Social learning to reduce pesticides: Evidence from a French agricultural extension programme
Abstract Social learning is likely to play a crucial role in disseminating new agricultural technologies and driving the agroecological transition in European countries. We evaluated a French pesticide reduction programme designed to train farmers and promote practices through demonstration days on participating farms. Using pseudo-panel data from surveys conducted before and after the programme’s launch, we found evidence of decreased pesticide use among cohorts linked to farms attending demonstration days. Our analysis, supported by a placebo test and various robustness checks, suggests that peer-sharing in training programmes can scale up effectively at no additional cost.
Authors
- Rose Deperrois (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8548-3993)
- Adélaïde Fadhuile (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1954-4046)
- Julie Subervie (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6985-3971)
Institutions
- Institut polytechnique de Grenoble (FR)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Université de Montpellier (FR)
- Institut Agro Montpellier (FR)
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR)
- Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquée de Grenoble (FR)
- Institut Agro Montpelier (FR)
- Center for Environmental Economics - Montpellier (FR)
- L'Institut Agro (FR)
- Université Grenoble Alpes (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- European Review of Agricultural Economics
- Published
- 2025-09-10
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/erae/jbaf050
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Agriculture and Rural Development Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.03
Funders
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche