The Use of Agricultural Automation Services of Oil Palm Farmers in Na Cha Luai District Ubon Ratchathani Province
Keywords:
Agricultural automation services, Oil palm, Ubon Ratchathani ProvinceAbstract
This research aimed to 1) personal, social, and economic factors; 2) knowledge regarding automated agricultural services; 3) the utilization of automated agricultural services; and 4) factors associated with the utilization of automated agricultural services among oil palm farmers in Na Chaluai District, Ubon Ratchathani Province. The sample consisted of 259 oil palm farmers. Data were collected using questionnaires. Statistical analyses included frequency, percentage, mean, minimum, maximum, standard deviation, and Chi-square tests.
The findings indicated that most farmers were male and aged over 50 years. The majority held a bachelor’s degree and owned no more than 10 rai of agricultural land, with annual income exceeding 250,000 baht per year and expenses not exceeding 60,000 baht per year. Most farmers had 7–9 years of farming experience and were not members of oil palm farmer groups. They had not received any training in automation systems, drones, or robotics. The Tenera variety was the most widely cultivated due to its drought tolerance. Overall, farmers demonstrated a moderate level of knowledge regarding automated agricultural services, whereas their opinions toward agricultural service utilization were at a high level. In the hypothesis testing indicated that group membership and prior training were significantly associated with factors affecting the use of automation services in oil palm plantations in all dimensions (p ≤ 0.05). In addition, farm holding size was significantly associated with factors affecting the use of agricultural automation services in oil palm plantations, except for economic factors (p ≤ 0.05).
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