Overview of Manually Operated Paddy Transplanter

Agriculture is the most important sector in the Indian economy. It is the most important source of employment for most of the country’s labor force. In 2012, about 49% of the labor force was engaged in agriculture. The highest proportion of these is in the rice sector. Rice is the country’s main stable food. The release of labor to sectors other than agriculture is important to the development of the country. The mechanization of rice fields has played an important role in liberating labor. Feeding a growing population is a huge challenge. The import of rice will cause the country’s economy to drain. The mechanization of the rice sector will lead to higher productivity and release labor to other sectors. The goal of the project is to design a rice transplanting mechanism for small farmers in the country to transplant rice seedlings.

Political Domination and Economic Dispossession of Farmers: The Case of Land Acquisition for Special Economic Zones in India

Involuntary acquisition of agricultural land for setting up of Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in India benefited the elite at the expense of small farmers who were and are the dominant voting group. Consequently, such policies were met with fierce political resistance by farmer organizations across the country. However, these movements have a mixed record against land acquisition attempts by the state and large corporations. This paper presents a simple model of the political conflict between the elite and small farmers over land acquisition to show how the elite may mobilize resources to ensure that their economic interests are protected even in democracies where they are in electoral minorities. We test the predictions of our model using a new data set compiled on SEZ projects that failed to acquire land because of farmer agitations. We show that factors like inequality in land ownership (class) and hierarchies of caste hinder the ability of small and marginal farmers to successfully organize collective action against land acquisition. Further, the division of votes along caste and ethnic lines also dilutes the potential for successful farmer agitations against land acquisition. Finally, we find that historically marginalized communities also resist land acquisition even when they face greater caste-based discrimination in the traditional village economy.

Telephone farmers and an emerging ecosystem are unlocking the hidden middle of agricultural value chains in Kenya through innovation

PurposeThis article explores the potential of an emerging group of farmers in Kenya, namely the growing segment of urban-based medium-size farmers, often called “telephone farmers”. To what extent do they benefit from an emerging ecosystem to support them in operating their farms, and what does that mean for the Hidden middle of agricultural value chains, the actors between the farmers and consumers? Unlocking the potential production of telephone farmers will require more services from collectors, traders, transport firms, the storage facilities, wholesalers and processing units and retailers. Ultimately, optimized telephone farm production benefits the business of Hidden middle value chain actors, increases incomes and jobs and improves food security.Design/methodology/approachBased on a survey and in-depth interviews a profile of the telephone farmers is given and their role as innovators is analyzed. The Latia Resource Centre (LRC) provides assistance to medium-size farmers, like the telephone farmers, helping them to prepare business plans and use modern technology and contributing to an emerging ecosystem providing support to all farmers.FindingsThe article analyzes the medium-size telephone farmers. It documents the contributions of this new agricultural actor to developing value chains and a dynamic ecosystem. The paper profiles the telephone farmers first and then identifies what they need and the support they receive. The emerging innovative ecosystem impacts agricultural productivity and production and hence the development of value chains. Small farmers gain access to opportunities offered by telephone farmers, working for them as outgrower or farm worker.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors used a small sample of 51 farmers and covered only a two-year period.Social implicationsSmall farmers are being helped through the emerging eco-system and farm labor acquire skills, which they can also you on another or their own farm.Originality/valueBased on the analysis an even more effective ecosystem is suggested and policy recommendations are formulated before the conclusion is drawn that these medium-size farmers contribute to innovation diffusion, inclusive value chain development and food security and are becoming part of this expanding, innovative ecosystem. Following the debate on food security the results suggest to pay more attention to the development of telephone farmers given their role in developing agricultural value chains and innovative ecosystems.

