflection about who to involve in the definition of what is considered innovative (Briggs 2013 ).

At least four research pathways emerge from this work. The first would be the study of the uses (by farmers and R&D actors) of the agronomic content circulated. In line with earlier research (e.g. farmers as advisors and demonstrators, Adamsone-Fiskovica et al. 2021 ; Klerkx 2020 ; support for inquiry in transitions, Slimi et al. 2021 ), the second pathway would involve exploring whether and how farmers track innovations on other farms, and the role of R&D actors in these processes. A third avenue would be the investigation of whether and how the farmer innovation tracking processes we studied could be tailored to other types of innovations within and beyond the farming sector (how to track forms of organization, breeding systems, public policies, etc.), and how this investigation could benefit from cross-disciplinary approaches (particularly with the social sciences). Finally, this research opens up a new field of inquiry in agronomy: the contributions of agronomic approaches to the design of innovative agricultural systems. While previous research has implemented tracking approaches to study farmers’ innovations, in this article, we studied approaches developed by different R&D actors to track farmers’ innovations, with a view to fostering the design of other farming systems. The conceptual framework and the research method deployed in this work (sect. 2) could be remobilized to study the contributions of other approaches in agronomy (e.g. diagnosis, design workshops, experiments), to clarify and enrich their use in farming system design processes.

Data availability

The datasets analysed during the present study are available from the respective authors on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We are deeply grateful to all the farmers who developed innovations on their farms and agreed to share them in these tracking processes, and to the people whose work contributed to the 14 initiatives we refer to in the article—Gilles Sauzet (Terres Inovia), Florent Rodot, Gautier Vancleenputte, Marie Dupré, and Alice Lamé.

This work was carried out under the umbrella of the Initiative for Design in Agrifood Systems (IDEAS). We would like to thank Michel Duru, Sylvain Lenfle, Marion Casagrande, Julie Labatut, Thierry Doré, and Christian Huyghe for their very rich feedback on this research. We extend our gratitude to the two anonymous reviewers and the associate editor for their rich comments and suggestions, which significantly helped us improve the article. Finally, we warmly thank Nonta Libbrecht-Carey for editing the English version of this article.

This study was funded by INRAE’s Science for Action and Development (SAD) division, and by the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) for Chloé Salembier’s PhD grant (Salembier, 2019) and the Eco3vic project.

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Contributions

Conceptualization, C.S., B.S., B.W., and J.M.M.

Methodology, C.S.

Investigation, C.S., M.H.J., S.C., C.C., E.F., L.F., M.G., C.N., A.P., M.S.P., J.Y.P., H.S., R.R., A.R.

Writing—original draft, C.S.

Writing—review and editing, C.S., J.M.M., B.S., M.H.J.

Funding acquisition, C.S. and J.M.M.

Supervision, J.M.M.

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Correspondence to Chloé Salembier .

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Salembier, C., Segrestin, B., Weil, B. et al. A theoretical framework for tracking farmers’ innovations to support farming system design. Agron. Sustain. Dev. 41 , 61 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-021-00713-z

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Published : 30 August 2021

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-021-00713-z

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45 Research Project Ideas in Agriculture – Innovative Approaches to Sustainable Farming

Explore 45 research project ideas in agriculture for sustainable farming.

Agriculture is a vast and dynamic field that plays a critical role in feeding the world’s population. As the global population continues to grow, the demand for food production is also increasing, making agriculture one of the most important sectors for ensuring food security and sustainable development. However, the challenges facing the agriculture industry today are numerous, ranging from climate change, soil degradation, water scarcity, and pest infestation to biodiversity loss and food waste.

To tackle these issues and promote sustainable agriculture, researchers and professionals in the field are continuously exploring new and innovative ways to improve agricultural practices, increase productivity, and reduce environmental impact. In this article, we will present 45 research project ideas in agriculture that can help address some of the most pressing issues facing the industry today.

These research projects cover a wide range of topics, from soil health and crop yields to livestock farming, aquaculture, and food systems, providing a comprehensive overview of the latest trends and innovations in agricultural research.

Whether you are a student, researcher, or professional in the field, these research project ideas can help guide your work and contribute to a more sustainable and resilient agriculture industry.

• Evaluating the effectiveness of natural pest control methods in agriculture.
• Investigating the effects of climate change on crop yields and food security.
• Studying the impact of soil quality on plant growth and crop yields.
• Analyzing the potential of precision agriculture techniques to increase yields and reduce costs.
• Assessing the feasibility of vertical farming as a sustainable solution to food production.
• Investigating the impact of sustainable agriculture practices on soil health and ecosystem services.
• Exploring the potential of agroforestry to improve soil fertility and crop yields.
• Developing strategies to mitigate the effects of drought on crop production.
• Analyzing the impact of irrigation management techniques on crop yields and water use efficiency.
• Studying the potential of biochar as a soil amendment to improve crop productivity.
• Investigating the effects of soil compaction on crop yields and soil health.
• Evaluating the impact of soil erosion on agriculture and ecosystem services.
• Developing integrated pest management strategies for organic agriculture.
• Assessing the potential of cover crops to improve soil health and reduce erosion.
• Studying the effects of biofertilizers on crop yields and soil health.
• Investigating the potential of phytoremediation to mitigate soil pollution in agriculture.
• Developing sustainable practices for livestock farming and manure management.
• Studying the effects of climate change on animal health and productivity.
• Analyzing the impact of animal feeding practices on meat quality and safety.
• Investigating the potential of aquaponics to increase food production and reduce environmental impact.
• Developing strategies to reduce food waste and loss in agriculture.
• Studying the effects of nutrient management practices on crop yields and environmental impact.
• Evaluating the potential of organic agriculture to improve soil health and reduce environmental impact.
• Investigating the effects of land use change on agriculture and biodiversity.
• Developing strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture.
• Analyzing the impact of agricultural policies on food security and sustainability.
• Studying the potential of precision livestock farming to improve animal welfare and productivity.
• Investigating the impact of agrochemicals on soil health and biodiversity.
• Developing sustainable practices for fisheries and aquaculture.
• Studying the potential of bioremediation to mitigate pollution in aquaculture.
• Investigating the effects of climate change on fisheries and aquaculture.
• Developing strategies to reduce water pollution from agriculture and aquaculture.
• Studying the impact of land use change on water resources and aquatic ecosystems.
• Evaluating the potential of agroecology to promote sustainable agriculture and food systems.
• Investigating the impact of climate-smart agriculture practices on food security and resilience.
• Studying the potential of agrobiodiversity to improve crop productivity and resilience.
• Analyzing the impact of agricultural trade on food security and sustainability.
• Investigating the effects of urbanization on agriculture and food systems.
• Developing strategies to promote gender equity in agriculture and food systems.
• Studying the potential of agroforestry to promote biodiversity and ecosystem services.
• Analyzing the impact of food systems on public health and nutrition.
• Investigating the effects of climate change on pollination and crop yields.
• Developing strategies to promote agrotourism and rural development.
• Studying the potential of agroforestry to promote carbon sequestration and mitigate climate change.
• Analyzing the impact of agricultural subsidies on food security and sustainability.

I hope this article would help you to know the new project topics and research ideas in Agricultural.

• agriculture research
• crop yields
• food systems
• livestock farming
• Project Topics
• Research Ideas
• soil health
• sustainable farming

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ABSTRACT BALUIS, ARRIANNE M. 2019. Undergraduate Thesis, Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Business, College of Agriculture, Forestry and Environmental Sciences, Western Philippines University, Puerto Princesa Campus, Sta. Monica, Puerto Princesa City, Philippines “PARTICIPATION OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL YOUTHS IN LOWLAND RICE FARMING IN BARANGAY BURIRAO, NARRA, PALAWAN”. Adviser: Dr. Maria Asela B. Sebido This study was conducted to determine: a) the characteristics of the out-of-school youths in participating in lowland rice farming at Barangay Burirao, Narra, Palawan in terms of their demographic, social and economic profile; b) the factors influencing the out-of-school youths to participate in lowland rice farming in the area; c) the level and extent of participation of the out-of-school youths in lowland rice farming in the area; and d) the type and status of support that the out-of-school youths get from government and non-government organizations. A descriptive research method was used in the study where fifty (50) out-of school youths were considered respondents of the study. Results of the study showed that respondents have an average age of 21, the 4th child of eight (8) children in the family. They were not attending school because they are not interested to go to school and because of financial problem. Most of the respondents still participate in barangay activities such as Barangay League, Barangay Fiesta, and Barangay Foundation day. They are involved in lowland rice farming for an average of 3.04 years now and rice farming is their source of income. The factors influencing them to participate in rice farming were low income of the family or poverty, enjoying farming than schooling, and lack of laborer which encourage them to participate in rice farming in the study area. Most of them were satisfied in doing rice farming as laborer for them to save money for their future. The respondents have very high participation on the activities in the rice farming that require hard labor and have very low participation on the activities that require decision making; and the respondents who were the laborer of the rice farming have not attended any seminar provided by the concerned agencies. All of them have not received any direct support from the concerned agencies.

Stefaan Dondeyne

United International Journal for Research & Technology

UIJRT | United International Journal for Research & Technology , Junil Constantino

The study aimed to identify the production practices, harvesting methods and harvesting problems encountered by farmers in San Antonio, Nueva Ecija. The descriptive method of research was used to describe the production practices and harvesting operations in terms of seed preference, preferred fertilizer, water source, planting operation, harvesting operation, sources of credit as well as the harvesting problems in terms of insect pests and diseases, low production, low price of Palay, and lack of post-harvest facilities. Results show that farmers preferred to use inbred seeds and inorganic fertilizer. Many of their rice fields are irrigated, coming from NIA. and more than half of the respondents are transplanting their crops. Furthermore, most of them use laborers in harvesting their crops, and almost all farmers depend on private individuals for credit. Also, the respondents often encountered problems which include insect pests and diseases, low production due to high cost of input and insufficient capital, and low price of Palay. In addition, many farmers agree that there are essential benefits of using modern technology in farming. It is recommended that farmers use the hybrid seeds as their input in planting their crops to increase their production and make use of machines in harvesting their crops to lessen their expenses and get credit to agricultural banks instead of private individuals avoiding higher interest rates.

