SoildiverAgro WP6 survey data

A socio-psychological assessment grounded in the Theory of Planned Behavior was conducted to explore farmers’ willingness to adopt innovative soil management practices. This was accomplished through a comprehensive survey distributed across Estonia, Finland, Germany, Belgium, and two regions of Spain—Mediterranean and Atlantic. The data collection concluded in early November 2022. The survey was administered using the Webropol platform by the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), with regional researchers assisting in farmer recruitment. In Germany, however, a national survey firm conducted the data collection to enable the use of an existing farmer contact database. Altogether, the dataset includes responses from 1,250 farmers who gave their consent for the use of their answers. Regionally, participation ranged from 65 farmers in Atlantic Spain to 357 in Finland. The results showed varying degrees of intention to adopt practices that enhance soil quality and biodiversity. Among the practices receiving the most interest from respondents were incorporating crop residues, lengthening crop rotation periods, reducing ploughing frequency and tillage depth, and introducing catch crops into cultivation systems. Beyond the general questions, the survey also included region-specific inquiries related to practices trialed in local case studies. For instance, Belgian farmers were asked about non-inversion tillage, Estonians about no-till methods, Finns about combining plant cover with shallow tillage, German respondents about underseeding, and Spanish participants about either the use of biostimulants or crop diversification, depending on their region. The existing use of these practices varied widely, with the highest adoption reported for crop diversification in Atlantic Spain (86%) and the lowest for no-till in Estonia (15%). When looking at future intentions—meaning farmers who responded with "yes" or "maybe"—the strongest interest emerged in Atlantic Spain and Finland, while Estonia showed the lowest level of intent, at just 34%.