Farmers’, Farm Characteristics’ and Use of Public Agricultural Extension Support across Time in Selected Municipalities of Limpopo Province, South Africa

ABSTRACT The paper compares data on subsistence grain producers’ socio-economic, farm characteristics, and their use of public extension support for farm management across time and in various municipalities of Limpopo province, South Africa. A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect the data in eight selected local municipalities by means of multi-stage sampling. Data were analysed by means of descriptive statistics. Findings across time periods (2014 and 2017) and aggregated for all the different local municipalities investigated were similar regarding respondents’ socio-economic and farm characteristics as well as use of public extension support for farm management. These evidence-based findings augur well for the development of uniform and appropriate strategies for the local municipalities to improve public extension support so that producers can receive more extension farm visits and, therefore, more farm management information. Such support will help producers to improve their farming operations and invariably, their productivity and household food security.