THE EFFECTS OF GOVERNMENT FARM SUPPORT PROGRAMS ON THE ADOPTION OF FARM TECHNOLOGY AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION PRACTICES

This paper examines the relationship between the Federal Crop Insurance Program (FCIP) participation and technology adoption patterns, using farm-level data from the

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). Participation in the federally subsidized crop insurance program may be correlated with technology adoption and other various risk management practices. Existing studies indicate that the subsidized FCIP may disincentivize producers from utilizing technology as a risk management tool. Empirical results indicate that producers enrolled in federal crop insurance programs may be more likely to have adopted PATs earlier than producers who were not enrolled in the FCIP. This could indicate that producers may not view the FCIP as a substitute for other risk management options, or that these producers may not view these technologies in the same risk-reducing lens as they may view the FCIP.