Does Internet use reduce chemical fertilizer use? Evidence from rural households in China

Yuan, Fang; Tang, Kai; Shi, Qinghua

doi:10.1007/s11356-020-10944-4

Cited by 70 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…respiratory disorders, cancer, reproductive disorders, neurological dysfunction and diabetes; Nicolopoulou-Stamati et al, 2016;Sabarwal et al, 2018;Zhao et al, 2021), a reduction in biodiversity (Beketov et al, 2013;Br ühl & Zaller, 2019), and water and soil contamination (Rani et al, 2021;Thais et al, 2020). The overuse of chemical fertilisers has resulted in soil deterioration (Atafar et al, 2010;Gai et al, 2018;Yuan et al, 2021) and greenhouse gas emissions (Wu et al, 2021;Zhang et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The existing studies have provided some insights regarding the association between information technology intervention and the usage of pesticides and fertilisers. They capture information technology intervention using mobile phone use (Cole & Fernando, 2012;Freeman & Qin, 2020), ICT adoption (Al-Hassan et al, 2013;Ogutu et al, 2014) and Internet use (Yuan et al, 2021;Zhao et al, 2021). At least for now, the findings remain mixed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Still, we are aware that three studies have illustrated the pesticide and fertiliser reduction effects of information technology adoption (Hou et al, 2019;Yuan et al, 2021;Zhao et al, 2021). By analysing apple farmer data collected from China, Hou et al, (2019) revealed that Internet use via computers negatively affects the value of purchased pesticides.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By analysing apple farmer data collected from China, Hou et al, (2019) revealed that Internet use via computers negatively affects the value of purchased pesticides. Yuan et al, (2021) examined the impact of Internet use on chemical fertiliser use based on a nationwide data set of 7,766 rural households. They found that Internet use reduces chemical fertiliser use as it increases farmers' human capital.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Heterogeneous impacts of information technology adoption on pesticide and fertiliser expenditures: Evidence from wheat farmers in China*

Ma¹,

Zheng²

2021

Aus J Agri & Res Econ

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This study examines the impacts of mobile information technology adoption on agrochemical expenditures, using data collected from 551 wheat farmers in China. Unlike previous studies that analyse a homogeneous relationship between the adoption of information technologies and farm input use, in this study, an instrumental variable quantile regression approach is utilised to capture the heterogeneous impacts of smartphone use on pesticide and fertiliser expenditures. Findings reveal that smartphone use affects pesticide and fertiliser expenditures heterogeneously, and its impacts on pesticide expenditure are larger than those on fertiliser expenditure. Specifically, at the lowest 20th quantile, smartphone use significantly increases pesticide expenditure by 33 per cent and fertiliser expenditure by 18 per cent. However, at the higher 60th and 80th quantiles, smartphone use significantly decreases pesticide expenditure by 36-39 per cent and fertiliser expenditure by 14-19 per cent. Our findings suggest that guiding farmers' agrochemical usage behaviours through smartphone-based information intervention can be a practical strategy to help reduce the excessive usage of chemical pesticides and fertilisers and preserve the environment and human health.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Heterogeneous impacts of information technology adoption on pesticide and fertiliser expenditures: Evidence from wheat farmers in China*

Ma¹,

Zheng²

2021

Aus J Agri & Res Econ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…ICT can help improve the conditions of rural communities, mainly by persuading financial institutions to enter potential rural markets in unconventional ways [7,49,50]. Mobile phone usage (MPU) helps increase productivity and profitability [51][52][53], alleviates losses affected by environmental disasters [54,55], and mitigates environmental pollution [56]. Compared to that of developed nations, the agricultural sector of emerging countries is dominated by small-scale farming, which can get optimum benefits from ICTs [7,57].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward Cleaner Production: Can Mobile Phone Technology Help Reduce Inorganic Fertilizer Application? Evidence Using a National Level Dataset

Khan

Ray

Kassem

et al. 2021

Land

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Increasing agricultural production and optimizing inorganic fertilizer (IF) use are imperative for agricultural and environmental sustainability. Mobile phone usage (MPU) has the potential to reduce IF application while ensuring environmental and agricultural sustainability goals. The main objectives of this study were to assess MPU, mobile phone promotion policy, and whether the mediation role of human capital can help reduce IF use. This study used baseline regression analysis and propensity score matching, difference-in-differences (PSM-DID) to assess the impact of MPU on IF usage. However, the two-stage instrumental variables method (IVM) was used to study the effects of mobile phone promotion policy on IF usage. This study used a national dataset from 7,987 rural households in Afghanistan to investigate the impacts of MPU and associated promotion policies on IF application. The baseline regression outcomes showed that the MPU significantly reduced IF usage. The evaluation mechanism revealed that mobile phones help reduce IF application by improving the human capital of farmers. Besides, evidence from the DID technique showed that mobile phone promotion policies lowered IF application. These results remained robust after applying the PSM-DID method and two-stage IVM to control endogenous decisions of rural households. This study results imply that enhancing the accessibility of wideband in remote areas, promoting MPU, and increasing investment in information communication technologies (ICTs) infrastructure can help decrease the IF application in agriculture. Thus, the government should invest in remote areas to facilitate access to ICTs, such as having a telephone and access to a cellular and internet network to provide an environment and facility to apply IF effectively. Further, particular policy support must focus on how vulnerable populations access the internet and mobile phone technologies.

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China’s Net-Zero Emissions: Why Do We Need It

Tang¹

2022

Carbon-Neutral Pathways for China: Economic Issues

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Does Internet use reduce chemical fertilizer use? Evidence from rural households in China

Cited by 70 publications

References 62 publications

Heterogeneous impacts of information technology adoption on pesticide and fertiliser expenditures: Evidence from wheat farmers in China*

Heterogeneous impacts of information technology adoption on pesticide and fertiliser expenditures: Evidence from wheat farmers in China*

Toward Cleaner Production: Can Mobile Phone Technology Help Reduce Inorganic Fertilizer Application? Evidence Using a National Level Dataset

China’s Net-Zero Emissions: Why Do We Need It

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