Agricultural Engineers as Alternative Producers in the Reuse of Abandoned Agricultural Land

The aim of this study is to determine whether agricultural engineers would be willing to engage in agricultural production if agricultural lands that have become idle for various reasons were allocated to them, and to identify the criteria that would influence their production decisions. In this context, a survey was conducted with 134 agricultural engineers. Factors that could influence agricultural engineers' decisions to produce on idle lands were analyzed using the Fuzzy Pairwise Comparison method. The study found that the most important factors influencing engineers' decisions to produce on idle lands were grant support and marketing/purchase guarantees. Engineers indicated that the most critical services in the region where the land is allocated, for production to take place, are agricultural support and irrigation services. According to the results, costs are significant for agricultural engineers. Accordingly, minimizing the costs of establishing operations, providing marketing-related support, and intensifying agricultural support and infrastructure in the region where the land is located could enhance the effectiveness of allocating idle agricultural lands to agricultural engineers.