Farming Systems Research: Issues in Research Strategy and Technology Design

Abstract

Since 1978, when several publications (e.g., CGIAR, Norman) drew attention to Farming Systems Research (FSR), interest in FSR has increased dramatically. This is reflected in a growing number of publications and workshops on the theme and a sharp increase in the commitment of resources to its implementation in developing countries (Byerlee et al.; Zandstra et al.; Shaner, Philipp, Schmehl). At the same time there are rising expectations about FSR's contribution to the effectiveness of agricultural research. While sharing this sense of optimism, we are concerned about the real possibility that expectations may be disappointed by hesitant, ponderous, and unfocused efforts.The term "farming systems research" has been applied to a wide variety of activities. In its broadcast sense, FSR is any research that views the farm in a holistic manner and considers interactions in the system (CGIAR). As such, "there is little activity concerned with agricultural and rural development which cannot claim some relationship with FSR, however tenuous" (Gilbert, Norman, Winch, p. 31). This explicit recognition of the importance of interactions in the farming system we will define as the farming systems perspective (FSP).Research with a farming systems perspective can have various objectives ranging from increasing the body of knowledge about farming systems to solving specific problems in the farming system. Expectations are highest in its problem-solving role where the aim is to increase productivity of the farming system by generating new technologies appropriate for farmers. This research is often further dividedThe authors are economists with the Economics Program, CIMMYT, Mexico.They are grateful to many of their colleagues in CIMMYT for helping to formulate and clarify ideas developed in this paper. However, views expressed are not necessarily those ofCIMMYT. The authors also thank E.

Boundary work for sustainable development: Natural resource management at the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)

“…By the time ASB was organized in the 1990s, the shortcomings of this approach were widely recognized. These included its failure to integrate farmers' with researchers' knowledge and its tendency to define agendas in terms of researchers' solutions rather than farmers' problems (31). Much progress had been made toward adopting a bidirectional, collaborative model of "farming systems research" and development.…”

Conceptualising farming systems for agricultural development research: Cases from Eastern and Southern Africa

“…The implications of this are drawn 23 out in the discussion, which suggests (in accordance with Giller) that a multi-level 24 concept of farming systems, and (in accordance with Sumberg et al) a focus on the 25 systematic nature of decision-making, can offer important insights into, and even a 1 means of re-negotiating, pathways of agricultural development. cultural, and economic processes -interact in dynamic ways, and a focus on these 12 multiple system interactions, is at the core of an increasingly diverse field of 13 agronomic research (Byerlee et al, 1982, Collinson, 1987 techniques, began to acknowledge the ways in which context-specific access to 22 agricultural inputs and output markets and the geographic distribution of poor soils 23 acted to constraint the choices of smallholder farmers (Norman, 1995, Norman, 24 1978. 25 …”

Analytical Framework for the Assessment of Crop Production Technology

“…A similar compilation of different research methods for an integrated agricultural technology developed system was proposed by Biggs [22], who combined exploratory surveys, diagnosis of farmers' problems, on-farm experiments and development feedback systems. Byerlee et al [9] distinguished the two main objectives of on-farm research; increasing the body of knowledge and solving specific problems in the farming systems. These authors argued that location-specific research with a short-term objective of developing improved technologies for a target group of farmers and research conducted over a longer time (to overcome major, widespread constraints in farming systems) are part of an integrated research system in which area-specific research provides the basis for defining longer-term research priorities.…”

“…Useful tools in solving these problems are factorial designs (FD) of type s k (k factors on s levels) or fractional factorial designs (FFD) of type s k-p (p is a fraction of s k ) Box and Hunter, Załuski and Gołaszewski, Załuski et al [3][4][5] and on-farm experiments e.g., On-Farm Trials -Some Biometric Guidelines [6], Blaise et al, Gomez and Gomez, Byerlee, Amir and Knipscheer, Liu et al, Barlow et al [7][8][9][10][11][12]. Certain methodological and economical considerations limit the broad application of FDs in agricultural experiments.…”

“…Hence, methodical assumptions of on-farm research should be applied to the production activity of a given farm and consideration given to the self-evident prerequisites of such activity, including the interest of farmers and available farm machinery. In substance, an initial prerequisite for on-farm research related to plant production technology is verification of a given technology in agricultural practice [9]. In such cases the methodical approach is substantially different than in classic field experimentation.…”