Utilization of Technology in Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) among Fruit and Vegetable Farmers in Osun State Nigeria

The study focused on utilization of technologies in Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) among fruit and vegetable farmers in Osun State. A structured interview schedule was administered to a total of 270 respondents using multi stage sampling technique. The GAP technologies identified on the utilization increasing ranking order include: timely harvest of fruits and vegetables (WMS=3.00), looking for varieties which are pest and disease resistant (WMS=2.97) and do not use empty fertilizer bags for carrying fruits and vegetables (WMS=2.93) ranked third. The least GAP utilized was avoiding use of refuse dumping site for cropping (WMS=0.43) which ranked last. The major constraints faced by the fruit and vegetable farmers in the area were high cost of cropping technologies (WMS=1.88), lack of credit facilities (WMS=1.81), and inadequate training for GAP (WMS=1.61). Pearson analysis shows that there is significant relationship between selected socioeconomic characteristics such as academic qualification (r=0.541, p=0.022) and the utilization level of technologies in GAP. The study recommended adequate training on GAP technologies should be provided by extension agency.