Adopting climate-smart agricultural (CSA) practices is pivotal for enhancing crop yield, improving the livelihoods of subsistence farmers, while ensuring their food security. Despite numerous welfare benefits, the adoption of climate-smart strategies remains limited. The study was designed to analyze and report the impact of adopting CSA practices on yield, income, consumption expenditure, and self-assessed food security of smallholder farmers. Furthermore, the study identified socio-economic and demographic constraints to the adoption of CSA technology. Finally, the study examined the socio-economic, environmental, and farm factors influencing smallholder farmers’ decisions on climate change adoption. The primary data were collected from 415 small and marginal farmers residing in 25 villages in the Srikakulam and Vizianagaram districts of Andhra Pradesh, India. The survey was conducted between August 2024 and May 2025, using a purposive stratified random sampling design. The propensity score matching (PSM) approach was employed to compare the adoption impact of two CSA practices, i.e., Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) and Zero Tillage Maize (ZTM), on farmers’ yield, income, and welfare. The study used a probit regression model to identify the constraints of climate-smart practices, while the multinomial logistic regression (MLR) model was used to estimate the determinants of DSR, ZTM, and DSR + ZTM adoption choices. The results showed that farmers’ farm size (1% increase in average farm size resulted in 9.5% enhancement in CSA adoption), off-farm income (1% increase in off-farm income showed 6.3% rise in CSA adoption), machine availability (1% increase in machine availability resulted in 18.7% enhancement in CSA adoption), and perception of weather change (1% increase in perception on weather change resulted in 9.5% increase in CSA adoption) were critical factors in the adoption of CSA practices. The PSM results indicated that the adoption of DSR increased paddy yield by 1.53 quintal/acre and net farm income by INR 5134.67/acre. ZTM adoption raised maize yield by 1.62 quintal/acre and net farm income by INR 8272/acre. Farmers adopting both DSR and ZTM experienced yield gains of nearly 3.90 quintal/acre (paddy equivalent yield) and income gains of INR 12,812/acre, alongside higher per capita consumption expenditure (INR 239.67/person/month) and improved food security by 14.1%. MLR outcomes indicated that machine availability, participation in awareness meetings and training, extension services, and assured irrigation significantly influenced adoption choices among DSR, ZTM, and DSR + ZTM. The study advocates that community-based machinery rental hubs, extension services, structured training programs, and public–private partnerships beyond donor-funded projects will ensure wider adoption of DSR and ZTM, leading to measurable gains in yield, income, and food security across smallholder households. Future research should examine the long-term impacts of CSA practices on soil health, greenhouse gas mitigation, and gender-differentiated outcomes across diverse agro-ecologies.
Dey et al. (Mon,) studied this question.