The Impact of Agricultural Socialized Services to Promote the Farmland Scale Management Behavior of Smallholder Farmers: Empirical Evidence from the Rice-Growing Region of Southern China

Farmland scale management (FSM) is an essential strategy to establish an appropriate management scale for agricultural production, enhance smallholder farmer production efficiency, and improve the utilization rate of farmland. The Chinese government promotes farmland transfer as a tool to establish modern and moderate-scale agriculture. However, farmers remain unable to afford agricultural services and inputs required for appropriate FSM after farmland is transferred-in. This paper aims to examine the impact of agricultural socialized services (ASSs) on the FSM behavior of smallholder farmers through farmland transfer. A theoretical framework for the farmer household production aspect of this relationship is developed. A weighted least squares (WLS) model is applied to empirically examine smallholder farmers’ decisions to expand the scale of farmland induced by the promotion of ASSs based on data collected from 741 households in 2020 in the rice-growing region of southern China. The findings reveal that ASSs have a positive and significant impact on small farmers’ FSM. Small farmers’ behavior regarding farmland transfer is affected positively by the promotion of ASSs. The increase of ASSs encourages small farmers to transfer-in more farmland. However, the impact of ASSs on various steps of agricultural practice varied according to the FSM of smallholder farmers. Our findings imply that the government should take the development of ASSs as one of the main methods for promoting the establishment of moderate and large-scale agriculture and rural revitalization. Strengthening policies and financial support for both private and public ASS providers through financial innovation subsidies and preferential tax policies will help smallholder farmers reduce input costs and increase the scale of production and profits. The findings of this paper will provide a scientific basis and reference for the development of moderate-scale agriculture and rural revitalization.

BUDI DAYA KELAPA DAN PEMASARAN KOPRA DI BUOL 1970-2019

As the price of copra increased in the global market, coconut cultivation in Buol received great attention in the early 20th century. During the New Order, the government paid attention again to people’s plantations, especially coconuts. Coconut cultivation was promoted in several areas, including Buol. This paper scrutinizes the cultivation process and development of copra production in Buol. The commodities were closely related because the cultivation process greatly affected the production of copra. This study used the historical method to suggest that the people of Buol were cultivating coconut because of its great benefits, including how easy it was to be processed. In addition, other findings of this study indicate that the price of copra at the plantation level was determined by interconnected factors such as the quality of copra, the marketing network, and the absence of koperasi (economic enterprise) as a market counterweight. The study also found that although they were seen as economic symbols for the Buolese, these two commodities did not contribute significantly to the welfare of Buolese, particularly the small farmers who do not have vast cultivating lands.

IDENTIFIKASI KENDALA PEMBIAYAAN KOMODITAS PERTANIAN SISTEM RESI GUDANG DI INDONESIA

Abstrak Pembiayaan komoditas pertanian sistem resi gudang belum berlangsung sesuai harapan di Indonesia. Hal tersebut menurut beberapa studi karena masih banyak permasalahan penghambat. Studi ini mengidentifikasi kendala pembiayaan komoditas pertanian sistem resi gudang di Indonesia. Penelitian dilakukan melalui wawancara mendalam terhadap responden tertentu yang memiliki pengetahuan atau pengalaman pada pembiayaan komoditas pertanian berbasis sistem resi gudang yang diimplentasikan terhadap komoditas pertanian seperti kopi, lada, beras dan jagung. Data yang dikumpulkan diidentifikasi, dikelompokkan dan diklasifikasikan secara terstruktur di dalam pola berfikir strategis dan dianalisa secara analisa deskriptif. Penelitian ini berhasil menemukan faktor penghambat pembiayaan komoditas pertanian sistem resi gudang di Indonesia antara lain: ketidaksesuaian nilai manfaat yang dibangun dengan karakteristik petani di Indonesia khususnya petani kecil; keterbatasan sumber layanan, ketidakcocokan skema dan fitur pembiayaan, harga pembiayaan dan skala ekonomi petani, suplai informasi yang memengaruhi kesadaran pada pembiayaannya. Permasalahan tersebut harus dapat diminimalisasi sehingga meningkatkan aksesibilitas dan kelangsungan pembiayaan sistem SRG pada petani di Indonesia. Kata kunci: Pembiayaan Komoditas Pertanian, Kendala, Sistem Resi Gudang Abstract Agricultural commodity financing in the warehouse receipt system has not performed as expected in Indonesia. According to several studies, it is due to many obstacles hindering the system to grow. This study identifies the constraints on agricultural commodities financing on the warehouse receipt system. The research was conducted through in-depth interviews with certain respondents who have knowledge or experience in agricultural commodities financing based on a warehouse receipt system implemented on agricultural commodities such as coffee, pepper, rice, and maize. The collected data are identified, grouped, and classified in a structured manner in the pattern of strategic thinking and analyzed by descriptive analysis. The study succeeded to identify the barriers that hindering agricultural commodities financing in warehouse receipt system to grow in Indonesia: the incompatibility of the value built with the characteristics of agriculture business, especially for small farmers; limited financing sources, incompatibility of financing schemes and features, financing prices and farmer economies of scale and supply of information that affects awareness of financing. These problems must be minimized to encourage the accessibility and continuity of financing on WRS for farmers in Indonesia. Keywords: Agricultural Commodity Financing, Contraints, Warehouse Receipt System JEL Classification: D46, F6, F61, F65, Q14

