In India, pearl millet is a typical subsistence crop. Nonetheless, use of hybrid seeds is widespread. The first pearl millet hybrids were introduced in 1965 by the public sector. Yet, starting in the late 1980s, market liberalisation led to an increasing role of private companies in seed...

In the light of ongoing debates about the suitability of hybrid seeds for smallholder farmers, this paper analyzes the adoption and impact of hybrid wheat in India. Based on survey data we show that farmers can benefit significantly from the proprietary technology. Neither farm size nor the...

This article adds to the literature about the impact of social networks on the adoption of modern seed technologies among smallholder farmers in developing countries. The analysis centers on the adoption of hybrid wheat and hybrid pearl millet in India. In the local context, both crops are...