The need to extension the use of smart agriculture systems among longan producers in Saraphi District, Chiang Mai Province

Abstract

This research aimed to study 1) basic personal, economic, and social characteristics of longan farmers in Saraphi District, Chiang Mai Province; 2) knowledge of farmers on the use of smart farming systems in longan production; and 3) longan farmers’ need to extend the use of smart farming systems; The population used in this research was 399 longan farmers in Saraphi District, Chiang Mai Province. The sample size was 200 people using the Taro Yamane formula at a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of 0.05. The research instrument was a questionnaire. Data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression analysis to find factors related to the need to extend the use of smart farming systems by longan farmers in Saraphi District, Chiang Mai Province. The research findings indicate that most farmers are male, with an average age of 61 years. Approximately 48.5 % have completed primary education or lower. The average household income is 393,400.00 baht/year, with an average income from longan production of 107,760.00 baht/year. The average number of laborers involved in longan production is 4. In terms of the need to extend the use of smart farming systems, it was found that farmers had the highest needs in terms of investment and production and price (average 4.41) from all 4 aspects: knowledge, skills, production and price, and investment. Significant positive factors related to the demand for promoting the use of smart agriculture systems among longan farmers were found to be marital status, awareness of smart agriculture information, with a statistical significance level of .000. Conversely, gender and household income were found to have a significant negative relationship at the 0.05 level. Problems and suggestions for using smart farming systems of longan farmers found that most farmers were middle-aged to elderly and had