Livestock Holding and Time Spent by Farm Women in Dairying Activities in Andhra Pradesh

A study was conducted to investigate the involvement of women in dairying activities in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh. The study involved a total of 225 respondents covering 75 villages. The result revealed that small farm women possessed significantly (P≤0.05) more graded Murrah buffaloes (3.68±0.28), whereas women under medium farm category possessed significantly (P≤0.05) more number of local cows (0.28±0.07), Murrah buffaloes (0.45±0.21) as well as more (P≤0.01) buffalo heifers (1.22±0.14). The milk production (litres per day) (13.25±0.80), consumption (1.48±0.06) and milk consumption by women (0.16±0.07) was observed to be high in medium women dairy farmers in the study area. Milk sale per day was observed to be significantly (P≤0.05) high in small farmers (14.20±1.90). Small farm women (587.00±81.70) obtained more income (rupees/day) through dairying followed by medium (516.34±54.35) and landless (385.66±32.39) farm women. It was observed that women are spending more time on dairy activities in the study area compared to men. The time spent was more on feeding activities.

Small Farmers’ Use of Social Media and Other Channels for Marketing their Agricultural Products

We examined small farmers’ use of and preference for different channels for marketing agricultural products and explored differences by gender, age group, and education level. Farmers markets and social media were preferred channels, with participants under age 55 being more likely than those 55 and over to prefer and use social media and agree that social media would be useful for promoting products and increasing sales. While selling via social media could provide a larger market, one challenge is that the average age of Mississippi farm operators is 59. Therefore, Extension must consider multiple approaches for delivering training on marketing.

Small Farmers Large Field (SFLF): a synchronized collective action model for improving the livelihood of small farmers in India

This study pilots the collective action model “Small Farmers Large Field (SFLF)” to overcome the disadvantages faced by millions of small and marginal farmers due to diseconomies of scale and lack of bargaining power in the supply chain. This model is participatory and flexible and allows small farmers to benefit from achieving economies of scale by organizing themselves into groups and synchronizing and harmonizing selected operations. It was piloted in two villages of Odisha, an eastern Indian state, with 112 farmers (35 females and 77 males). These farmers organized themselves into groups and synchronized their operations such as nursery bed management, transplanting, and harvesting collectively to achieve economies of scale. The SFLF farmers purchased inputs (seed and fertilizer) and sold paddy as a group to increase their bargaining power in price negotiations. The results from this pilot study showed that the participating farmers almost doubled their profits. Apart from the monetary benefits, these farmers saved time in many joint activities, including input (seed and fertilizer) purchase, paddy sale, and nursery bed management. Other important benefits of the harmonization and synchronization of farming operations were social harmony and sustainability of the farming system.