Understanding factors impacting adoption and use of silvopastoral systems with native trees in the Cerrado: evidence from the northern of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

The Brazilian Cerrado faces increasing pressure for land cover change from expanding livestock farming and monoculture agriculture practices. In this context, silvopastoral systems (SPS) using native trees present a promising alternative for sustainable land use. However, the adoption and intensification of these systems depend on various influencing factors. This study, conducted in the northern mesoregion of Minas Gerais State, Brazil, seeks to understand the impact of production, environmental, technical, socioeconomic, and farm-related variables on the use of SPS. Using the Seemingly Unrelated Regressions (SUR) model, estimated through the Full Information Maximum Likelihood (FIML) method, we developed three equations to assess the adoption of SPS and the intensification of their use, assessed by the intensity of production and commercialization efforts. We found that 12 variables of five impacting factors influence the adoption and intensification of SPS. Water resources are one of the most important variables that positively impact the intensification of SPS, but not the adoption of them. In contrast, the farmer's age positively influences adoption but not their intensification. While farm size and number of productive land uses impact all equations positively, the distance from the farmer's house to the production area shows an inverse effect. Based on our findings, we suggest differentiated policies and support measures addressing “Adopters” and "Not-yet-adopters" to successfully promote silvopastoral systems with native trees in the region.