The challenges of vegetable production through fertigation for smallholder farmers in Sarawak: a qualitative study

Fertigation is the process of applying liquid or soluble solid nutrients via an irrigation system, with the drips that flow directly to the root area of the plants. Small-scale farmers in the rural areas of Sarawak are working extremely hard to fulfil food demand and generate adequate crops to meet the necessities of their livelihood and families. Supporting rural communities and enabling them to meet the growing demand for food worldwide may be achieved by giving them the legal means to increase their food production and alleviate hardship. Even though fertigation is an advanced agricultural technology that is profitable and productive, farmers’ adoption of these technologies is still challenging, particularly for farmers in rural areas. Therefore, qualitative research was carried out among the smallholder farmers in Sarawak rural areas to identify the challenges associated with the use of fertigation. The findings indicated that farmers faced some challenges related to pests and diseases, availability of materials, high initial startup costs, market fluctuations, material costs, climate change, lack of knowledge, and agricultural marketing. In addition, this research also covered the challenges mentioned by participants in implementing fertigation.