ANALYSIS OF FARMERS' BIO-FERTILIZER ADOPTION: AN APPLIED BIOLOGICAL STUDY AND FINANCIAL PERCEPTION

Abstract

Long-term reliance on high-dose synthetic fertilizers has triggered severe degradation of soil biological health while escalating overall agricultural production costs. The application of bio-fertilizers serves as an applied biological breakthrough, leveraging functional microorganism consortia to restore soil biodiversity and optimize nutrient absorption efficiency. Although its ecological benefits are well established, the adoption rate among farmers remains strongly driven by applied technical understanding and daily economic calculations. This study aims to evaluate the applied biological effectiveness of bio-fertilizers on soil nutrient improvement and analyze how ecological knowledge and financial perceptions shape farmers' adoption choices. The study relies on integrated secondary data retrieved from BPS Agricultural Census/SOUT microdata alongside soil fertility laboratory reports. Empirical findings confirm that bio-fertilizer application consistently enhances N-fixing and P-solubilizing bacterial populations as well as soil C-Organic levels. Binary logistic regression analysis further demonstrates that financial cost-efficiency perceptions and applied biological knowledge have a positive and significant association with farmers' adoption decisions. Comparative discussions reveal alignment with recent literature over the past five years, emphasizing that mitigating short-term financial risks alongside enhancing soil ecological literacy emerge as critical factors in accelerating bio-fertilizer adoption.