Table Of ContentTHE RICE ECONOMY
OF ASIA
THE RICE ECONOMY
OF ASIA
Randolph Barker
Robert W. Herdt
with Beth Rose
RESOURCES FOR THE FUTURE / NEW YORK
Copyright © 1985 by Resources for the Future, Inc.
All rights reserved
Published 1985 by Resources for the Future,
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, 0X14 4RN
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Barker, Randolph.
The rice economy of Asia.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Rice trade—Asia. I. Herdt, Robert W.
II. Rose, Beth. III. Title.
HD9066.A7B37 1985 338.1'7318'095 85-2382
ISBN 0-915707-14-4
ISBN 0-915707-15-2 (pbk.)
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ResouRces
FOR ΤΗΘ FUTURe
DIRECTORS
M. Gordon Wolman, Chairman Kenneth L. Lay
Charles E. Bishop Franklin A. Lindsay
Anne P. Carter Vincent E. McKelvey
Emery N. Castle Richard W. Manderbacl.
William T. Creson Laurence I. Moss
Henry L. Diamond Leopoldo Solís
James R. Ellis Carl Η. Stoltenberg
Jerry D. Geist Russell E. Train
John H. Gibbons Barbara S. Uehling
Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Robert M. White
Thomas J. Klutznick Franklin H. Williams
HONORARY DIRECTORS
Horace M. Albright Edward S. Mason
Hugh L. Keenleyside William S. Paley
John W Vanderwilt
OFFICERS
Emery N. Castle, President
John F. Ahearne, Vice President
Edward F. Hand, Secretary-Treasurer
Resources for the Future is a nonprofit organization for research and education in the
development, conservation, and use of natural resources, including the quality of the
environment. It was established in 1952 with the cooperation of the Ford Foundation.
Grants for research are accepted from government and private sources only on the condi-
tion that RFF shall be solely responsible for the conduct of the research and free to make
its results available to the public. Most of the work of Resources for the Future is carried
out by its resident staff; part is supported by grants to universities and other nonprofit
organizations. Unless otherwise stated, interpretations and conclusions in RFF publica-
tions are those of the authors; the organization takes responsibility for the selection of
significant subjects for study, the competence of the researchers, and their freedom of
inquiry.
This book is a product of RFF's small grants program. Randolph Barker is Professor of
Agricultural Economics at Cornell University. Robert W. Herdt is Scientific Advisor to
the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research at the World Bank. Beth
Rose is an Asian scholar at Cornell University. It was edited by Ruth B. Haas and Sally
A. Skillings. The book was designed by Elsa B. Williams and the figures drawn by
Applegate Graphics. Beth Rose prepared the index.
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Contents
Foreword xvii
Preface xix
Editor's Note xxi
1
OVERVIEW 1
Development of the Modern Rice Production System 2
Rice Markets and Trade 8
Rice Policies 11
2
THE ORIGINS, CLASSIFICATION, AND DISSEMINATION OF RICE CULTIVATION 14
Cultural Types and Their Dissemination 14
Subspecies or Varietal Types and their Dissemination 16
3
ASIAN RICE FARMING SYSTEMS 20
Topography 20
The Monsoon Climate 22
Rice-Based Cropping Patterns 24
Farming Systems in Asia 27
Farm Size and Tenure in Asia 33
Summary 35
Vll
Vlll CONTENTS
4
TRENDS IN PRODUCTION AND SOURCES OF GROWTH 38
Asian Rice in World Perspective 38
Asian Rice in Historical Perspective 42
Sources of Growth in Production 46
5
VARIETAL IMPROVEMENT 54
Research Prior to World War II 54
Achievements Since World War II 59
The Spread of Modern Varieties 65
The Search for Higher Yield 67
6
FERTILIZERS AND AGRICULTURAL CHEMICALS 73
Sources of Plant Nutrients 73
Consumption Trends 74
The Productivity of Fertilizer on Rice 76
Aggregate Contribution of Fertilizer to Rice Production 83
The Demand for Fertilizer 84
Marketing, Distribution, and Pricing of Fertilizer 86
Agricultural Chemicals 88
7
DEVELOPMENT OF IRRIGATION 94
Historical Perspective 94
Evolution of Irrigation Development 96
Growth in Irrigated Area in Contemporary Asia 97
Investment in Irrigation Development 100
Complementarity Between Irrigation and Modern Inputs 101
Future Investment Requirements 103
Implications for Future Irrigation Development 105
8
MECHANIZATION OF RICE PRODUCTION 108
The Pattern of Mechanization in Asian Rice Production 108
Evidence on the Impact of Mechanization 115
Future Directions 121
CONTENTS ix
9
TRENDS IN LABOR USE AND PRODUCTIVITY 123
Historical Trends in Labor Use and Productivity 124
The Impact of Modern Technology on Labor Use and Productivity 126
Women in Asian Rice Cultivation 130
Trends in Real Wages and Factor Shares of Labor 131
Family Labor Use 132
Falling Wages, Landless Laborers, and Labor Contracts 134
The Elasticity of Demand for Labor 137
Progress and Poverty 137
10
WHO BENEFITS FROM THE NEW TECHNOLOGY? 141
Growth, Equity, and Technological Change 141
The Effect of New Technology on Production 143
Market Effects of Technical Change 143
Farm-level Experience with New Technology 145
The Effect of New Technology at the Village Level 154
Variability in Adoption at the Regional Level 156
Technological Change—Who Benefits? 156
11
RICE CONSUMPTION PATTERNS 159
Trends in Cereal Grain Consumption 159
Factors Affecting Rice Consumption 162
Conclusion 170
12
RICE MARKETING 172
Marketed Surplus 172
Organization of the Marketing System 173
Rice Milling 174
Efficiency and Competition 177
Government Intervention 180
Modernization 182
13
INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN RICE 185
Growth in Rice Trade: 1860s to World War II 186
World Rice Trade After World War II 188
Instability 191
Long-term Trends in Supply and Demand 195
Improving Performance 199
