Abstract
Abstract We analyse yield effects of tissue culture (TC) banana technology in the Kenyan small farm sector, using recent survey data and an endogenous switching regression approach. TC banana plantlets, which are free from pests and diseases, have been introduced in East Africa since the late 1990s. Although field experiments show significant yield advantages over traditional banana suckers, a rigorous assessment of impacts in farmers’ fields is still outstanding. A comparison of mean yield levels between TC adopters and non‐adopters in our sample shows no significant difference. However, we find evidence of negative selection bias, indicating that farmers with lower than average yields are more likely to adopt TC. Controlling for this bias results in a positive and significant TC net yield gain of 7%. We also find that TC technology is more knowledge intensive and more responsive to irrigation than traditional bananas. Simulations show that improving access to irrigation could lift TC productivity gains to above 20%. The analytical approach developed and applied here and the finding of negative selection bias may also be relevant for the evaluation of other agricultural technologies.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record; open copy licensed cc-by. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 6
Claim · model-written summary
Mean banana yields did not differ significantly between tissue-culture adopters and non-adopters.
Verbatim
e0“A comparison of mean yield levels between TC adopters and non‐adopters in our sample shows no significant difference.”
t0“Bananas”
Claim · model-written summary
Farmers with below-average yields were more likely to adopt tissue-culture bananas, indicating negative selection bias.
Verbatim
e0“we find evidence of negative selection bias, indicating that farmers with lower than average yields are more likely to adopt TC.”
t0“Bananas”
Claim · model-written summary
After selection adjustment, tissue-culture bananas had a significant 7% net yield gain.
Verbatim
e0“Controlling for this bias results in a positive and significant TC net yield gain of 7%.”
t0“Bananas”
Claim · model-written summary
Tissue-culture banana technology was more knowledge intensive than traditional bananas.
Verbatim
e0“TC technology is more knowledge intensive and more responsive to irrigation than traditional bananas.”
t0“Bananas”
Claim · model-written summary
Tissue-culture banana technology responded more to irrigation than traditional bananas.
Verbatim
e0“TC technology is more knowledge intensive and more responsive to irrigation than traditional bananas.”
t0“Bananas”
Claim · model-written summary
Simulated improved irrigation access raised tissue-culture banana productivity gains above 20%.
- Taxon
- Bananast0
- Treatment
- improving access to irrigatione0
- Outcome
- TC productivity gainse0
- Direction
- lifte0
- Value
- above 20%e0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“Simulations show that improving access to irrigation could lift TC productivity gains to above 20%.”
t0“Bananas”
The same questions in other papers
irrigation · yield · MusaResults differ
66 papers in the same direction as this paper · 9 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- no effect
- no effect
72 papers more in this group
See all 76 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.