Abstract/Summary

Greenhouse cultivation of horticultural crops has witnessed rapid expansion in Thailand over the last decade. The Thai Government has been actively promoting the adoption of modern technologies in greenhouse cultivation, including sensor-based technologies, as part of its “Smart Agriculture” initiative. The adoption of sensor technologies in greenhouse cultivation has, however, been limited. For greenhouse farmers, sensor technologies are novel and technically complex innovations different from conventional innovations such as new varieties of seeds or other inputs. This thesis examines the factors influencing the adoption of sensor technologies in greenhouse horticulture in Thailand using the Technology Adoption Model as a conceptual framework. The study used a mixed methods approach based on qualitative data collected through interviews with key informants and greenhouse farmers and a quantitative survey of 130 greenhouse farmers including both adopters and non-adopters of sensor technologies. The study also undertook a cost-benefit analysis of adoption of sensor technologies for adopters. Greenhouse farmers’ willingness to pay for different packages of sensor technologies was estimated and their preferences for different forms of governmental support in the form of concessional credit and subsidies was elicited. Our results show that given the characteristics of sensor technologies, the Technology Adoption Model provides a useful framework for understanding the adoption process and the constraints to adoption. Adopters and non-adopters differ significantly in their perceptions of the technology including perceptions of usefulness and ease of use. While sensor technology users have very positive expectations of the potential benefits of the technology, a large proportion of adopters do not appear to realise the anticipated benefits from adoption. This is principally due to the lack of complementary investment in irrigation and other infrastructure, produce marketing constraints and lack of information on the effective use of sensor technology. Greenhouse farmers appear to prefer technology packages that provide information along with installation and operational support in addition to the sensor technology equipment. The willingness to pay for sensor technology packages falls considerably short of the current market costs of these packages. A key implication for Government policy is that accelerating the adoption of sensor technologies may call for substantial subsidy and concessional credit support. Promotional strategies need to address greenhouse farmers’ perceptions of the technologies and facilitate complementary investments in infrastructure by sensor technology adopters.