IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2023) 14-1

Research article
erdInformation Transfer among Mango Contractors:
Sources, Channels, and Priorities
DIA NOELLE VELASCO*
Graduate School of International Food and Agricultural Studies,Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan
Email: 13821001@nodai.ac.jp

KATSUMORI HATANAKA
Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies,Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan

NINA SHIMOGUCHI
Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies,Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan

RAMADHONA SAVILLE
Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies,Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan
Received 15 January 2023

Accepted 25 May 2023(*Corresponding Author)

Abstract Information transfer is vital in improving knowledge and proper technology
implementation, especially in agriculture. This paper aimed to describe the information systemamong the Pangasinan mango contractors. Specifically, it aimed to 1) identify the sources of
information for the mango contractors, 2) determine information channels for informationtransfer, 3) establish the type of information that mango contractors prioritize, 4) determine
the challenges and issues in the transfer of information, and 5) recommend interventions toimprove information transfer among mango contractors. The study area is Pangasinan,
Philippines, the country's top mango-producing province. The research used a purposive
sampling of 55 mango contractors covering six mango-producing municipalities. Descriptive
statistics and correspondence analyses were employed in the study. Results showed that mostmango contractors generally receive information on the production and marketing of mangoes
from farm technicians and buyers. They usually get information on production technologies
from farm technicians and other mango contractors. Expectedly, they get their information on
mango marketing from their buyers. On the other hand, information transfer usually happens
through mobile phones and during farmers' meetings. Furthermore, contractors prefer to get
information on the buying price of mangoes, followed by the quality requirements of buyers.
Contractors also choose to have a face-to-face conversation when obtaining information. The
next preference is through text and calls using mobile phones. In summary, mango contractors
still prefer the traditional information system through face-to-face conversations, text, andmobile phone calls. This has implications for the implementation of modern technologies used
for information dissemination. Mango contractors might not be receptive to new ways ofreceiving communication, even if the information might be urgent or essential. It is
recommended that contractors be trained to use modern communication technologies to makethem more receptive to other communication channels.
Keywords information transfer, correspondence analysis, mango contractors,
communications

INTRODUCTIONⒸ ISERD

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Communication within the commodity system is an invaluable component that is often overlooked.
Most of the time, people focus much on production technologies or market development. However,new developments in production technologies and discovering new market opportunities will notmatter if this information is not adequately communicated along the value chain. Players in the chain
cannot act on the latest developments if they do not know there are new developments. For example,
Indian agriculture is plagued by insufficiency and inefficiencies in conveying pertinent information
to the farming industry, not a lack of technology or R and D activities. While Indian agriculture hasflourishing technologies that can help their farmers, they can still improve the communication ofsuch technologies to the farmers. This disconnect can be the key to further development of theiragricultural sector. Therefore, developing agriculture's information and communication technology(ICT) can catalyze the sector's growth (Behera et al., 2015).
Agricultural information is an essential element that interacts with other production factors likeland, labor, capital, and management competence. The availability of pertinent, trustworthy, andbeneficial knowledge and information can arguably increase the productivity of these othercomponents. To enable farmers to make better decisions, take advantage of market possibilities, andmanage ongoing changes in their production systems, agricultural organizations have handled theinformation supplied by extension, research, education, and others (DEMİrYÜrEK, 2010).
Vidanapathirana (2012) cited Maningas et al. (2000) and found that having information in the handsof farmers leads to their empowerment by giving them control over their resources and decisionmaking procedures. They pointed out that a system for delivering vital information and technologicalservices effectively and efficiently aids the clients' crucial role in decision-making for better
agricultural production, processing, trading, and marketing. Therefore, to manage and enhance
specific agricultural information systems, it is necessary to understand how they work.
Attention should be given to the provision of education and training on the implementation of
joint technologies and their combined impact on farms since it was discovered that education andinformation availability were among the factors influencing the adoption of multiple technologies(Toma et al., 2018). Proper channels for information transfer also play a critical role in technology
transfer. Farmers can learn about agricultural topics from various sources, including extension
services, the media, other farmers, input suppliers, etc. (Adhiguru et al., 2009). Thus, looking at thedetails surrounding the information system within a value chain is imperative. Likewise, Sugiarti etal. designed an e-commerce information system for mango in 2019. However, the one that they built
was just for one enterprise. The authors conducted meetings directed toward the store's owners andrepresentatives. The prepared documentation became the basis of the design of the e-commerce
information system. On the other hand, Vanany et al. (2016) developed an electronic traceability
system for mango in Indonesia. The abovementioned research tackled one case study with one supply
chain network. They mentioned the difficulty in delivering accurate information in Indonesia
regarding traceability. They recognize the importance of quality information primarily for the global
market. These pieces of literature mainly focus on the role of ICT, not just in the mango industry andthe agriculture sector in different countries. It shows the importance of holds and catalyzes anindustry's growth. It also emphasizes how crucial the transfer of information is for the sector.
Table 1 Historical performance of mango (2000-2020)
Year
20002009
20102020
20162020

