title: Farmer attitudes and perceptions to the re-use of fertiliser products from resource-oriented sanitation systems - The case of Vellore, South India.
abstract: Relatively little research has been conducted to date on farmer attitudes towards the use of fertilisers from resource-oriented sanitation systems. This study employed a psycho-sociological approach to identify factors that encourage, or discourage, negative and positive attitudes to human waste recycling among farmers in southern India. A survey involving face-to-face interviews was performed with 120 randomly sampled farmers, taking into account the following factors: gender, age, religion, caste, type of farming, farm size, annual income and farming history. Variations in variables (χ2and ANOVA) were considered statistically significant if p-value was <0.05. When asked whether they thought human wastes could be used as fertiliser, of the farmers who expressed an opinion 59% were positive to re-use of urine and 46% to re-use of human faeces. Farmers in Vellore appeared to display what we term, a 'not-in-my-circle' syndrome, as they would prefer their neighbours to use human urine rather than their friends, family and colleagues. The main factors that motivated farmers to respond positively to re-use of urine were improved soil quality and potential cost savings from reduced use of chemical fertilisers. Fear of crop die-off, fear of being ridiculed and uncertainty over consumer marketplace behaviour were significant factors among farmers with a negative attitude. Furthermore, the survey responses indicated that besides socio-demographic factors, other factors such as 'trust' might have to be taken into consideration when planning and implementing nutrient recycling programmes. Early dialogue, continuous interaction and integration of user stakeholders (producers and consumers) in conceptualisation, design and implementation of nutrient recycling programmes are essential to ensure future success and wider adoption.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences and Policy, Central European University, Nádor utca 9, 1051 Budapest, Hungary; School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences (SEAES), The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Prithvi
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Simha
authors.affiliation: Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Energy and Technology, Box 7032, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Cecilia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lalander
authors.affiliation: Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Energy and Technology, Box 7032, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Björn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vinnerås
authors.affiliation: Mass Transfer Group, Department of Chemical Engineering, VIT University, Vellore 632 014, Tamil Nadu, India. Electronic address: maheshgpillai@vit.ac.in.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ganesapillai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000383:Agriculture; D001290:Attitude; D000067565:Farmers; D005260:Female; D005308:Fertilizers; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012499:Sanitation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D005308:Fertilizers
keywords: Faecophobia; Nutrient recycling; Psycho–sociological study; Survey; Sustainable sanitation; Willingness–to–use