Cost and benefits, marketing and profitability factors of registered seed Paddy farmers

Abstract

The present study investigated the cost and benefit seed paddy production, marketing of seed paddy and examined the factors affecting the profitability of certified seed paddy producers in a coastal part of Ampara district. 120 seed paddy farmers were randomly selected by stratified sampling technique. Randomly selected farms were visited and the farmers were interviewed with the help of a structured questionnaire. The study found that the average total cost of production per acre was Rs. 45,114.00 out of it 26% and 27% of the cost was covered by machinery and labour cost and the average profit per acre Rs. 29,087.00. about 92% seed paddy farmers market their product to local farmers only 8 % of the farmers sold to both private and public firms. On average 1,590.6 kg per acre was sold for Rs 46.67 per kilogram. The stepwise multiple regression estimation results revealed that the level of education of a farmer, the extend of cultivated land, usage of power weeder, farm gate price of the seed paddy and the availability of extension services significantly impacted positively. In contrast, the cost of production per acre was significantly affected negatively. The results of the research recommend that the training of handling power weeders should be given to seed paddy farmers or farmer organization. Further, the power weeder and other advanced types of machinery need to provide a subsidy basis to the farmers to increase productivity. Finally, the government agricultural organizations and the private agricultural firms should consult and make available their extension services for wide range seed paddy farms.