Rice Farming in Central Java, Indonesia—Adoption of Sustainable Farming Practices, Impacts and Implications

Abstract

Farmer adoption of sustainable rice farming technologies and practices is critical for climate change adaptation and mitigation. Often adoption is investigated in isolation focusing on factors influencing farmer decision making and overlooking the effects of technology adoption on farmers’ livelihoods and perceptions of change. Therefore, the present study investigated technology adoption and its effects on farmers with a special focus on additional revenue allocation and perception of social, economic and environmental change. Using a digital survey platform, 153 farmers (21.6% female) were interviewed in three sub-districts of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. On average, farmers adopted two technologies or practices, adopted high-yielding rice varieties, and increased their revenue from US$105 to US$122 per hectare per season. Barriers to adoption included time constraints, unsuitability for field conditions and incompatibility with cropping systems. Farmers invested the extra income in farming business and improved diets. Furthermore, farmers perceived changes in social and human capital and also poverty reduction due to technology adoption. This study highlights the importance of including an analysis of social impact in agricultural research.

Rural development and transformation of the rice sector in Myanmar: Introduction of best management practices for sustainable rice agriculture

“…However, limited information on the overall development of rice farmers and agrarian change in Myanmar is present compared to other Southeast Asian countries. In Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam, longitudinal studies on farmer development using household surveys, adoption surveys, and market studies have been realized (Connor et al, 2021b; Flor et al, 2021; Moeis et al, 2020; Molle, 2020; Stür et al, 2013). The little existing research on farmers in Myanmar is based on field data, onetime surveys, or were realized before the political reforms in the 2010s (Kabir and Uphoff, 2007; Linn and Maenhout, 2019; YuYu and Hye-Jung, 2015).…”

“… Sources: 1 Connor et al (2021b); 2 IRRI Rice Knowledge Bank (2021a); 3 Grigg (2001); 4 IRRI Rice Knowledge Bank (2021b); 5 Chandiramani, Kosina, Jones (2007); 6 Jat et al (2006); 7 IRRI Rice Knowledge Bank (2021c); 8 Adri et al (2020); 9 University of the Philippines Los Baños (2018); 10 IRRI Rice Knowledge Bank (2021d). …”

The Challenges to Developing Smart Agricultural Village in the Industrial Revolution 4.0.

“…Indonesian Balitangtan launched a cloud computing technology with mobile internets, such as UPJA smart mobile, an android application used for land cultivation, rice planting services, rice harvesting, rice milling, and grain selling services (Aditiawan et al, 2019). The other mechanization technological innovations launched by Balitbangtan are smart irrigation, smart greenhouses, telescoping boom sprayers, mobile dryers, Jarwo Riding Transplants, rice seed growers, and drip lines irrigation installers, all aiming to increase rural MSMEs incomes and improve community welfare (Connor et al, 2021;Husnain et al, 2016).…”

Estimates of methane and nitrous oxide emission from a rice field in Central Java, Indonesia, based on the DeNitrification DeComposition model

“…Since 1980, Indonesia's national rice yield has been the highest in tropical Asia (GRiSP, 2013). Also, Indonesia has one of the largest rice consumers in the world, averaging more than 200 kg per head each year (Connor et al, 2021). Rice is grown across the major islands of Indonesia, but most rice is cultivated on the island of Java on an estimated 3.1 million ha of land (Ministry of Agriculture, 2018).…”