Abstract

Agricultural Mechanization (AM) is the application of tractorisation technology into the field of agriculture to improve agricultural output. The study investigated sharp practices involved in mechanisation processes amongst arable crop farmers in Ogbomoso Agricultural Zone of Oyo State, Nigeria. Specifically, the personal characteristics of respondents were described, various forms of sharp practices identified, the extent of sharp practices on farmers? production level examined and measures used to curb the sharp practices were identified. A total number of 150 arable crop farmers were selected using multistage sampling technique, and requisite information was collected using interview schedule. Frequency counts, percentages, Mechanisation process Sharp Practices Used Index (MPSP UI) was used to access the extent of sharp practices on the arable crop farmers. Majority (80%) of the arable crop farmers were male, only 52% had formal educational experiences at varying levels and about 60% farmed between 5 to 8 hectares of land. Results further showed most common sharp practices of mechanisation processes as improper farm ploughing, collection of money and refusal to go to farmers? farm, ploughing land only to get to a stage and disguise as if the tractor is faulty. Inability of the arable crop farmers to ascertain the accurate farm size measurement (64%) was a major reason for being a victim. The extent of MPSP revealed that Ploughing of land only to get to a stage and disguise as if the tractor is faulty ranked first in the MPSPs (30.0%) among the five MPSP considered in the study It was concluded that arable crop farmers should be educated on the correct farm size measurement to forestall future cheats, which if not curbed can hinder optimum farm earnings.

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