Quantitative analysis of crop richness and monoculture adoption in Ecuador

In tropical countries, traditional production systems have proved to be fairly productive whereas having a lower environmental impact than conventional agriculture. Nevertheless, factors such as the penetration of the market economy and the disruption of commercial agriculture are reported to have negative effects on agrodiversity of traditional systems. This paper analyzes the socioeconomic determinants of crop richness and monocropping among Ecuadorian farmers. Using data from the Living Standards Measurement Survey-2014, multivariate techniques were used to assess the factors influencing decisions on how many crops to grow and on the likelihood of adopting monocropping. The results show that the number of crops a household grows is larger for poor large indigenous households. In contrast, crop richness is smaller for more educated households receiving off farm income and residing near a road. In terms of which kind of household is the most likely to engage in monocropping, this is a household that has off-farm work, uses pesticides, and is located next to a road. On the other hand, poor indigenous households have less odds to adopt monoculture. These results demonstrate the importance of diversified agrosystems for rural people in Ecuador and reflect that policy makers should focus on the rescue and promotion of traditional agrosystems as a way to reach food security while promoting sustainable agriculture.