Universal Journal of Agricultural Research

Horizon Research Publishing(HRPUB) Kevin Nelson

The current phenomenon is the need for farmer regeneration involving the younger generation due to a decrease in human resources in the agricultural sector. The current younger generation is not interested in agricultural activities because of the unfavorable perception of the world of agriculture. In line with these problems, this study aims to: (1) describe the level of interest of students in agriculture, (2) analyze the factors that influence students' interest in agriculture, and (3) formulate strategies to increase students' interest in agriculture as an effort to regenerate farmer. This quantitative descriptive research was carried out from March to June 2022 in Tarogong Kidul District, involving 80 students as the sample from a population of 335 people. The Slovin formula with a 10 percent gallate is used to determine the sample. Data collection uses a questionnaire containing closed questions according to the parameters of the research variables and indicators. Before being used as a data collection tool, the questionnaire was tested for validity and reliability. Data analysis was carried out in two ways, namely descriptive statistical analysis and multiple linear regression analysis. The results showed that most of the students (76.25%) considered that they were not fully interested in agriculture. Factors that influence students' interest (α 0.01) are the role of parents, while knowledge of agriculture, motivation, and the role of friends have a significant effect on α 0.05. The strategy to increase students' interest in agriculture is to involve parents and friends to guide and encourage students in agricultural activities so that they have knowledge and are motivated in agriculture.

All time Top

Florencia G Palis

This paper presents an assessment of needs and coping mechanisms of small-scale rice farmers in the Philippines. Various ethnographic methods were used in the study. Focus group discussions among farmers and key informant interviews among agricultural staff and extension workers were conducted in 51 villages of 19 municipalities in six provinces of the country. Household survey was conducted among 923 farmers in the provinces of Agusan del Norte, Iloilo and Isabela. The major needs faced by small-scale Filipino rice farmers ranged from overcoming biotic and abiotic stresses, economic sufficiency, structural sufficiency and enhanced knowledge in rice farm management & technologies. Sufficient capital prevailed to be the most common need in rice farming. Other specific needs include low input cost, higher paddy price, access to equipment and post-harvest facilities, adequate irrigation system, farm-to-market roads, overcoming biotic stresses such as pests and diseases, overcoming abiotic stresses such as flooding and drought, and improved knowledge on rice farm management and technologies. Some needs and constraints were found to be location-specific such as biotic and abiotic stresses, but were interrelated. Adoption of key technologies promoted in the PalayCheck system to increase rice production remains a great challenge since these technologies such as the site specific nutrient management are closely interrelated with timely availability of sufficient financial capital. Farmers were found to manage and cope by borrowing money from informal lenders who charge them with high interest rates, and traders that require farmers to sell their produce immediately after harvest with a low paddy price. These situations entrapped our rice farmers in a cycle of poverty, hence pro-farmer policies and programs that addressed real needs of farmers should be in place: easy access to formal financial institutions with low interest rates and simplified credit requirements; a competitive price for paddy; reduction in costs of inputs; livelihood programs to farmers and their households; access to post-harvest facilities; better irrigation systems and road infrastructures; and most of all, strengthening farmer organizations. A working multi-stakeholder partnership among farmer organizations, Department of Agriculture and local government units are imperative in addressing the needs of farmers to increase rice production, farming households' income and achieving the country's goal of rice self-sufficiency.

European Journal of Social Sciences Studies

cathy cadusale

Farming is a multifaceted activity that involves various farming challenges and opportunities and their experiences were honed by various elements such as marketing strategies, technological innovations, and cultural features are very essential to develop more farmer-centric interventions that support sustainable and gender-responsive agriculture. This study utilized a qualitative design bound by a grounded theory approach by means of purposive sampling representing the group of Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries of Davao City, Davao Del Sur, Philippines. The study revealed five themes following factors (1) Production assistance (2) Full marketing support through cooperative membership (3) Lack of management strategy (4) Lack of financial assistance and market linkages (5) Lease agreements from ARBs to high-end operational agricultural plantations. The following results show the remaining gaps and areas of concern that must be highly provided by policy interventions and streamlined proce...

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Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education in the Field: A Proceedings (1991)

Chapter: introduction, introduction.

Charles M. Benbrook

These proceedings are based on a workshop that brought together scientists, farmer-innovators, policymakers, and interested members of the public for a progress report on sustainable agriculture research and education efforts across the United States. The workshop, which was held on April 3 and 4, 1990, in Washington, D.C., was sponsored by the Office of Science and Education of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Board on Agriculture of the National Research Council. The encouraging new science discussed there should convince nearly everyone of two facts.

First, the natural resource, economic, and food safety problems facing U.S. agriculture are diverse, dynamic, and often complex. Second, a common set of biological and ecological principles—when systematically embodied in cropping and livestock management systems—can bring improved economic and environmental performance within the reach of innovative farmers. Some people contend that this result is not a realistic expectation for U.S. agriculture. The evidence presented here does not support such a pessimistic assessment.

The report of the Board on Agriculture entitled Alternative Agriculture (National Research Council, 1989a) challenged everyone to rethink key components of conventional wisdom and contemporary scientific dogma. That report has provided encouragement and direction to those individuals and organizations striving toward more sustainable production systems, and it has provoked skeptics to articulate why they feel U.S. agriculture cannot—some even say should not—seriously contemplate the need for such change. The debate has been spirited and generally constructive.

Scholars, activists, professional critics, and analysts have participated in

this debate by writing papers and books, conducting research, and offering opinions about alternative and sustainable agriculture for over 10 years. Over the past decade, many terms and concepts have come and gone. Most people—and unfortunately, many farmers—have not gone very far beyond the confusion, frustration, and occasional demagoguery that swirls around the different definitions of alternative, low-input, organic, and sustainable agriculture.

Fortunately, though, beginning in late 1989, a broad cross-section of people has grown comfortable with the term sustainable agriculture. The May 21, 1990, issue of Time magazine, in an article on sustainable agriculture entitled “It's Ugly, But It Works” includes the following passage:

[A] growing corps of experts [are] urging farmers to adopt a new approach called sustainable agriculture. Once the term was synonymous with the dreaded O word—a farm-belt euphemism for trendy organic farming that uses no synthetic chemicals. But sustainable agriculture has blossomed into an effort to curb erosion by modifying plowing techniques and to protect water supplies by minimizing, if not eliminating, artificial fertilizers and pest controls.

Concern and ridicule in farm publications and during agribusiness meetings over the philosophical roots of low-input, sustainable, or organic farming have given way to more thoughtful appraisals of the ecological and biological foundations of practical, profitable, and sustainable farming systems. While consensus clearly does not yet exist on how to “fix” agriculture's contemporary problems, a constructive dialogue is now under way among a broad cross-section of individuals, both practitioners and technicians involved in a wide variety of specialties.

This new dialogue is powerful because of the people and ideas it is connecting. Change will come slowly, however. Critical comments in some farm magazines will persist, and research and on-farm experimentation will not always lead to the hoped for insights or breakthroughs. Some systems that now appear to be sustainable will encounter unexpected production problems. Nonetheless, progress will be made.

The Board on Agriculture believes that over the next several decades significant progress can and will be made toward more profitable, resource-conserving, and environmentally prudent farming systems. Rural areas of the United States could become safer, more diverse, and aesthetically pleasing places to live. Farming could, as a result, become a more rewarding profession, both economically and through stewardship of the nation's soil and water resources. Change will be made possible; and it will be driven by new scientific knowledge, novel on-farm management tools and approaches, and economic necessity. The policy reforms adopted in the 1990 farm bill, and ongoing efforts to incorporate environmental objectives

into farm policy, may also in time make a significant difference in reshaping the economic environment in which on-farm management decisions are made.

This volume presents an array of new knowledge and insight about the functioning of agricultural systems that will provide the managerial and technological foundations for improved farming practices and systems. Examples of the research projects under way around the country are described. Through exploration of the practical experiences, recent findings, and insights of these researchers, the papers and discussions presented in this volume should demonstrate the value of field- and farm-level systems-based research that is designed and conducted with ongoing input from farmer-innovators.

Some discussion of the basic concepts that guide sustainable agriculture research and education activities may be useful. Definitions of key terms, such as sustainable agriculture, alternative agriculture, and low-input sustainable agriculture, are drawn from Alternative Agriculture and a recent paper (Benbrook and Cook, 1990).

BASIC CONCEPTS AND OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS

Basic concepts.

Sustainable agriculture, which is a goal rather than a distinct set of practices, is a system of food and fiber production that

improves the underlying productivity of natural resources and cropping systems so that farmers can meet increasing levels of demand in concert with population and economic growth;

produces food that is safe, wholesome, and nutritious and that promotes human well-being;

ensures an adequate net farm income to support an acceptable standard of living for farmers while also underwriting the annual investments needed to improve progressively the productivity of soil, water, and other resources; and

complies with community norms and meets social expectations.

Other similar definitions could be cited, but there is now a general consensus regarding the essential elements of sustainable agriculture. Various definitions place differing degrees of emphasis on certain aspects, but a common set of core features is now found in nearly all definitions.

While sustainable agriculture is an inherently dynamic concept, alternative agriculture is the process of on-farm innovation that strives toward the goal of sustainable agriculture. Alternative agriculture encompasses efforts by farmers to develop more efficient production systems, as well as

efforts by researchers to explore the biological and ecological foundations of agricultural productivity.

The challenges inherent in striving toward sustainability are clearly dynamic. The production of adequate food on a sustainable basis will become more difficult if demographers are correct in their estimates that the global population will not stabilize before it reaches 11 billion or 12 billion in the middle of the twenty-first century. The sustainability challenge and what must be done to meet it range in nature from a single farm field, to the scale of an individual farm as an enterprise, to the food and fiber needs of a region or country, and finally to the world as a whole.

A comprehensive definition of sustainability must include physical, biological, and socioeconomic components. The continued viability of a farming system can be threatened by problems that arise within any one of these components. Farmers are often confronted with choices and sacrifices because of seemingly unavoidable trade-offs—an investment in a conservation system may improve soil and water quality but may sacrifice near-term economic performance. Diversification may increase the efficiency of resource use and bring within reach certain biological benefits, yet it may require additional machinery and a more stable and versatile labor supply. Indeed, agricultural researchers and those who design and administer farm policy must seek ways to alleviate seemingly unwelcome trade-offs by developing new knowledge and technology and, when warranted, new policies.

Operational Definitions

Sustainable agriculture is the production of food and fiber using a system that increases the inherent productive capacity of natural and biological resources in step with demand. At the same time, it must allow farmers to earn adequate profits, provide consumers with wholesome, safe food, and minimize adverse impacts on the environment.