Production
MetricGrowthton (Mt)
rate (%)

Area
HectareGrowthrate (%)

925,247-0.70

163,106

3.90

5.70

-4.50

793,296-0.93

187,530

-0.14

4.20

-0.80

86.10

-2.10

747,987-2.30

186,630

-0.14

4.00

-0.94

78.40

-2.20

Source: DA, 2022

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Yield / unit area
In Mt/haGrowthrate (%)

Yield / tree
kg/tree
Growthrate (%)
No data
No dataavailable
available

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On the other hand, the Philippine mango industry's performance has declined these past few
years for several reasons. One of the primary reasons is the pest infestation from Cecid flies and Fruitflies. Other problems beset the industry include the following: 1) high cost of inputs/production cost;2) improper farm practices/excessive use of chemicals; 3) lack of economies of scale; 4) productionseasonality; 5) unproductive mango trees; 6) prevalence of infestation and diseases; 7) limited accessto information and technologies; 8) high post-harvest losses; 9) inadequate/limited post-harvest andprocessing facilities; 10) limited access to resources and direct market, 11) unstable supply and prices,12) multi-layer marketing, and 13) difficulty in accessing export markets (DA, 2022). For the past
two decades, mango production has been going down for the following parameters: production, areaof production, productivity per area, and productivity per tree. These pieces of information can befound in Table 1.
Despite these challenges, mango remains to be the third most highly exported fruit crop in 2020,
with a PhP 35.520B ($716.019M) contribution to GVA in agriculture (Department of Agriculture(DA), 2022). This shows that mango is still one of the top-priority commodities in the country.
Furthermore, this commodity system should be studied further to help improve its economic
performance.
This study builds on the existing literature and analyzes the transfer of information among themango contractors in the study area. It delves into the sources of information and channels of
information transfer as well as the priorities of mango contractors regarding the information theyneed and the mode of information transfer.
OBJECTIVE
This paper aimed to describe the information system among the Pangasinan mango contractors.
Specifically, it aimed to 1) identify the sources of information for the mango contractors, 2) determine
information channels for information transfer, 3) establish the type of information that mango
contractors prioritize, 4) determine the challenges and issues in the transfer of information, and 5)
recommend interventions to improve information transfer among mango contractors.
METHODOLOGY
The study area for the research is Pangasinan since it is the top mango-producing province in the
country, contributing about 29% of the total production in 2020 (DA, 2022). It is also strategicallylocated since its climatic conditions and soil types are ideal for mango production (dela Cruz, 2007).
Furthermore, it has developed road networks that make it accessible to processors and exporters in
Metro Manila.
The primary data were collected through key informant interviews and surveys on the players.
Key informants such as employees from the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist of Pangasinan,mango experts from the academe, and other mango players from other provinces were interviewed
during the research. This provided a different perspective outside of the Pangasinan mango industry.
On the other hand, structured questionnaires were employed for the survey on the mango players,which includes sections for the demographic profile, farm profile, production and marketing
practices, sources and type of information, and channels of the information channel. The researchalso used purposive sampling on 55 mango contractors covering six mango-producing municipalities
ranging from small to large-scale operators. Unfortunately, there is no list of mango contractors since
they are considered transient players in the industry. Some mango contractors do not regularly
operate annually, especially if they do not have enough capital to finance their operations. As a result,
the researchers had to interview known mango contractors in the area and get recommendations fromthese contractors on who could be interviewed.
Secondary data were collected from online journals and online portals of the DA. Descriptive
statistics and correspondence analyses were also employed in the study. This determines theassociation between and among the variables, such as sources, types, and information channels.
XLSTAT was used to run the correspondence analysis for this research.
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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Most mango contractors live in San Carlos City (50.91%) and Malasiqui (30.91%) since most of themangoes come from these municipalities. On average, mango contractors who were interviewed
were aged 49.48 years. The oldest who was interviewed was aged 69, while the youngest was 29
years old. On the other hand, the interviewed mango contractors are highly educated, with about
41.82% being college graduates and approximately 29.09% being high school graduates.
In terms of farming (generally), these contractors have been farming for an average of 23.18
years. However, some of them just shifted from general agriculture to mango farming specifically.
On average, they have been mango farming for about 19.64 years. Approximately 38.18% (21contractors) operate at a medium-scale (500-3,000 fruit-bearing trees or FBTs), while 32.73 (18contractors) operate at a small-scale (less than 500 FBTs) and about 29.09% (16 contractors) operate
at a large-scale (more than 3,000 FBTs).
Sources of Information
The results (Fig. 1) showed that most mango contractors generally receive information on the
production and marketing of mangoes from farm technicians and buyers. They usually get
information on production technologies from farm technicians and other mango contractors.
Expectedly, they get their market information (price, volume, and quality specifications) from theirbuyers. As the computed p-value is lower than the significance level alpha=0.05, there is a link
between the type of information that mango contractors and sources of information as shown in Table
2. Logically, farm technicians and other mango contractors provide production technology
information. With an Eigenvalue of 100%, it can be said that the quality of the analysis is very high(shown in Table 3).

