Environmental and socio-economic analysis of the Ivorian market vegetables suburban systems in the context of an agroecological transition

Abstract Purpose The challenges facing market vegetable production in Côte d’Ivoire, which have resulted in the use of high doses of phytosanitary products and a decrease in soil fertility, have also encouraged the adoption of agroecological practices. The aim of this study is to identify the environmental impacts of market vegetables production systems and determine farmers’ motivations for adopting agroecological practices in different production contexts, by means of combined environmental and economic analyses. Material and methods The environmental analysis was based on LCA of individual technical itineraries (ITKs). Comparisons of ITKs’ impact scores, across different groupings and classifications of ITKs, were tested for significance using statistical methods such as ANOVA. Correlation among yield, gross margin, and the phytosanitary use intensity gradient was also tested. The econometric analysis used a multinomial logistic regression to estimate the effect of the different socio-economic factors on Ivorian producers. Result and discussion For all crops confounded, only the phytosanitary use class was associated with barely significantly different impact scores, while the city of origin was almost significant and seasonality was not significant. Correlations were found between the decision to adopt various practices and explanatory variables such as level of instruction, national origin, age, and gender. Further factors, such as technical and financial support from external actors, may explain farmers’ decision to adopt more than six agroecological practices. Conclusions Environmental impacts of market vegetable crop production in Côte d’Ivoire appear to be determined, to a certain extent, by the intensity of phytosanitary inputs and the geographical location (city). The (self-declared) level of adoption of practices considered as agroecological is not a good predictor of environmental impacts but seems to be correlated with yield. The rationales of adoption of agroecological practices, as well as the associated human health and environmental benefits, should be further explored.