As defined in our report, alternative agriculture is any system of food or fiber production that systematically pursues the following goals (National Research Council, 1989a):

more thorough incorporation of natural processes such as nutrient cycling, nitrogen fixation, and beneficial pest-predator relationships into the agricultural production process;

reduction in the use of off-farm inputs with the greatest potential to harm the environment or the health of farmers and consumers;

productive use of the biological and genetic potential of plant and animal species;

improvement in the match between cropping patterns and the productive potential and physical limitations of agricultural lands; and

profitable and efficient production with emphasis on improved farm management, prevention of animal disease, optimal integration of livestock and cropping enterprises, and conservation of soil, water, energy, and biological resources.

Conventional agriculture is the predominant farming practices, methods, and systems used in a region. Conventional agriculture varies over time and according to soil, climatic, and other environmental factors. Moreover, many conventional practices and methods are fully sustainable when pursued or applied properly and will continue to play integral roles in future farming systems.

Low-input sustainable agriculture (LISA) systems strive to achieve sustainability by incorporating biologically based practices that indirectly result in lessened reliance on purchased agrichemical inputs. The goal of LISA systems is improved profitability and environmental performance through systems that reduce pest pressure, efficiently manage nutrients, and comprehensively conserve resources.

Successful LISA systems are founded on practices that enhance the efficiency of resource use and limit pest pressures in a sustainable way. The operational goal of LISA should not, as a matter of first principles, be viewed as a reduction in the use of pesticides and fertilizers. Higher yields, lower per unit production costs, and lessened reliance on agrichemicals in intensive agricultural systems are, however, often among the positive outcomes of the successful adoption of LISA systems. But in much of the Third World an increased level of certain agrichemical and fertilizer inputs will be very helpful if not essential to achieve sustainability. For example, the phosphorous-starved pastures in the humid tropics will continue to suffer severe erosion and degradation in soil physical properties until soil fertility levels are restored and more vigorous plant growth provides protection from rain and sun.

Farmers are continuously modifying farming systems whenever opportunities arise for increasing productivity or profits. Management decisions are not made just in the context of one goal or concern but in the context of the overall performance of the farm and take into account many variables: prices, policy, available resources, climatic conditions, and implications for risk and uncertainty.

A necessary step in carrying out comparative assessments of conventional and alternative farming systems is to understand the differences between farming practices, farming methods, and farming systems. It is somewhat easier, then, to determine what a conventional practice, method, or system is and how an alternative or sustainable practice, method, or system might or should differ from a conventional one. The following definitions are drawn from the Glossary of Alternative Agriculture (National Research Council, 1989a).

A farming practice is a way of carrying out a discrete farming task such as a tillage operation, particular pesticide application technology, or single conservation practice. Most important farming operations—preparing a seedbed, controlling weeds and erosion, or maintaining soil fertility, for example—require a combination of practices, or a method. Most farming operations can be carried out by different methods, each of which can be accomplished by several unique combinations of different practices. The manner in which a practice is carried out—the speed and depth of a tillage operation, for example—can markedly alter its consequences.

A farming method is a systematic way to accomplish a specific farming objective by integrating a number of practices. A discrete method is needed for each essential farming task, such as preparing a seedbed and planting a crop, sustaining soil fertility, managing irrigation, collecting and disposing of manure, controlling pests, and preventing animal diseases.

A farming system is the overall approach used in crop or livestock production, often derived from a farmer's goals, values, knowledge, available technologies, and economic opportunities. A farming system influences, and is in turn defined by, the choice of methods and practices used to produce a crop or care for animals.

In practice, farmers are constantly adjusting cropping systems in an effort to improve a farm's performance. Changes in management practices generally lead to a complex set of results—some positive, others negative—all of which occur over different time scales.

The transition to more sustainable agriculture systems may, for many farmers, require some short-term sacrifices in economic performance in order to prepare the physical resource and biological ecosystem base needed for long-term improvement in both economic and environmental performance. As a result, some say that practices essential to progress toward sustainable agriculture are not economically viable and are unlikely to take hold on the farm (Marten, 1989). Their contention may prove correct, given current farm policies and the contemporary inclination to accept contemporary, short-term economic challenges as inviolate. Nonetheless, one question lingers: What is the alternative to sustainable agriculture?

PUBLIC POLICY AND RESEARCH IN SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

Farmers, conservationists, consumers, and political leaders share an intense interest in the sustainability of agricultural production systems. This interest is heightened by growing recognition of the successes achieved by innovative farmers across the country who are discovering alternative agriculture practices and methods that improve a farm's economic and environmental performance. Ongoing experimental efforts on the farm, by no

means universally successful, are being subjected to rigorous scientific investigation. New insights should help farmers become even more effective stewards of natural resources and produce food that is consistently free of man-made or natural contaminants that may pose health risks.

The major challenge for U.S. agriculture in the 1990s will be to strike a balance between near-term economic performance and long-term ecological and food safety imperatives. As recommended in Alternative Agriculture (National Research Council, 1989a), public policies in the 1990s should, at a minimum, no longer penalize farmers who are committed to resource protection or those who are trying to make progress toward sustainability. Sustainability will always remain a goal to strive toward, and alternative agriculture systems will continuously evolve as a means to this end. Policy can and must play an integral role in this process.

If sustainability emerges as a principal farm and environmental policy goal, the design and assessment of agricultural policies will become more complex. Trade-offs, and hence choices, will become more explicit between near-term economic performance and enhancement of the long-term biological and physical factors that can contribute to soil and water resource productivity.

Drawing on expertise in several disciplines, policy analysts will be compelled to assess more insightfully the complex interactions that link a farm's economic, ecological, and environmental performance. It is hoped that political leaders will, as a result, recognize the importance of unraveling conflicts among policy goals and more aggressively seizing opportunities to advance the productivity and sustainability of U.S. agriculture.

A few examples may help clarify how adopting the concept of sustainability as a policy goal complicates the identification of cause-and-effect relationships and, hence, the design of remedial policies.

When a farmer is pushed toward bankruptcy by falling crop prices, a farm operation can become financially unsustainable. When crop losses mount because of pest pressure or a lack of soil nutrients, however, the farming system still becomes unsustainable financially, but for a different reason. In the former example, economic forces beyond any individual farmer's control are the clear cause; in the latter case the underlying cause is rooted in the biological management and performance of the farming system.

The biological and economic performance of a farming system can, in turn, unravel for several different reasons. Consider an example involving a particular farm that is enrolled each year in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's commodity price support programs. To maintain eligibility for government subsidies on a continuing basis, the farmer understands the importance of growing a certain minimum (base) acreage of the same crop each year. Hence, the cropping pattern on this farm is likely to lead to a

buildup in soilborne pathogens that attack plant roots and reduce yields. As a result, the farmer might resort to the use of a fumigant to control the pathogens, but the pesticide might become ineffective because of steadily worsening microbial degradation of the fumigant, or a pesticide-resistant pathogen may emerge.

A solution to these new problems might be to speed up the registration of another pesticide that could be used, or relax regulatory standards so more new products can get registered, or both. Consider another possibility. A regulatory agency may cancel use of a fumigant a farmer has been relying upon because of food safety, water quality, or concerns about it effect on wildlife. The farmer might then seek a change in grading standards or an increase in commodity prices or program benefits if alternative pesticides are more costly.

Each of these problems is distinctive when viewed in isolation and could be attacked through a number of changes in policy. The most cost-effective solution, however, will prove elusive unless the biology of the whole system is perceptively evaluated. For this reason, in the policy arena, just as on the farm, it is critical to know what the problem is that warrants intervention and what the root causes of the problem really are.

Research Challenges

In thinking through agricultural research priorities, it should be acknowledged that the crossroads where the sciences of agriculture and ecology meet remain largely undefined, yet clearly promising. There is too little information to specify in detail the features of a truly sustainable agriculture system, yet there is enough information to recognize the merit in striving toward sustainability in a more systematic way.

The capacity of current research programs and institutions to carry out such work is suspect (see Investing in Research [National Research Council, 1989b]). It also remains uncertain whether current policies and programs that were designed in the 1930s or earlier to serve a different set of farmer needs can effectively bring about the types of changes needed to improve ecological management on the modern farm.

In the 1980s, the research community reached consensus on the diagnosis of many of agriculture's contemporary ills; it may take most of the 1990s to agree on cures, and it will take at least another decade to get them into place. Those who are eager for a quick fix or who are just impatient are bound to be chronically frustrated by the slow rate of change.

Another important caution deserves emphasis. The “silver bullet” approach to solving agricultural production problems offers little promise for providing an understanding of the ecological and biological bases of sustainable agriculture. The one-on-one syndrome seeks to discover a new

pesticide for each pest, a new plant variety when a new strain of rust evolves, or a new nitrogen management method when nitrate contamination of drinking water becomes a pressing social concern. This reductionist approach reflects the inclination in the past to focus scientific and technological attention on products and outcomes rather than processes and on overcoming symptoms rather than eliminating causes. This must be changed if research aimed at making agriculture more sustainable is to move ahead at the rate possible given the new tools available to agricultural scientists.

One area of research in particular—biotechnology—will benefit from a shift in focus toward understanding the biology and ecology underlying agricultural systems. Biotechnology research tools make possible powerful new approaches in unraveling biological interactions and other natural processes at the molecular and cellular levels, thus shedding vital new light on ecological interactions with a degree of precision previously unimagined in the biological sciences. However, rather than using these new tools to advance knowledge about the functioning of systems as a first order of priority, emphasis is increasingly placed on discovering products to solve specific production problems or elucidating the mode of action of specific products.

This is regrettable for several reasons. A chance to decipher the physiological basis of sustainable agriculture systems is being put off. The payoff from focusing on products is also likely to be disappointing. The current widespread pattern of failure and consolidation within the agricultural biotechnology industry suggests that biotechnology is not yet mature enough as a science to reliably discover, refine, and commercialize product-based technologies. Products from biotechnology are inevitable, but a necessary first step must be to generate more in-depth understanding of biological processes, cycles, and interactions.

Perhaps the greatest potential of biotechnology lies in the design and on-farm application of more efficient, stable, and profitable cropping and livestock management systems. For farmers to use such systems successfully, they will need access to a range of new information and diagnostic and analytical techniques that can be used on a real-time basis to make agronomic and animal husbandry judgments about how to optimize the efficiencies of the processes and interactions that underlie plant and animal growth.

