Appraisal of financial indices and affecting variables on acceptance of canola cultivation as second crop in paddy fields of Guilan province

Due to the importance of canola cultivation as a second crop, the present study was aimed to appraisal of financial indices and affecting variables on acceptance of canola cultivation as second crop in paddy fields of Guilan province, Iran, in 2018-2019 crop year. This study was a causal-descriptive study and a researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect data. A total of 150 farmers from the states level were studied as sample. Validity of the questionnaire was obtained from a panel of experts and its reliability was assessed by Cronbach's alpha and its value was calculated 0.87. The results of appraisal of financial indices showed that canola cultivation for Guilan rice farmers in the present conditions is less financially justified. The results of regression analysis to investigate the factors affecting the acceptance of rice farmers for canola cultivation showed that participation in extension training classes, average canola income, age of farmer and history of canola cultivation in total explain 84% of the changes in the dependent variable. Based on the results of exploratory factor analysis, barriers and limitations of canola cultivation were categorized into three factors from the perspective of rice farmers in province, problems with planting and maintenance of canola, post-harvest problems of canola and problems regarding economic conditions, climatic conditions, land conditions and insurance of canola cultivation conditions. In general, the results of this study showed that by stablishing higher quality extensional-educational classes according to the needs of farmers, effective communication between actors and the establishing canola processing factories, it is possible to eliminate barriers to canola cultivation as a second crop in paddy fields of Guilan province.