Identifying Factors that Influence Farmer and Rancher Decisions to Adopt and Manage Agroforestry Systems

Not commodity specific

Agroforestry practices are agricultural systems in which trees are incorporated with crops and/or livestock. Agroforestry practices, particularly windbreaks, silvopasture, alley cropping, riparian forest buffers, forest farming, and living snow fences, provide a variety of environmental, economic, and social benefits to agricultural communities and landscapes. Despite the services these systems offer, only 1.9% of farmers in Minnesota and Wisconsin adopted at least one agroforestry practice by 2022. The purpose of this research was to identify the constraints to agroforestry adoption and opportunities to increase adoption by agricultural producers in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Following producer interviews and a comprehensive review of the agroforestry adoption literature, three rounds of a mail survey were sent to producers in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The survey collected data regarding current adoption of agroforestry practices, information on acceptable incentives and limiting constraints, the likelihood of adopting each practice, and demographic information. Binary logistic regressions were performed to identify the constraints, opportunities, and demographic data that significantly influenced the likelihood of adoption for each practice. The results indicate that windbreak adoption is enhanced by financial assistance programs, aesthetic values, and an alignment with producers' goals. Silvopasture adoption is enhanced by a minimization of competition between trees and forage, an alignment with producers' goals, and the lack of a woodlot on the farm. Alley cropping adoption is enhanced by technical assistance, aesthetic values, and a compatibility with the producers’ management and equipment and is likely to be adopted by younger producers and those with smaller farms. Riparian forest buffer adoption is enhanced by financial assistance programs and colleagues adopting riparian forest buffers. Forest farming adoption is enhanced by technical assistance, a compatibility with the producers’ management and equipment, and the presence of a woodlot. Finally, living snow fence adoption is enhanced by an alignment with producers' goals, the availability to manage trees, profit opportunities from the living snow fence, and colleagues adopting living snow fences. Natural resource technical assistance providers and policymakers can use these results to remove barriers and improve incentives for agroforestry practices, promoting agroforestry adoption among Minnesota and Wisconsin agricultural producers.