Knowledge, in combination with both conventional and novel inputs, will be deployed much more systematically to avoid soil nutrient or animal nutrition-related limits on growth; to ensure that diseases and pests do not become serious enough to warrant the excessive use of costly or hazardous pesticides; to increase the realistically attainable annual level of energy flows independent of purchased inputs within agroecosystems; and to maximize a range of functional symbiotic relationships between soil micro-

and macrofauna, plants, and animals. Discrete goals will include pathogen-suppressive soils, enhanced rotation effects, pest suppression by populations of plant-associated microorganisms, nutrient cycling and renewal, the optimization of general resistance mechanisms in plants by cultural practices, and much more effective soil and water conservation systems that benefit from changes in the stability of soil aggregates and the capacity of soils to absorb and hold moisture.

Because of the profound changes needed to create and instill this new knowledge and skills on the farm, the recommendations in Alternative Agriculture (National Research Council, 1989a) emphasize the need to expand systems-based applied research, on-farm experimentation utilizing farmers as research collaborators, and novel extension education strategies—the very goals of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's LISA program.

Future research efforts—and not just those funded through LISA—should place a premium on the application of ecological principles in the multidisciplinary study of farming system performance. A diversity of approaches in researching and designing innovative farming systems will ensure broad-based progress, particularly if farmers are actively engaged in the research enterprise.

Benbrook, C., and J. Cook. 1990. Striving toward sustainability: A framework to guide on-farm innovation, research, and policy analysis. Speech presented at the 1990 Pacific Northwest Symposium on Sustainable Agriculture, March 2.

Marten, J. 1989. Commentary: Will low-input rotations sustain your income? Farm Journal, Dec. 6.

National Research Council. 1989a. Alternative Agriculture. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.

National Research Council. 1989b. Investing in Research: A Proposal to Strengthen the Agricultural, Food, and Environmental System. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.

Interest is growing in sustainable agriculture, which involves the use of productive and profitable farming practices that take advantage of natural biological processes to conserve resources, reduce inputs, protect the environment, and enhance public health. Continuing research is helping to demonstrate the ways that many factors—economics, biology, policy, and tradition—interact in sustainable agriculture systems.

This book contains the proceedings of a workshop on the findings of a broad range of research projects funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The areas of study, such as integrated pest management, alternative cropping and tillage systems, and comparisons with more conventional approaches, are essential to developing and adopting profitable and sustainable farming systems.

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Everything begins with an idea!

Agriculture Research Paper Topics

Agriculture is the practice of rearing animals and growing crops to provide food or other products. Agriculture keeps advancing every day, and all farmers need to update themselves about modern agricultural practices from time to time. Students who study agriculture-related courses are equally expected to update themselves about modern agricultural practices. A research paper gives students the perfect opportunity to learn about some advancements in agriculture. While students like the opportunity to write agriculture research papers, they often find it hard to get interesting topics to use. To save students from overthinking, we have listed the best agriculture research paper topics below. All the agriculture research paper topics ideas that we listed will help students to increase their knowledge about agriculture. The topics are easy enough for students to research. Students who use these topics won’t have to do excess research before they know what to write about their research. By using these topics for research papers, students will successfully make the most out of their research papers.

• Slash And Burn Agriculture
• Evolution Of Agriculture
• Agriculture in Ancient Greece
• Agriculture in South Africa
• The Honeybee in Agriculture
• Techniques of Agriculture
• The Agricultural Transformation
• Sustainability of Agriculture
• The Development of Agriculture
• The Impacts Of Pesticides on Agriculture
• How Climate Change Affects Agriculture
• The Importance Of Sustainable Agriculture
• The Agricultural Revolution
• Sustainable Agriculture and Its Importance Worldwide
• The Agriculture Of Vietnam
• The Effects of Climate Change On Livestock
• The Impact Of Genetic Engineering on Agriculture
• Benefits Of Organic Agriculture
• The Impact Of Environment On Cattle Farming
• Modern Methods Of Farming
• The Influence of Agriculture Educator
• The Use of Fertilisers in Agriculture
• Agriculture in China
• Urban Agriculture
• American Agriculture Industry
• Factors That Impact The Quality Of Agricultural Products
• Vertical Farming
• The Invention of Chinampa Agriculture
• Agriculture in Afghanistan
• Agriculture Organization Of The US
• Agriculture in Mesoamerica
• Agriculture in the Incan Empire
• Education in Agriculture
• The Impact Of Animal Agriculture On The Environment
• The Importance of Agriculture
• The Nature Of Agriculture
• Agriculture in Malaysia
• Agriculture in the US.
• Cornerstone Of Modern Agriculture
• Safe Methods Of Controlling Pest
• Characteristics Of Urban Agriculture
• The Effects Of Agriculture On Health
• California Agriculture
• Man’s Transition to Agriculture
• Alternative to Conventional Agriculture
• The Economic Viability of Agriculture
• Methods For Stopping The Spread Of Diseases In Farm Animals
• The Effect of Genetically Modified Organisms on Agriculture
• The Impact Of Technology On Agriculture
• Agriculture During The Neolithic Revolution
• Cotton Industry in the US
• Saving American Agriculture
• Child Labor in Agriculture
• The Agricultural Industry
• Agriculture and Population Growth
• Agricultural Trade
• Why Soviet Agriculture Is Unique
• Effects of Corn Monoculture on Environment
• How Global Warming Affects Agriculture
• Industrialized Agriculture
• Generation Gap in Agriculture
• Agriculture in Panama
• Agriculture in The rural areas
• Why Farming Regulations Are Important
• How Agriculture Changes Civilizations
• Why The Concept Of Immunology Is Important To Agriculture
• Indoor cultivation of Chinese bamboo
• How Mechanized Farming Affects The Ecosystems
• Animal genetics
• Agricultural Policy of the US
• Agriculture in the Himalayas
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• Published: 30 April 2014

Agriculture: Engage farmers in research

• Tom MacMillan 1 &
• Tim G. Benton 2  

Nature volume  509 ,  pages 25–27 ( 2014 ) Cite this article

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• Agriculture

A new wave of small-scale agricultural innovation will boost yields and protect the planet, contend Tom MacMillan and Tim G. Benton.

Climate change threatens a creaking food system in which harvests are already lagging behind rising demand 1 , 2 . A sustainable supply of food hinges on agricultural innovation, but current investments neglect a key area for improving yields.

Since the 1970s, agricultural research and development (R&D) has invested mainly in a few research institutes equipped with cutting-edge instruments. For example, the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, responsible for much of the public research spending in food security in the United Kingdom, invested 27% of its 2010–11 budget in just three institutes. Multinational seed and agrochemical companies invest billions of dollars to develop products in hopes that they will be used by millions of farmers.

This one-size-fits-all approach has had qualified success. In a 2011 analysis 3 , average global crop yields increased by 56% between 1965 and 1985, and by 20% from 1985 to 2005, underpinned by increasing inputs of non-renewable resources.

But advances are slowing. According to a 2013 study 4 , yields have plateaued in some of the world's most important food-producing regions, including east Asia (for rice) and northwest Europe (for wheat). In some countries, yields have declined.

The next wave of innovation must be at smaller scales. What one farmer can do to boost yield or efficiency is not necessarily the same as for a farmer hundreds of kilometres away with different soil, microclimate, topology and methods. How well crops and livestock grow depends on the interaction of genes, management and environment. As weather patterns fluctuate, gains in production will depend ever more on innovating in context. Big knowledge flowing from institute to farm must be complemented by local knowledge.

Enhancing farmers' own R&D could reap big rewards for minimal extra cost. Farmers everywhere are practical experimentalists who understand the idiosyncrasies of their land 5 . Modern agronomy evolved out of practices such as rotating crops to rebuild soil nutrients, fertilizing fields with manure, and adding lime to soil to alter pH. Even technologies not invented by farmers — new kit, seeds or chemicals — are adapted by them to fit their circumstances.

Such essential contributions are rarely recognized in official assessments of agricultural R&D. These count farmers as users, rather than makers, of knowledge. When the US Department of Agriculture tots up the US$20 billion that the global private sector invests annually in agricultural R&D, it does not include that done by farmers 6 . Makers of farm machinery, pesticides, seeds and other 'inputs' invest around 3–11% of their revenue in R&D. Globally, if farmers' innovations were valued at just 0.5% of farming production — worth $4 trillion — that would match formal R&D investment from the private sector.

Some of the best returns can come from helping farmers to assess their own ideas. Until now, such initiatives have been at arm's length from formal science, and almost exclusively in the developing world. Our involvement in a farmer-focused innovation programme in the United Kingdom has convinced us that such participatory R&D could also boost agricultural innovation in rich countries.

Grass-roots research

Farmer-centred approaches are not new. In villages in Kenya, rice fields in Indonesia and other places out of reach from industrialized agriculture, group learning programmes recognize and support farmers as innovators.

The best known of these is the farmer field school approach, in which groups of farmers meet regularly to learn alongside their neighbours. The UN Food and Agricultural Organization set up the first such school in Indonesia in 1989, aiming to reduce rice farmers' reliance on pesticides by enabling them to observe, identify and actively manage pests' natural enemies.

Since then, at least 10 million smallholder farmers have taken part in field schools across Asia, Africa and Latin America. This year, a meta-analysis 7 of 71 projects found that farmers' experiences of these schools vary enormously, with targeted initiatives being more successful than large-scale national programmes. In targeted initiatives, participants gained knowledge, changed practices and consequently netted higher yields and incomes.

Inspired by the approach, a UK programme adapts participatory learning to suit farmers in the industrialized world, who, in many cases, are not short of capital, training or access to knowledge. Piloted in 2012, the Duchy Originals Future Farming Programme is funded by the Prince of Wales's Charitable Foundation, in turn funded by sales of products through the supermarket chain Waitrose. The work is led by two charities, the Soil Association in Bristol (at which T.M. works, and T.B. serves on the programme steering group) and the Organic Research Centre in Newbury. The aim is to help farmers to sharpen their skills as innovators so that they can be more productive with fewer non-renewable inputs — good for the environment and their bottom line.

Groups of 5–15 farmers tackle a problem put forward by a participant and test solutions over up to a year in as many as four workshops on one of their own farms. A facilitator helps to keep meetings on track, and a relevant researcher — crop or animal scientist, agronomist or ecologist — is on hand to advise on experimental design and point out existing studies to avoid redundant work.

