This study aimed to understand farmers' knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding agricultural pest management and synthetic pesticide use in Southeast Asia. Data were used from 900 farm households producing leaf mustard (Brassica juncea (L.) Czern. et Coss.) and yard-long bean (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis (L.) Verdc.) in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Farmers heavily depended on synthetic pesticides as their main method of pest control. Most farmers were aware of the adverse health effects associated with pesticide use and covered body parts while spraying, but also considered pesticides to be highly effective and indispensable farm inputs. Farmers were largely unable to distinguish between common beneficial and harmful arthropods. Greater knowledge about this was associated with less pesticide use while greater awareness of pesticide health risks was associated with fewer observed poisoning symptoms. For the average farm and while controlling for other factors, farmers who sought advice from friends and neighbors used 45% less pesticide, but those who sought advice from pesticide shopkeepers used 251% more pesticide. Pesticide use was 42% less when a woman was in charge of pest management and 31% less when farmers had adopted biopesticides. These findings suggest relevant entry points for interventions aimed at reducing pesticide dependence.

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Poverty and hunger reduction are intertwined challenges and enduring issues in the world, particularly in developing countries. Improvement in the effi ciency in vegetable farming helps the farmers increase the per capita income, reduce poverty and eventually improve the livelihood of smallholder farmers. Th is paper evaluates economic effi ciency of vegetable farms in Nepal using a non-parametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach. Th e results show evidence to suggest that vegetable farms in Nepal have a considerable potential for improving the vegetable production effi ciency with a greater access to improved seed, agricultural credit, and training and extension services. Some policies options with regard to the vegetable production technology, and support services for farmers in general and women farmers in particular, are suggested to increase the farm effi ciency. While some of these support services are currently available, we suggest that a more focus be given to creating the improved market access, to the women focused extension, and to training packages for the sustainable production. Th ese support services can lead to increases in the farm income and to reduce poverty.

The data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach was used to estimate technical efficiency scores which were then regressed against farm specific characters using Tobit regression. Primary data were collected from a random sample of 240 organic and conventional coffee famers (120 from each type). Mean technical efficiency scores were 0.89 and 0.83 for organic and conventional coffee farming, respectively. Scores for farms operating under constant return to scale (CRS), decreasing return to scale (DRS) and increasing return to scale (IRS) were 31.67, 3.83, and 37.5 %, respectively, for organic coffee and 29.17, 25, and 45.83 %, respectively, in conventional farming areas. These scale characteristics define a production set that is closed and convex with property of strong disposability. Tobit regression showed that the variation in technical efficiency was related to education, farm experience and training/extension services, and access to credit. Farmers would reconsider the rationing of input and learn from technically efficient farm practices. Policy implications will rest on production planning strategies. The objective of this study was to estimate the technical efficiency of both types of farming and evaluating the factors affecting farm inefficiency of each farming category of coffee in rural region of Nepal.

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