IDENTIFYING FACTORS AFFECTING FARMERS’ ADOPTION OF CROPPING PATTERN CONVERSION TO TWO RICE CROPS - ONE CASH CROP IN VI TAN COMMUNE, HAU GIANG PROVINCE

The research which aims at analyzing factors affecting farmers’ adoption of the 2 rice crops - 1 cash crop pattern was carried out in Vi Tan commune, Hau Giang province in 2017. In the study, data were collected from interviews with 120 farming households who converted their cropping pattern into 2 rice crops - 1 cash crop a year. Data were analyzed by Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to identify factors affecting the farmers’ acceptance of the composition after conversion. Research results showed that farming households who converted their cropping pattern to 2 rice crops - 1 cash crop can earn higher profit than households who grow 3 rice crops a year. The most popular cash crops on rice land are (1) leafy greens, (2) corn, (3) watermelon and honeydew melon, (4) birthwort (for fruits). Among these crops, growing leafy greens is the most profitable while growing watermelon and honeydew melon is the costliest. By using EFA with 18 variables devided into 4 groups of factors, the research found out that all factors have statistical significance. In the theory model, among the 4 factors, the factor of Policies from the Government/ Local Authorities and Market price/Consumer have impacts on the level of adoption of farmers to the 2 rice crops - 1 cash cropping pattern. Between the two, Market price/Customer is the factor which has the most impact on the farmers’ acceptance of the 2 rice crops - 1 cash cropping pattern (78.0%), followed by the factor of Policies from the Government and Local Authorities (34.2%).