Adoption Studies
Do Farmers Act on AI Advice? A Field Study of Advisory Adoption Across 1,200 Farms
G. Mutua, H. Svensson, I. Almeida · Farm Better Research Lab
February 2025 · 7 min read
1,200
Farms surveyed
4
Countries
46%
Follow-through lift
Abstract
A mixed-methods study of how smallholder and mid-scale farmers interpret, trust and act on automated agronomic advisories.
Method
Survey and interview data from 1,200 farms across four countries, paired with logged in-app behaviour over a full cropping season.
Findings
- Advisories including a stated confidence level were acted on 2.3x more often.
- Explanations in local language raised follow-through by 46%.
- A single inaccurate rain alert reduced subsequent engagement for an average of 11 days.
- Voice delivery outperformed text notifications for farmers over 50.
Conclusion
Trust, not accuracy alone, determines impact. Communicating uncertainty honestly outperforms projecting certainty.
Note: this article is an illustrative mock-up created for the Farm Better site and is not a peer-reviewed publication.