So far, 450 UK farmers have piloted 'field labs' for about 20 topics, with results documented publicly online. Their farms range from under a hectare to more than a thousand. Field labs have tested ways to control black grass (a persistent weed that resists herbicides), assessed the economics of keeping hens alive to lay eggs for a second season, and evaluated ways to reduce use of drugs that control liver fluke in sheep.

These field labs do not always provide clear answers because of their small samples and short timescales. Field labs raise scientific standards nonetheless: early evaluation suggests that most farmers who have taken part in field labs are eager to engage with formal research. And some have yielded useful lessons. In one, vegetable growers tested composts that do not include peat (which releases greenhouse gases when mined). In contrast to prevailing views, the farmers deemed these peat-free composts commercially viable. And the agronomists learned how labour savings from easily handled materials can outweigh business benefits of higher germination rates.

Grass-roots R&D projects are cropping up elsewhere in the developed world. A participatory breeding programme sponsored by the European Union (EU) has recruited farmers to develop crops that can be grown more sustainably. Organic and small-scale farmers in Italy and France (and in some developing countries) are testing and selecting varieties of barley, beans, broccoli, maize (corn), tomato and wheat.

Animal scientists in Denmark adapted the farmer field school approach to develop 'stable schools'. Four groups of around five farms each worked together to assess changes to herds' housing, hygiene and milking practices and reduced use of antibiotics 8 . A study funded by the European Commission is evaluating 17 'learning and innovation networks' for sustainable agriculture.

Apps, software and websites that recognize farmers as innovators, not just managers, are also on the rise. In the United States, FarmHack.net is an open-source community in which mainly small-scale farmers share know-how, tools and designs. Recent posts include advice on affordable aerial imaging and guides for repurposing old equipment.

More lessons are coming from the developing world. CABI, an intergovernmental agency, is training community 'plant doctors' who help farmers to identify pests and diseases and to enter the information in open-access databases that could be used to control pests or track epidemics.

Research funders are waking up to the advantages of asking farmers what they need to know. In the United Kingdom, the main farming bodies convened a consultation called Feeding the Future that identified topics such as precision agriculture and animal-disease management as practical priorities 9 . But we believe that field labs could boost farmers' productivity by supporting low-cost innovations that fly below the radars of large research institutions. When farmers produce knowledge, they are more likely to adopt new practices, and their insights are more likely to be relevant to local conditions.

Testing ground

Field labs attract innovative farmers — early adopters who can spread best practices. The challenge now is to evaluate and popularize the approach. In Europe, at least, the moment may have arrived. Linked to the latest round of reforms to the Common Agricultural Policy and the Horizon 2020 research programme, the EU launched the European Innovation Partnership for agricultural productivity and sustainability. It aims to promote bottom-up approaches by linking farmers, researchers, businesses and other stakeholders into groups charged with finding solutions to shared problems. With billions of euros earmarked for food and farming research over the next six years, the impact of this initiative is potentially enormous.

The European Commission has set out principles for this approach. Whether it flies or fails depends how EU member states rise to the challenge. For this initiative to succeed, governments must opt to spend a proportion of their rural development funds on supporting grass-roots training and learning by actual farmers — beyond the established partnerships with farmers' suppliers, customers and political representatives. Governments should back brokerage services that help farmers to team up with relevant researchers on their own terms, and enable them to navigate the maze of bureaucracy that will probably stand between them and this invaluable seed investment.

The time has come to decentralize, diversify, and enrich agricultural R&D. Farmers — not scientists, outreach workers or salespeople — are the essential players in any agricultural innovation system. Helping them will put food on the world's tables.

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Tom MacMillan is director of innovation at the Soil Association, Bristol, UK.,

Tom MacMillan

Tim G. Benton leads the United Kingdom's Global Food Security programme and is professor of population ecology at the University of Leeds, UK.,

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Correspondence to Tom MacMillan or Tim G. Benton .

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MacMillan, T., Benton, T. Agriculture: Engage farmers in research. Nature 509 , 25–27 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/509025a

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Home » 500+ Qualitative Research Titles and Topics

500+ Qualitative Research Titles and Topics

Table of Contents

Qualitative research is a methodological approach that involves gathering and analyzing non-numerical data to understand and interpret social phenomena. Unlike quantitative research , which emphasizes the collection of numerical data through surveys and experiments, qualitative research is concerned with exploring the subjective experiences, perspectives, and meanings of individuals and groups. As such, qualitative research topics can be diverse and encompass a wide range of social issues and phenomena. From exploring the impact of culture on identity formation to examining the experiences of marginalized communities, qualitative research offers a rich and nuanced perspective on complex social issues. In this post, we will explore some of the most compelling qualitative research topics and provide some tips on how to conduct effective qualitative research.

Qualitative Research Titles

Qualitative research titles often reflect the study’s focus on understanding the depth and complexity of human behavior, experiences, or social phenomena. Here are some examples across various fields:

• “Understanding the Impact of Project-Based Learning on Student Engagement in High School Classrooms: A Qualitative Study”
• “Navigating the Transition: Experiences of International Students in American Universities”
• “The Role of Parental Involvement in Early Childhood Education: Perspectives from Teachers and Parents”
• “Exploring the Effects of Teacher Feedback on Student Motivation and Self-Efficacy in Middle Schools”
• “Digital Literacy in the Classroom: Teacher Strategies for Integrating Technology in Elementary Education”
• “Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices: A Case Study in Diverse Urban Schools”
• “The Influence of Extracurricular Activities on Academic Achievement: Student Perspectives”
• “Barriers to Implementing Inclusive Education in Public Schools: A Qualitative Inquiry”
• “Teacher Professional Development and Its Impact on Classroom Practice: A Qualitative Exploration”
• “Student-Centered Learning Environments: A Qualitative Study of Classroom Dynamics and Outcomes”
• “The Experience of First-Year Teachers: Challenges, Support Systems, and Professional Growth”
• “Exploring the Role of School Leadership in Fostering a Positive School Culture”
• “Peer Relationships and Learning Outcomes in Cooperative Learning Settings: A Qualitative Analysis”
• “The Impact of Social Media on Student Learning and Engagement: Teacher and Student Perspectives”
• “Understanding Special Education Needs: Parent and Teacher Perceptions of Support Services in Schools

Health Science

• “Living with Chronic Pain: Patient Narratives and Coping Strategies in Managing Daily Life”
• “Healthcare Professionals’ Perspectives on the Challenges of Rural Healthcare Delivery”
• “Exploring the Mental Health Impacts of COVID-19 on Frontline Healthcare Workers: A Qualitative Study”
• “Patient and Family Experiences of Palliative Care: Understanding Needs and Preferences”
• “The Role of Community Health Workers in Improving Access to Maternal Healthcare in Rural Areas”
• “Barriers to Mental Health Services Among Ethnic Minorities: A Qualitative Exploration”
• “Understanding Patient Satisfaction in Telemedicine Services: A Qualitative Study of User Experiences”
• “The Impact of Cultural Competence Training on Healthcare Provider-Patient Communication”
• “Navigating the Transition to Adult Healthcare Services: Experiences of Adolescents with Chronic Conditions”
• “Exploring the Use of Alternative Medicine Among Patients with Chronic Diseases: A Qualitative Inquiry”
• “The Role of Social Support in the Rehabilitation Process of Stroke Survivors”
• “Healthcare Decision-Making Among Elderly Patients: A Qualitative Study of Preferences and Influences”
• “Nurse Perceptions of Patient Safety Culture in Hospital Settings: A Qualitative Analysis”
• “Experiences of Women with Postpartum Depression: Barriers to Seeking Help”
• “The Impact of Nutrition Education on Eating Behaviors Among College Students: A Qualitative Approach”
• “Understanding Resilience in Survivors of Childhood Trauma: A Narrative Inquiry”
• “The Role of Mindfulness in Managing Work-Related Stress Among Corporate Employees: A Qualitative Study”
• “Coping Mechanisms Among Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder”
• “Exploring the Psychological Impact of Social Isolation in the Elderly: A Phenomenological Study”
• “Identity Formation in Adolescence: The Influence of Social Media and Peer Groups”
• “The Experience of Forgiveness in Interpersonal Relationships: A Qualitative Exploration”
• “Perceptions of Happiness and Well-Being Among University Students: A Cultural Perspective”
• “The Impact of Art Therapy on Anxiety and Depression in Adult Cancer Patients”
• “Narratives of Recovery: A Qualitative Study on the Journey Through Addiction Rehabilitation”
• “Exploring the Psychological Effects of Long-Term Unemployment: A Grounded Theory Approach”
• “Attachment Styles and Their Influence on Adult Romantic Relationships: A Qualitative Analysis”
• “The Role of Personal Values in Career Decision-Making Among Young Adults”
• “Understanding the Stigma of Mental Illness in Rural Communities: A Qualitative Inquiry”
• “Exploring the Use of Digital Mental Health Interventions Among Adolescents: A Qualitative Study”
• “The Psychological Impact of Climate Change on Young Adults: An Exploration of Anxiety and Action”
• “Navigating Identity: The Role of Social Media in Shaping Youth Culture and Self-Perception”
• “Community Resilience in the Face of Urban Gentrification: A Case Study of Neighborhood Change”
• “The Dynamics of Intergenerational Relationships in Immigrant Families: A Qualitative Analysis”
• “Social Capital and Economic Mobility in Low-Income Neighborhoods: An Ethnographic Approach”
• “Gender Roles and Career Aspirations Among Young Adults in Conservative Societies”
• “The Stigma of Mental Health in the Workplace: Employee Narratives and Organizational Culture”
• “Exploring the Intersection of Race, Class, and Education in Urban School Systems”
• “The Impact of Digital Divide on Access to Healthcare Information in Rural Communities”
• “Social Movements and Political Engagement Among Millennials: A Qualitative Study”
• “Cultural Adaptation and Identity Among Second-Generation Immigrants: A Phenomenological Inquiry”
• “The Role of Religious Institutions in Providing Community Support and Social Services”
• “Negotiating Public Space: Experiences of LGBTQ+ Individuals in Urban Environments”
• “The Sociology of Food: Exploring Eating Habits and Food Practices Across Cultures”
• “Work-Life Balance Challenges Among Dual-Career Couples: A Qualitative Exploration”
• “The Influence of Peer Networks on Substance Use Among Adolescents: A Community Study”

