Challenges in Adopting Smart Farming Technologies: Insights from Multi-Stakeholders in the Malaysian Paddy Industry

This study explored the multifaceted barriers affecting the adoption of Smart Farming Technologies (SFTs) in Malaysia's paddy sector, using an integrated lens of the Grounded Theory and the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) model.This research identified eight interconnected barriers through extensive interviews with various stakeholders, including extension agencies, mill operators, and research entities.Key technological barriers include prohibitive costs, mismatched machinery for local field conditions, and inadequate digital infrastructure.At the organizational level, aging farmers' risk aversion, fragmented smallholdings, and reliance on service providers restrict widespread uptake.Externally, heavy input subsidies and price controls, along with a lack of incentives for technology acquisition, deter meaningful investment in advanced tools such as drones, sensors, or blockchain-based systems.The Grounded Theory approach also illuminated how daily realities such as waterlogged fields, part-time farming, and outsourcing tasks, further complicated the broader transition to smart agriculture.By situating these insights within the TOE framework, the study reveals that effective SFTs adoption requires parallel improvements in technology accessibility, organizational readiness, and supportive policy environments.It emphasizes that any single measure, such as subsidizing new equipment, remains insufficient without corresponding investments in farmer training, data infrastructure, and restructuring of subsidy regimes.These insights provide a deeper understanding of innovation diffusion barriers and suggest targeted interventions, ranging from cooperative financing models to pilot projects for supply-chain segregation, ultimately aiming to revitalize the Malaysian paddy production.