Farmers have adopted several sustainability-oriented practices, particularly crop rotation and reduced or no tillage. Senior partner David Fiocco and coauthors find that, globally, 68 percent and 56 percent of farmers, respectively, use these practices. Economic considerations tend to be the motivator: the top driver for adoption of sustainable practices in India, Latin America, and North America is increased yield; in Europe, it is additional revenue streams.
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A shaded table shows the adoption rates of 5 sustainable farming practices across 7 geographical regions, as well as the global average. The practices, by global adoption rate, are crop rotation (68%); reduced or no tillage (56%); variable-rate spraying or fertilization—including spraying or fertilization without the use of assisting agtech—(40%); use of biocontrols, biofertilizers, or biostimulants (38%); and plant cover crops (33%). The US exceeds the global average in all practices except use of biocontrols, biofertilizers, or biostimulants, with high adoption rates for crop rotation (87%) and reduced or no tillage (78%). Brazil leads in reduced or no tillage (97%), while other practices see much lower adoption. India and Mexico have lower adoption rates across all 5 practices, falling below the global average.
Footnote 1: Question: What is your level of adoption on the following sustainable practices? (2022, n = 4,474; 2024, n = 4,382). Adoption entails use of a given sustainable practice on any part of a farmer’s operations and does not necessarily indicate use on 100% of their acres.
Footnote 2: Reduced or no tillage excludes crops such as sugarcane, coffee, fruits, and vegetables for reduced or no tillage. Plant cover crops reflects 2022 value due to translation.
Source: McKinsey Global Farmer Insights 2024.
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To read the article, see “Global Farmer Insights 2024,” October 16, 2024.