Adoption of precision farming within three Midwest watersheds

Data were collected from 1,011 land owner-operators within three Midwest watersheds to assess the merits of a theoretical perspective developed to predict adoption of precision farming technologies at the farm-level. Data were collected from primary farm operators within watersheds in Ohio, Iowa, and Minnesota using a drop-off-pick-up-later technique. Respondents were asked to indicate the probability that they would adopt precision farming techniques within the next five years. Respondents were divided into two study groups for statistical purposes. Farmers who indicated they would probably adopt precision farming techniques were combined into one group and those who indicated they would probably not adopt were combined into a second group. Discriminant analysis was used to test the merits of the theoretical model used to guide the study. Study findings revealed that the theoretical model was useful for predicting reported intentions concerning adoption of precision farming technologies within all of the watersheds examined.