Cultivate Crops or Produce Energy? Factors Affecting the Decision of Farmers to Install Photovoltaics on Their Farmland

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the factors affecting farmers’ willingness to invest in photovoltaics as well as the factors affecting the amount of money they would invest. The study was performed on a representative farmer sample in Northern Greece through the use of structured questionnaires. Two models were developed using categorical regression, with the first model indicating that the willingness to invest was mostly affected by the provision of subsidies and the type of cultivation used for the land in question. The amount of money farmers would invest was mostly affected by the number of hectares of irrigated and dry land that famers had, thereby suggesting that the more farmland they own the more the money they would invest. Results raise policy implications as they show an increased interest in installing renewable systems on farmland which, in turn, raises concerns about the agricultural development of the country.

Keywords

• farmers’ attitudes
• agri-food crisis
• willingness to invest
• photovoltaics on farmland
• factors affecting investments