Mangelnde Kenntnis über den Anbau von Körnerleguminosen bei Luxemburger Landwirten

Summary

Grain legume production in Europe has decreased in recent years, while legume demand has rapidly increased. Various investigations have identified problems and benefits of grain legume cultivation. Studies investigating why farmers do not cultivate these crops are missing. Here we surveyed farmers about grain legume cultivation. We sent a questionnaire to 1373 farmers in Luxembourg, with a response rate of 29%. Results show that 12% of the conventional and 85% of the organic farmers cultivated grain legumes. We observed that farmers feel badly informed about grain legume
cultivation. The main barriers to not cultivate these crops are not economic issues but a lack of knowledge about grain legumes. Even though grain legume producers mentioned several negative experiences with grain legume cultivation, they are not discouraged by the poor economic conditions and appreciate the benefits of grain legume cultivation. Overall our findings show that research results on grain legumes
should be better disseminated to extension services and farmers.