Fig. 1 Graphical representation on sources of information
Table 2 Test of independence between type of information and sources of information
Chi-square (observed value)
Chi-square (critical value)DF
p-valuealpha174.11621.026
12< 0.0001
0.05

Table 3 Eigenvalues and percentages of inertia
Eigenvalue
Inertia (%)
Cumulative %

F1
0.970
75.20775.207F2
0.320
24.793100.000Ⓒ ISERD

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Information Channels
On the other hand, information transfer usually happens through mobile phones and during farmers'
meetings (Fig. 2). Farm technicians generally hold round table discussions with contractors to show
them new technologies for better mango production. On the other hand, They usually get their market
information from their buyers through their mobile phones. As the computed p-value is lower than
the significance level alpha=0.05, there is a link between the sources of information that mango
contractors get and the information channel as shown in Table 4. Thus, these mango contractors
getting their production technology information during farmers' meetings provided by farmtechnicians is logical. Also, since the buyers are primarily located in Manila, it would be logical forthem just to use mobile phones in their transactions. With an Eigenvalue of 100%, it can be said thatthe quality of the analysis is very high (shown in Table 5).

Fig. 2 Graphical representation on information channels
Table 4 Test of Independence between sources of information and information channel
Chi-square (observed value)
Chi-square (critical value)DF
p-valuealpha54.4160
9.48804.0000< 0.0001
0.0500

Table 5 Eigenvalues and percentages of inertia
Eigenvalue
Inertia (%)
Cumulative %

F1
0.370
76.16676.166F2
0.116
23.834100.000

Priority Information
Based on the results (Fig. 3), mango contractors prioritize getting market information like price,
demand quality, and demand volume, ranked 1, 2, and 3, respectively. It is followed by production
processing and packaging technologies, ranked 4, 5, and 6, respectively. As the computed p-value islower than the significance level alpha=0.05, there is a link between the rank and the type of
information (shown in Table 6). Earning good money is crucial to mango contractors since theirproduction has been low these past few years. Thus, the ranking that mango contractors gave themarket information is logical. With an Eigenvalue of 87.24%, it can be said that the quality of theanalysis is high as shown in Table 7.

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Fig. 3 Graphical representation on priority information
Table 6 Test of Independence between ranking and priority information
Chi-square (Observed value)
Chi-square (Critical value)DF
p-valuealpha298.3640
37.652025.0000<0.00010.0500

Table 7 Eigenvalues and percentages of inertia
Eigenvalue
Inertia (%)
Cumulative %

F1
0.489
54.04154.041

F2
0.300
33.19487.235F3
0.099
10.89898.133

F4
0.016
1.776
99.909

F5
0.001
0.091
100.000

Fig. 4 Graphical representation on priority information channel
Priority Information Channel
Contractors also choose to converse face-to-face when obtaining information (Fig. 4). The next
preference is through text and calls using mobile phones. As the computed p-value is lower than thesignificance level alpha=0.05, there is a link between the rank and the type of information channelⒸ ISERD

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(shown in Table 8). Mango contractors are pretty old-fashioned when it comes to communication.
They prefer more traditional tracks of information transfer. Furthermore, farmers' meeting is also an
excellent venue to socialize and catch up among the mango contractors since most are friends andrelatives. They do not prefer using the internet or applications since they do not have Android or
smartphones and are reluctant to learn to use these gadgets. With an Eigenvalue of 87.42%, it can besaid that the quality of the analysis is high as shown in Table 9.
Table 8 Test of independence between ranking and priority information channel
Chi-square (Observed value)
Chi-square (Critical value)DF
p-valuealpha248.000
26.2960
16.0000< 0.0001
0.0500

Table 9 Eigenvalues and percentages of inertia
Eigenvalue
Inertia (%)
Cumulative %

F1
0.679
75.30175.301

F2
0.109
12.11987.420F3
0.101
11.23798.657

F4
0.012
1.343
100.000

CONCLUSION
In summary, most mango contractors generally receive information on the production and marketingof mangoes from farm technicians and buyers. Furthermore, information transfer usually happens
through mobile phones and during farmers' meetings. Moreover, contractors prefer to get informationon the buying price of mangoes, followed by the quality requirements of buyers. Mango contractors
also prioritize getting market information like price, demand quality, and volume. Contractors alsochoose to have a face-to-face conversation when obtaining information, followed by text and mobile
phone calls. Mango contractors currently get information through traditional means since they valuesocial interaction with their colleagues in the industry. Even with the aid of technology, thecontractors also appreciate personal touches like having conversations through calls and texts.
Furthermore, most mango contractors still prefer the more traditional information systemthrough face-to-face conversations, text, and mobile phone calls. This has implications for the
implementation of modern technologies used for information dissemination. Mango contractors
might not be receptive to new ways of receiving communication. However, it seems like social
networks are essential to these contractors. It is recommended that contractors be trained to use
modern communication technologies to make them more receptive to other communication channels.
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