Reduction of agricultural inputs for sustainable rice production in Vietnam: A case study of the integrated technology package “One Must Do, Five Reductions” (1M5R)

Keywords: Vietnam, sustainable rice farming, adoption, input use, livelihood perceptions
Session Type: Virtual Paper
Day: Friday
Session Start / End Time: 4/9/2021 09:35 AM (Pacific Time (US & Canada)) - 4/9/2021 10:50 AM (Pacific Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 27

Abstract

Vietnam’s rice sector has been growing rapidly over the past decades due to the rapid intensification of rice production. As a result, Vietnam has become one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of rice. Nevertheless, this development has come with increased environmental degradation. Today, Vietnamese rice farmers face several constraints, particularly regarding climate change adaptation. Therefore, the national program ‘One Must Do, Five Reductions’ (1M5R) was introduced to mitigate the negative effects of intensive rice farming by introducing farmers to sustainable rice farming practices. The objective of this study was to determine the agronomic, socioeconomic, and livelihood changes resulting from the adoption of 1M5R technologies. Data were collected by means of a digital survey questionnaire application in An Giang and Can Tho province. A household survey was conducted in 2015 and 2019 interviewing 173 farmers. Additionally, a farmers’ perception survey was conducted in 2019 asking 465 farmers about their perceived livelihood changes since adopting 1M5R technologies. Data were analyzed using uni- and multivariate statistics. Preliminary results show that most farmers have adopted the recommended practices to reduce the seed rate, fertilizer, and pesticide use as well as water use and postharvest losses. Farmers now primarily use certified seeds. Correspondingly, rice yields and farmers’ incomes increased. However, the extent of reduction varied among farmers, and thus livelihood changes were perceived differently. Overall, farmers perceived favorable livelihood changes under 1M5R, but continued research is needed to determine the long-term impact of 1M5R on farmers’ socioeconomic livelihoods and the rice agroecosystem.