Summary
This study applies econometric modelling to understand what drives wine farmers' adoption of two precision farming technologies—Decision Support Systems and Variable Rate Technologies—in Italy. The research finds that structural farm characteristics and favourable attitudes toward technology are significant enablers of adoption, whilst surprisingly, socio-demographic factors and environmental concern alone do not explain actual uptake behaviour. The authors conclude that advisory services and training programmes targeting perceived usability barriers may be more effective policy levers than demographic targeting.
Regional applicability
This Italian viticulture study offers relevant insights for United Kingdom wine production and horticulture sectors, where precision technology adoption is similarly emerging. The findings on the primacy of farm structural factors and technology attitude over demographic characteristics likely transfer to UK context; however, differences in farm scale, infrastructure maturity, and advisory service ecosystems should be considered when applying these policy recommendations.
Key measures
Adoption of Decision Support Systems (DSSs) and Variable Rate Technologies (VRTs); partial proportional odds model coefficients for socio-demographic characteristics, farm structural features, technology attitude, environmental concern, and perceived usefulness/difficulty of digital technologies
Outcomes reported
The study identified socio-demographic, farm structural, and attitudinal factors influencing adoption of Decision Support Systems and Variable Rate Technologies in viticulture. Key findings show that farm structural features and positive technology attitudes significantly increase adoption likelihood, whilst environmental concern affects adoption intentions but not actual behaviour.
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