Business and Management

• “Navigating Organizational Change: Employee Perceptions and Adaptation Strategies in Mergers and Acquisitions”
• “Corporate Social Responsibility: Consumer Perceptions and Brand Loyalty in the Retail Sector”
• “Leadership Styles and Organizational Culture: A Comparative Study of Tech Startups”
• “Workplace Diversity and Inclusion: Best Practices and Challenges in Multinational Corporations”
• “Consumer Trust in E-commerce: A Qualitative Study of Online Shopping Behaviors”
• “The Gig Economy and Worker Satisfaction: Exploring the Experiences of Freelance Professionals”
• “Entrepreneurial Resilience: Success Stories and Lessons Learned from Failed Startups”
• “Employee Engagement and Productivity in Remote Work Settings: A Post-Pandemic Analysis”
• “Brand Storytelling: How Narrative Strategies Influence Consumer Engagement”
• “Sustainable Business Practices: Stakeholder Perspectives in the Fashion Industry”
• “Cross-Cultural Communication Challenges in Global Teams: Strategies for Effective Collaboration”
• “Innovative Workspaces: The Impact of Office Design on Creativity and Collaboration”
• “Consumer Perceptions of Artificial Intelligence in Customer Service: A Qualitative Exploration”
• “The Role of Mentoring in Career Development: Insights from Women in Leadership Positions”
• “Agile Management Practices: Adoption and Impact in Traditional Industries”

Environmental Studies

• “Community-Based Conservation Efforts in Tropical Rainforests: A Qualitative Study of Local Perspectives and Practices”
• “Urban Sustainability Initiatives: Exploring Resident Participation and Impact in Green City Projects”
• “Perceptions of Climate Change Among Indigenous Populations: Insights from Traditional Ecological Knowledge”
• “Environmental Justice and Industrial Pollution: A Case Study of Community Advocacy and Response”
• “The Role of Eco-Tourism in Promoting Conservation Awareness: Perspectives from Tour Operators and Visitors”
• “Sustainable Agriculture Practices Among Smallholder Farmers: Challenges and Opportunities”
• “Youth Engagement in Climate Action Movements: Motivations, Perceptions, and Outcomes”
• “Corporate Environmental Responsibility: A Qualitative Analysis of Stakeholder Expectations and Company Practices”
• “The Impact of Plastic Pollution on Marine Ecosystems: Community Awareness and Behavioral Change”
• “Renewable Energy Adoption in Rural Communities: Barriers, Facilitators, and Social Implications”
• “Water Scarcity and Community Adaptation Strategies in Arid Regions: A Grounded Theory Approach”
• “Urban Green Spaces: Public Perceptions and Use Patterns in Megacities”
• “Environmental Education in Schools: Teachers’ Perspectives on Integrating Sustainability into Curricula”
• “The Influence of Environmental Activism on Policy Change: Case Studies of Grassroots Campaigns”
• “Cultural Practices and Natural Resource Management: A Qualitative Study of Indigenous Stewardship Models”

Anthropology

• “Kinship and Social Organization in Matrilineal Societies: An Ethnographic Study”
• “Rituals and Beliefs Surrounding Death and Mourning in Diverse Cultures: A Comparative Analysis”
• “The Impact of Globalization on Indigenous Languages and Cultural Identity”
• “Food Sovereignty and Traditional Agricultural Practices Among Indigenous Communities”
• “Navigating Modernity: The Integration of Traditional Healing Practices in Contemporary Healthcare Systems”
• “Gender Roles and Equality in Hunter-Gatherer Societies: An Anthropological Perspective”
• “Sacred Spaces and Religious Practices: An Ethnographic Study of Pilgrimage Sites”
• “Youth Subcultures and Resistance: An Exploration of Identity and Expression in Urban Environments”
• “Cultural Constructions of Disability and Inclusion: A Cross-Cultural Analysis”
• “Interethnic Marriages and Cultural Syncretism: Case Studies from Multicultural Societies”
• “The Role of Folklore and Storytelling in Preserving Cultural Heritage”
• “Economic Anthropology of Gift-Giving and Reciprocity in Tribal Communities”
• “Digital Anthropology: The Role of Social Media in Shaping Political Movements”
• “Migration and Diaspora: Maintaining Cultural Identity in Transnational Communities”
• “Cultural Adaptations to Climate Change Among Coastal Fishing Communities”

Communication Studies

• “The Dynamics of Family Communication in the Digital Age: A Qualitative Inquiry”
• “Narratives of Identity and Belonging in Diaspora Communities Through Social Media”
• “Organizational Communication and Employee Engagement: A Case Study in the Non-Profit Sector”
• “Cultural Influences on Communication Styles in Multinational Teams: An Ethnographic Approach”
• “Media Representation of Women in Politics: A Content Analysis and Audience Perception Study”
• “The Role of Communication in Building Sustainable Community Development Projects”
• “Interpersonal Communication in Online Dating: Strategies, Challenges, and Outcomes”
• “Public Health Messaging During Pandemics: A Qualitative Study of Community Responses”
• “The Impact of Mobile Technology on Parent-Child Communication in the Digital Era”
• “Crisis Communication Strategies in the Hospitality Industry: A Case Study of Reputation Management”
• “Narrative Analysis of Personal Stories Shared on Mental Health Blogs”
• “The Influence of Podcasts on Political Engagement Among Young Adults”
• “Visual Communication and Brand Identity: A Qualitative Study of Consumer Interpretations”
• “Communication Barriers in Cross-Cultural Healthcare Settings: Patient and Provider Perspectives”
• “The Role of Internal Communication in Managing Organizational Change: Employee Experiences”

Information Technology

• “User Experience Design in Augmented Reality Applications: A Qualitative Study of Best Practices”
• “The Human Factor in Cybersecurity: Understanding Employee Behaviors and Attitudes Towards Phishing”
• “Adoption of Cloud Computing in Small and Medium Enterprises: Challenges and Success Factors”
• “Blockchain Technology in Supply Chain Management: A Qualitative Exploration of Potential Impacts”
• “The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Personalizing User Experiences on E-commerce Platforms”
• “Digital Transformation in Traditional Industries: A Case Study of Technology Adoption Challenges”
• “Ethical Considerations in the Development of Smart Home Technologies: A Stakeholder Analysis”
• “The Impact of Social Media Algorithms on News Consumption and Public Opinion”
• “Collaborative Software Development: Practices and Challenges in Open Source Projects”
• “Understanding the Digital Divide: Access to Information Technology in Rural Communities”
• “Data Privacy Concerns and User Trust in Internet of Things (IoT) Devices”
• “The Effectiveness of Gamification in Educational Software: A Qualitative Study of Engagement and Motivation”
• “Virtual Teams and Remote Work: Communication Strategies and Tools for Effectiveness”
• “User-Centered Design in Mobile Health Applications: Evaluating Usability and Accessibility”
• “The Influence of Technology on Work-Life Balance: Perspectives from IT Professionals”

Tourism and Hospitality

• “Exploring the Authenticity of Cultural Heritage Tourism in Indigenous Communities”
• “Sustainable Tourism Practices: Perceptions and Implementations in Small Island Destinations”
• “The Impact of Social Media Influencers on Destination Choice Among Millennials”
• “Gastronomy Tourism: Exploring the Culinary Experiences of International Visitors in Rural Regions”
• “Eco-Tourism and Conservation: Stakeholder Perspectives on Balancing Tourism and Environmental Protection”
• “The Role of Hospitality in Enhancing the Cultural Exchange Experience of Exchange Students”
• “Dark Tourism: Visitor Motivations and Experiences at Historical Conflict Sites”
• “Customer Satisfaction in Luxury Hotels: A Qualitative Study of Service Excellence and Personalization”
• “Adventure Tourism: Understanding the Risk Perception and Safety Measures Among Thrill-Seekers”
• “The Influence of Local Communities on Tourist Experiences in Ecotourism Sites”
• “Event Tourism: Economic Impacts and Community Perspectives on Large-Scale Music Festivals”
• “Heritage Tourism and Identity: Exploring the Connections Between Historic Sites and National Identity”
• “Tourist Perceptions of Sustainable Accommodation Practices: A Study of Green Hotels”
• “The Role of Language in Shaping the Tourist Experience in Multilingual Destinations”
• “Health and Wellness Tourism: Motivations and Experiences of Visitors to Spa and Retreat Centers”

Qualitative Research Topics

Qualitative Research Topics are as follows:

