The Adoption of the Latin American Rice Production System through the Implementation of Advanced Field Management Practices: An Evaluation of Technology Adoption Patterns and the Impact on Yield in Colombia

The Colombian National Federation of Rice Growers promotes technological development, economic efficiency, and increased competitiveness by implementing a massive technology adoption (AMTEC) program on rice production. K-means clustering was used to determine the number of the combinations (technology package) of the eight specified AMTEC technologies (vibrating chisel ploughs, land plane levelers, taipa, pre-fertilization, certified seeds, drill sowing, sowing density, and continuous irrigation) adopted by rice farmers and regression analysis was employed to determine the impact of the adoption of specific technology on yield. The results indicated that there were 162 AMTEC technology combinations (technology packages) applied across 11,007 rice famers under an irrigated system. On an average, the number of implemented AMTEC technologies across each combination was 4.8. The usage of tools and techniques in land preparation such as vibrating chisel ploughs and pre-fertilization. Sowing techniques such as drill sowing, coupled with the usage of certified seeds were the most adopted technologies by farm clusters with the highest yields. On the contrary, tools and technologies such as land plane levelers and taipa that are utilized in land preparation were less commonly adopted. The results also highlighted the positive effect of the adoption of drill sowing and the usage of certified seeds on paddy yield.