Technological level and its determinants in the beekeeping of Ceará

Abstract

This study aims to measure the technological level of beekeepers in the Cariri microregion, in Brazil, and to identify the factors that influence their technological level. In order to determine the technological level, this study analyzed technologies of equipment, handling, harvest, postharvest and management, and an index for each of these technologies was obtained, as well as a general technological index, which aggregated all these techniques. The quantile regression method was also used to verify the determinants of the technological level. Data were collected from primary sources, in 2010, from direct interviews with 80 beekeepers in the Cariri microregion. The results showed that the recommended technologies of handling, harvest and postharvest have been used more by the migrant beekeepers than by the stationary ones. In average terms, it was found that the management technology was classified as low level, and the other technologies as intermediate level both for the stationary and the migrant beekeepers. In addition, it can be inferred from the quantile regression model that the variables schooling level, amount of beehives, credit, main activity, years of experience, and the handling modality are relevant in explaining the technological differences; however, cooperative activities and access to technical assistance do not represent important factors that explain beekeepers’ technological levels.