Manure Management Systems and Factors Influencing Biogas Technology Adoption Among Smallholder Dairy Farmers in Northen Tanzania

Manure management system in dairy production is of great concern given the fact that if improperly managed contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. On the other hand, properly managed manure provides fuel (biogas) and organic fertilizer. This study assessed the existing manure management system and factors influencing biogas technology adoption among smallholder dairy farmers in urban (Arusha City Council), peri-urban (Arusha District Council), and rural areas (Hai District Council) in Northern Tanzania. These districts were purposively selected based on the fact that they have a large number of smallholder dairy farmers producing large quantities of manure. A total of 150 households (50 from each study district) were purposively selected. Structured questionnaires were administered to the heads of the household’s head, to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. Data on the household socio-economic characteristics were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The chi-square test was used to analyze manure management system variation among smallholder dairy farmers. Logistic regression was also used to determine the factors influencing the adoption of biogas technology among smallholder dairy farmers. The results showed that there were significant variations in manure management systems such as solid storage, daily spread, and anaerobic digester (p < 0.05). Logistic regression revealed that socioeconomic factors such as Household income, Household size, and Herd size had a positive influence on biogas technology adoption at (p < 0.05). Education level and farm size showed an influence on technology adoption by having an odd ratio greater than one. The findings provide an understanding of the existing manure management system and factors influencing the adoption of biogas technology. The study recommends training programs to be sensitized on the best manure management system to fill the education gap, low-interest loans and subsidies to minimize the initial installation cost of bigas accessories. Additionally, larger herd size farmers and large family size are highly sensitized due to the availability of enough substrate and labour for biogas operation. Further research on the influence of other source of energy on biogas technology adoption in both urban and rural smallholder dairy farmers is required.