Determinants of Production and Income Risks of Rainfed Lowland Farming: A Case Study in Maros Regency, Indonesia

Abstract

Rainfed lowland farming production is generally lower than irrigated lowland rice due to area differentiation regional features. Rainfed lowland rice farming can only produce rice during the rainy season because lowland rice cannot be planted in the dry season. The purposes of this study are (1) to analyze the risk of production and income of rice farming in rainfed lowland farming and (2) to investigate the factors influencing the risk of rice farming in rainfed lowland farming. Data were collected from 100 respondents of rice farmers in four sub-districts in Maros Regency using the multi-stage cluster random sampling technique. The analysis of production and income risks were performed using multiple linear regression with the heteroscedastic method. The results have shown that rice farming in rainfed lowland farming poses a risk to production and income. The variables that significantly influence the rainfed lowland rice farming are land area, the number of seeds, the amount of urea fertilizer and the amount of pesticide. Farmers are required to manage risk by prioritizing the effectiveness and efficiency production factors as needed. Similarly the government is expected to assist farmers in maintaining the level of rice selling prices.