• Understanding the lived experiences of first-generation college students
• Exploring the impact of social media on self-esteem among adolescents
• Investigating the effects of mindfulness meditation on stress reduction
• Analyzing the perceptions of employees regarding organizational culture
• Examining the impact of parental involvement on academic achievement of elementary school students
• Investigating the role of music therapy in managing symptoms of depression
• Understanding the experience of women in male-dominated industries
• Exploring the factors that contribute to successful leadership in non-profit organizations
• Analyzing the effects of peer pressure on substance abuse among adolescents
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with disabilities in the workplace
• Understanding the factors that contribute to burnout among healthcare professionals
• Examining the impact of social support on mental health outcomes
• Analyzing the perceptions of parents regarding sex education in schools
• Investigating the experiences of immigrant families in the education system
• Understanding the impact of trauma on mental health outcomes
• Exploring the effectiveness of animal-assisted therapy for individuals with anxiety
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful intergenerational relationships
• Investigating the experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals in the workplace
• Understanding the impact of online gaming on social skills development among adolescents
• Examining the perceptions of teachers regarding technology integration in the classroom
• Analyzing the experiences of women in leadership positions
• Investigating the factors that contribute to successful marriage and long-term relationships
• Understanding the impact of social media on political participation
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with mental health disorders in the criminal justice system
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful community-based programs for youth development
• Investigating the experiences of veterans in accessing mental health services
• Understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health outcomes
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood obesity prevention
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful multicultural education programs
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in the workplace
• Understanding the impact of poverty on academic achievement
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with autism spectrum disorder in the workplace
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful employee retention strategies
• Investigating the experiences of caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer’s disease
• Understanding the impact of parent-child communication on adolescent sexual behavior
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding mental health services on campus
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful team building in the workplace
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with eating disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of mentorship on career success
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with physical disabilities in the workplace
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful community-based programs for mental health
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with substance use disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of social media on romantic relationships
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding child discipline strategies
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful cross-cultural communication in the workplace
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with anxiety disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural differences on healthcare delivery
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with hearing loss in the workplace
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful parent-teacher communication
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with depression in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of childhood trauma on adult mental health outcomes
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding alcohol and drug use on campus
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful mentor-mentee relationships
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with intellectual disabilities in the workplace
• Understanding the impact of work-family balance on employee satisfaction and well-being
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with autism spectrum disorder in vocational rehabilitation programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful project management in the construction industry
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with substance use disorders in peer support groups
• Understanding the impact of mindfulness meditation on stress reduction and mental health
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood nutrition
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful environmental sustainability initiatives in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with bipolar disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of job stress on employee burnout and turnover
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with physical disabilities in recreational activities
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful strategic planning in nonprofit organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with hoarding disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of culture on leadership styles and effectiveness
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding sexual health education on campus
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain management in the retail industry
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with personality disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of multiculturalism on group dynamics in the workplace
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic pain in mindfulness-based pain management programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful employee engagement strategies in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with internet addiction disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of social comparison on body dissatisfaction and self-esteem
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood sleep habits
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful diversity and inclusion initiatives in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with schizophrenia in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of job crafting on employee motivation and job satisfaction
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with vision impairments in navigating public spaces
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful customer relationship management strategies in the service industry
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with dissociative amnesia in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural intelligence on intercultural communication and collaboration
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding campus diversity and inclusion efforts
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain sustainability initiatives in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of transformational leadership on organizational performance and employee well-being
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with mobility impairments in public transportation
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful talent management strategies in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with substance use disorders in harm reduction programs
• Understanding the impact of gratitude practices on well-being and resilience
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood mental health and well-being
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful corporate social responsibility initiatives in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with borderline personality disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of emotional labor on job stress and burnout
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with hearing impairments in healthcare settings
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful customer experience strategies in the hospitality industry
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with gender dysphoria in gender-affirming healthcare
• Understanding the impact of cultural differences on cross-cultural negotiation in the global marketplace
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding academic stress and mental health
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain agility in organizations
• Understanding the impact of music therapy on mental health and well-being
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with dyslexia in educational settings
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful leadership in nonprofit organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in online support groups
• Understanding the impact of exercise on mental health and well-being
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood screen time
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful change management strategies in organizations
• Understanding the impact of cultural differences on international business negotiations
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with hearing impairments in the workplace
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful team building in corporate settings
• Understanding the impact of technology on communication in romantic relationships
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful community engagement strategies for local governments
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of financial stress on mental health and well-being
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful mentorship programs in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with gambling addictions in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of social media on body image and self-esteem
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood education
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful virtual team management strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with dissociative identity disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural differences on cross-cultural communication in healthcare settings
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic pain in cognitive-behavioral therapy programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful community-building strategies in urban neighborhoods
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with alcohol use disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of personality traits on romantic relationships
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding mental health stigma on campus
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful fundraising strategies for political campaigns
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with traumatic brain injuries in rehabilitation programs
• Understanding the impact of social support on mental health and well-being among the elderly
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in medical treatment decision-making processes
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful innovation strategies in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with dissociative disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural differences on cross-cultural communication in education settings
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood physical activity
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful conflict resolution in family relationships
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with opioid use disorders in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of emotional intelligence on leadership effectiveness
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with learning disabilities in the workplace
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful change management in educational institutions
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with eating disorders in recovery support groups
• Understanding the impact of self-compassion on mental health and well-being
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding campus safety and security measures
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful marketing strategies for nonprofit organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with postpartum depression in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of ageism in the workplace
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with dyslexia in the education system
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with anxiety disorders in cognitive-behavioral therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of socioeconomic status on access to healthcare
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood screen time usage
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain management strategies
• Understanding the impact of parenting styles on child development
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with addiction in harm reduction programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful crisis management strategies in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with trauma in trauma-focused therapy programs
• Examining the perceptions of healthcare providers regarding patient-centered care
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful product development strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with autism spectrum disorder in employment programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural competence on healthcare outcomes
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in healthcare navigation
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful community engagement strategies for non-profit organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with physical disabilities in the workplace
• Understanding the impact of childhood trauma on adult mental health
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain sustainability strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with personality disorders in dialectical behavior therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of gender identity on mental health treatment seeking behaviors
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with schizophrenia in community-based treatment programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful project team management strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder in exposure and response prevention therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural competence on academic achievement and success
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding academic integrity
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful social media marketing strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with bipolar disorder in community-based treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of mindfulness on academic achievement and success
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with substance use disorders in medication-assisted treatment programs
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with anxiety disorders in exposure therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of healthcare disparities on health outcomes
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain optimization strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with borderline personality disorder in schema therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of culture on perceptions of mental health stigma
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with trauma in art therapy programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful digital marketing strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with eating disorders in online support groups
• Understanding the impact of workplace bullying on job satisfaction and performance
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding mental health resources on campus
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful supply chain risk management strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic pain in mindfulness-based pain management programs
• Understanding the impact of cognitive-behavioral therapy on social anxiety disorder
• Understanding the impact of COVID-19 on mental health and well-being
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with eating disorders in treatment programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful leadership in business organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic pain in cognitive-behavioral therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of cultural differences on intercultural communication
• Examining the perceptions of teachers regarding inclusive education for students with disabilities
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with depression in therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of workplace culture on employee retention and turnover
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with traumatic brain injuries in rehabilitation programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful crisis communication strategies in organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with anxiety disorders in mindfulness-based interventions
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in healthcare settings
• Understanding the impact of technology on work-life balance
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with learning disabilities in academic settings
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful entrepreneurship in small businesses
• Understanding the impact of gender identity on mental health and well-being
• Examining the perceptions of individuals with disabilities regarding accessibility in public spaces
• Understanding the impact of religion on coping strategies for stress and anxiety
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in complementary and alternative medicine treatments
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful customer retention strategies in business organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with postpartum depression in therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of ageism on older adults in healthcare settings
• Examining the perceptions of students regarding online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful team building in virtual work environments
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with gambling disorders in treatment programs
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in peer support groups
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful social media marketing strategies for businesses
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with ADHD in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of sleep on cognitive and emotional functioning
• Examining the perceptions of individuals with chronic illnesses regarding healthcare access and affordability
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with borderline personality disorder in dialectical behavior therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of social support on caregiver well-being
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in disability activism
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful cultural competency training programs in healthcare settings
• Understanding the impact of personality disorders on interpersonal relationships
• Examining the perceptions of healthcare providers regarding the use of telehealth services
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with dissociative disorders in therapy programs
• Understanding the impact of gender bias in hiring practices
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with visual impairments in the workplace
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful diversity and inclusion programs in the workplace
• Understanding the impact of online dating on romantic relationships
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood vaccination
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful communication in healthcare settings
• Understanding the impact of cultural stereotypes on academic achievement
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with substance use disorders in sober living programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful classroom management strategies
• Understanding the impact of social support on addiction recovery
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding mental health stigma
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful conflict resolution in the workplace
• Understanding the impact of race and ethnicity on healthcare access and outcomes
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder in treatment programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful project management strategies
• Understanding the impact of teacher-student relationships on academic achievement
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful customer service strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with social anxiety disorder in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of workplace stress on job satisfaction and performance
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with disabilities in sports and recreation
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful marketing strategies for small businesses
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with phobias in treatment programs
• Understanding the impact of culture on attitudes towards mental health and illness
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding sexual assault prevention
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful time management strategies
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with addiction in recovery support groups
• Understanding the impact of mindfulness on emotional regulation and well-being
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with chronic pain in treatment programs
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful conflict resolution in romantic relationships
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with autism spectrum disorder in social skills training programs
• Understanding the impact of parent-child communication on adolescent substance use
• Examining the perceptions of parents regarding childhood mental health services
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful fundraising strategies for non-profit organizations
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic illnesses in support groups
• Understanding the impact of personality traits on career success and satisfaction
• Exploring the experiences of individuals with disabilities in accessing public transportation
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful team building in sports teams
• Investigating the experiences of individuals with chronic pain in alternative medicine treatments
• Understanding the impact of stigma on mental health treatment seeking behaviors
• Examining the perceptions of college students regarding diversity and inclusion on campus.

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Muhammad Hassan

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• Browse Works

Agriculture

Browse agriculture topics/papers by subfields, agriculture research papers/topics, determining the profitability of different npsb and nitrogen fertilizer rates on yield and yield attributes of sweet potato (ipomoea batatas l.) in the midland areas of guji southern oromia,.

The activity was proposed with the objective of determining the combined application rate of inorganic NPSB and N fertilizer that maximizes the yield and yield components of sweet potato. Sweet Potato variety Naspot-13, was used for the experiment. The experiment was arranged in factorial combination of four level of NPSB (0, 50, 100 and 150 kg ha-1) with four level of N2 (0, 23, 46 and 69 kg ha-1) in RCBD with 3 replications. The analysis of variance showed that the combination of 100 kg ha-...

Diet selection, intake and weight gain of dorper sheep fed on selected grasses in a cafeteria system in Machakos County, Kenya

Abstract: Livestock is a key asset and a primary livelihood resource for rural households in most parts of the world and accounts for nearly 95 per cent of family income in the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) in Kenya. Despite high economic importance of livestock, inadequate nutrition results to low livestock productivity in Kenya. Ruminant feeding in the ASALs is mainly based on the exploitation of range feed resources. Grazing ruminants forage on different plant species with varying leve...

Effect of transportation on welfare of indigenous chicken in Machakos County, Kenya

Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate effect of transportation on welfare of indigenous chicken. A sample of 8 hens were randomly selected from the target population. Each treatment had an equal number of mature indigenous chicken hens weighing between 1.25 and 2.4 kg. The first batch of 4 birds were tied together and loaded on to an open vehicle roof top. The second batch of 4 birds was loaded into traditional transport cages and the cage loaded on top of the transport vehicle....

Effects of spacing and Negarim micro catchment on the growth of two provenances of Moringa (Moringa oleifera) in Kitui county, south eastern Kenya

Abstract: There has been an increased human population in arid and semi-arid areas. However, these areas are characterized by harsh climatic conditions hence low agricultural productivity, environmental degradation and over exploitation of natural resources. There's need to understand the best agronomic crop requirements for high value trees and shrubs like Moringa oleifera (Lamark) through climate smart agriculture. Limited studies on Moringa oleifera provenance trials, use of micro-catchme...

