Technical efficiency changes of rice farming in the favorable irrigated areas of Indonesia

Abstract The main sources of rice production growth are increases in the yield and area harvested. Yield improvement is carried out through intensification, mainly using more inputs and better irrigation, while increasing the harvested area is associated with increasing the cropping intensity. Unfortunately, even in favorable irrigated areas, outcomes of the coupled approach are not always synergistic. This study aims to assess technical efficiency (TE), its changes in direction, and the factors responsible for inefficiency during the last 10 years. The data analyzed were those of rice farming through a panel survey of farmer households in several villages with favorable irrigation. The survey was conducted in 2010, 2016, and 2021. The results showed that the use of higher seed quality and inorganic fertilizers positively affected the yield. The TE level was relatively high but tended to degrade in these 3 years. The farmers’ TE in Java Island was higher than that outside Java. The older the farmer, the more inefficient the farmer was. The number of family members working in rice farming negatively affected efficiency. TE increased as the agricultural contribution to household income increased. On the other hand, the farmers’ educational background did not significantly affect TE. Based on these findings, it is recommended to encourage farmers to adopt higher quality seeds of improved rice varieties. It is also urgent to encourage young farmers to pursue rice farming as their main profession. In the middle and long term, breeding improved rice varieties adapted to climate stress will become a pressing need.