Comparative differences of whitefly-transmitted diseases between local and hybrid bean varieties in Kitui County, Kenya

Abstract: The typical dry bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, is the essential food legume for direct human consumption. They play a significant role in food security and nutrition. Despite their nutritional importance, its production growth rates have declined in Kenya due to diseases, insect pests, plant nutritional deficiencies, and drought. Therefore, this study's main objective was to determine whether there are differences in bean varieties' tolerance to whitefly transmitted viral diseases. The ...

Factors influencing smallholder dairy cattle productivity in Tigania East sub-county, Meru County

Abstract: Dairy farming complements both food and cash crop farming in Kenya. Due to limited land sizes, smallholder dairy farming is popular and dominates the dairy sector in terms of milk production. Low milk production is a major constraint in Tigania East SubCounty despite the fact that the surrounding Sub-Counties produce high amounts of milk. A survey was carried out in Tigania East Sub-County involving 156 smallholder farmers randomly selected across three agro-ecological zones (AEZ1,...

Assessment of rain water harvesting technologies for improved food security in Kauwi sub-location, Kitui County

Abstract: Water is an essential natural resource, vital for any development to take place. However, not more than one percent of the water is freely available for human needs including agricultural production in the entire world. Arid and semi-arid lands globally are facing water scarcity challenges. Rain- fed agricultural system is the major farming method in these areas, but this has been challenged greatly by aridity and climatic uncertainty. Kitui County is an ASAL where farmers are expe...

Women participation in agroforestry technologies enhances climate change adaptation in Nguumo and Makindu locations, Makindu sub county, Makueni county, Kenya

Abstract: Agroforestry presents a promising option to sustainable agricultural productivity by providing a buffer to climate variability through permanent tree cover and varied ecological niches. Thus, agroforestry can be used as a strategy to adapt to climate change and variability challenges for smallholder farmers. Success of this strategy in adapting to climate change calls for active participation of men and women in agroforestry technologies. This study aimed to establish roles women p...

Identification and validation of African indigenous knowledge practices on management of crop pests in Kitui West sub-county

Abstract: Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa is predominantly subsistence and perennial food deficits, cyclic famines characterize it, and poverty is prompted largely by erratic rainfall patterns, declining soil fertility, and pests and diseases. In Kitui County, farmers are largely small-scale and face various challenges: from poor soil fertility to erratic rainfall. The farmers, too, have not been spared by the pest menace. Consequently, they have resorted to unwarranted and unregulated app...

Factors influencing adoption of giant bamboo (dendrocalamus asper {Schult} Backer) for agroforestry in selected subcounties of Nyandarua county, Kenya

Abstract: Giant bamboo (Dendrocalamus asper) is a very fast growing plant in the family of Poaceae (Gramineae) with great potential in environmental conservation and poverty alleviation. It has over 1500 documented uses. However, with the reducing sizes and productivity of land in Kenya especially in high potential areas where bamboo is grown, there is a need to identify options of cultivating bamboo as an agroforestry crop. Therefore, the main objective of the study was to establish factors...

Growth, nodulation and yield of selected legumes under drought conditions in Kitui county, Kenya

Abstract: Loss of fertility in soil is the main limiting factor that affects production of crops in Kenya, especially in the Arid and Semi-arid regions. In the lower parts of Eastern Kenya, unreliable and low rainfall has led to the low yields in crop production. Lack of the use of commercial fertilizers is also a contributing factor to low crop yields. Amongst new solutions that can assist farmers facing this challenge of low yields includes the emerged potential role of rhizobia in crop pe...

Assessment of fish farmer’s vulnerability to climate variability and extreme climate events in selected parts of Kitui county, Kenya

Abstract: Fish farmers are a vulnerable group to climate variability and extreme climate events effects as their production heavily relies on precipitation and temperature. However, previous studies on vulnerability of fish farmers to climate variability and extreme events have been done on global, regional and national scales, thus failing to capture the local realities on spatial variability. The current study was carried out to assess the householdlevel vulnerability of fish farmers to cl...

Evaluation of farmers’ vulnerability to climate variability and extreme events in selected agro-ecological zones in Kitui county, Kenya

Abstract: Climate variability and extreme events are some of the most pressing environmental challenges occurring in the contemporary world. Farming communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in Kenya are more vulnerable to climate variability and extreme events due to high dependence on weather patterns in their farming activities. There is little understanding of the vulnerability to climate variability and extreme events among farmers in Kitui County based on the agro-ecological zone...

Adoption of modern dairy technologies and its impact on milk production in Nzaui sub-county, Makueni county

Abstract: Dairy production is a biologically efficient system that converts large quantities of roughage in the tropics to milk. Milk production levels are determined by the levels of technologies applied to the dairy enterprise. However, information on levels of adoption of dairy technologies especially in the arid and semi-arid areas (ASALs) of Kenya is scanty. This study thus sought to evaluate the extent of adoption of modern dairy technologies and its impact on milk production in Nzaui ...

An evaluation of the use of a microcomputer on a livestock farm

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential of a microcomputer as a tool of information handling. Specifically, this involved developing software packages for use on an Apple II Plus microcomputer. The Willow Bend Demonstrational Farm in Union, West Virginia, was chosen. A farm records and budgets model was developed. Receipts and expenses from the Electronic Farm Accounting records were used to test the model for use by the farm operators in West Virginia. Enterpris...

Agriculture is the cultivation of land and breeding of animals (livestock), plants and fungi to produce food, feed, fiber and many other desired products to sustain and enhance life. The study of agriculture can lead to a variety of careers, including those associated with consulting, farming, management and research. Afribary publishes latest agriculture topics for students. Browse through Agriculture projects, agriculture project topics, Agriculture thesis, seminars, research papers etc. All papers and research works in agriculture and its sub-fields.

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How to Conduct Research on Your Farm or Ranch

Common research designs for farmers.

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Completely Randomized Design

The completely randomized design works best in tightly controlled situations and very uniform conditions. A farmer wants to study the effects of four different fertilizers (A, B, C, D) on corn productivity. Three replicates of each treatment are assigned randomly to 12 plots.

The simplest experimental layout is a completely randomized design (Figure 3). This layout works best in tightly controlled situations and very uniform conditions. For this reason, the completely randomized design is not commonly used in field experiments. You can use it if you are working with a very uniform field, in a greenhouse or growth chamber, or if you have no idea about the variability in your field. The statistical analysis of completely randomized designs is not covered in this publication.

Paired Comparison

As the name implies, the paired comparison is used to compare the effect of two different treatments assigned randomly within blocks. Each block contains two plots—one plot of each treatment—and blocks are replicated four to six times across the field. Typically, plots run the length of the field and are one or two tractor widths in order to facilitate management. Figure 4 shows the layout for a typical paired comparison experiment.

In collecting yield data or other samples from the field, measurements are generally taken from the center rows of a plot in order to avoid any “edge effects.” You can use this design to evaluate any pair of treatments: comparing two varieties, growing the crop with and without starter fertilizer, comparing two rates of fertilizer application, comparing the timing of nutrient application, or using two different cover crop treatments, for example. The paired comparison is a type of randomized block design, but it is usually classified on its own since we use a simplified statistical analysis, the t-test, to analyze the data when compared to the standard randomized complete block design (described next). The t-test will help you determine whether the difference you observe in two treatments is due to natural variation or is a real difference. It is described in the section, Using the t-Test to Compare Two Treatments .

The paired comparison is used to study two treatments. Each treatment should still be replicated several times, generally in blocks that should be set up to account for any known field variability. Randomize treatments within each block. Harvest only the middle rows of each plot (e.g., eight middle rows). Adapted from Anderson (1993).

Randomized Complete Block

A randomized complete block experiment. Adapted from Nielsen (2010).

The randomized complete block design is used to evaluate three or more treatments. As with the paired comparison, blocking and the orientation of plots helps to address the problem of field variability as described earlier (Figure 3). Each block contains a complete set of treatments, and the treatments are randomized within each block. Four to six replications of a “complete block” are sufficient for most on-farm research projects. Figure 5 shows a schematic of a randomized complete block design with three treatments. The statistical test known as analysis of variance (ANOVA) is used to analyze the data from a randomized complete block experiment.

The split-plot design is for experiments that look at how different sets of treatments interact with each other. It is also used when one of the treatment factors needs more replication or when it is difficult to change the level of one of the factors. For example, in a cover crop study, it may be most convenient due to machinery limitations to plant cover crops in larger areas (the main plots) and then impose other treatments such as fertilizer rates in the sub-plots. In this design, main treatments are overlaid with another set of sub-treatments. Though fairly easy to set up in the field, a split-plot experiment will usually take up a larger area and be more complex to implement, manage and analyze. Given the greater number of treatments and the interaction component, using ANOVA for the split-plot design is also more complex than with the paired comparison or the randomized complete block. It is best to work with someone who has expertise in this type of research design when setting up a split-plot experiment. An example of a split-plot design is shown in Figure 6.

In split-plot design, one treatment (the main plot—fallow or pea) is split further into another treatment (sub-plots) of interest. Here, compost and fish fertilizer are compared to a no-treatment control. Main plots are sometimes decided by field machinery limitations, such as the pea planter used to plant a larger area, with compost and fish emulsion applied to smaller areas. Adapted from Sooby (2001).

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Explore on-farm research reports, breadcrumb menu.

You can now find our most recent on-farm research reports at https://agcrops.osu.edu/on-farm-research . Explore new and past studies using our search tool, or filter reports by county with the clickable map of Ohio.

Reports provide in-depth summaries of projects conducted on farms and research branch stations by Ohio State University Extension professionals. All studies are replicated, randomized trials and reports are peer reviewed by two specialists.

In the past review cycle, there were 15 total reports published from studies conducted in 9 different counties. See below for a summary of reports and direct link to their respective PDF reports:

If you are interested in conducting on-farm research, the OSU eFields program provides the opportunity to work and learn together with OSU Extension professionals. Reach out to your local OSU Extension office or the eFields team at  [email protected] to learn how to get involved.

Crop Observation and Recommendation Network

C.O.R.N. Newsletter is a summary of crop observations, related information, and appropriate recommendations for Ohio crop producers and industry. C.O.R.N. Newsletter is produced by the Ohio State University Extension Agronomy Team, state specialists at The Ohio State University and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC). C.O.R.N. Newsletter questions are directed to Extension and OARDC state specialists and associates at Ohio State.