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Exploring the Potential to Improve Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency Using Fertilizer Deep Placement Strategy in Modern Rice Production in Bangladesh

Sanzidur Rahman
School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth, UK

Basanta K. Barmon
Department of Economics, East West University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Nitrogen (N) fertilizer plays an important role in modern rice production and is required in large amounts because it is the most limiting nutrient as well. The Fertilizer Deep Placement (FDP) strategy is developed to improve the efficiency of N fertilizer use and rice productivity. The present study estimates the extent of energy saving, productivity and efficiency impacts of FDP strategy in modern rice cultivation at the farm-level in Bangladesh using a stochastic production frontier approach. A total sample of 200 rice farmers (100 FDP users and 100 conventional urea users) from a village of Jessore district is utilized. Results reveal that FDP strategy significantly improves energy balance, energy ratio, energy productivity and technical energy efficiency. Relative gains are higher for Boro (dry winter) season than the Aman (monsoon) season. The key policy implication is that a widespread diffusion of FDP strategy should be pursued with priority as it holds the potential to significantly reduce energy use from a scarce, finite and renewable resource (i.e., urea fertilizer) while supporting growth in rice-based agriculture of Bangladesh. The government should also support entrepreneurs to invest in briquetting urea into Urea Super Granules (USG) in order to effectively improve uptake of FDP strategy nationwide.

Keywords: Fertilizer Deep Placement (FDP) strategy, Urea Super Granules (USG), Energy productivity, Technical energy efficiency, Stochastic production frontier, Modern rice, Bangladesh.

Location: Bangladesh

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Crop-Soil-Water Management

Commodity: Fertilizer, Rice

Objectives:

The findings of the present study are expected to support academics, researchers, non-governmental organizations as well as policymakers with useful information to raise the productivity of modern rice and contribute towards improving food security in Bangladesh while at the same time save the level of energy use in rice production.

Methodology:

2.1 Energy accounting approach As a first step, standard energy input-output analysis (Rahman and Rahman, 2013; Mohammadi, et al., 2008; Canakci et al., 2005; Chauhan et al., 2006; Rahman and Barmon, 2012) was used to compare some basic performance measures of the FDP users and conventional urea users in modern rice cultivation for the two main growing seasons. These are: Boro (dry winter) and Aman (monsoon) seasons. 2.2. Analytical framework: The stochastic production frontier model Production inefficiency is usually analyzed by its three components – technical, allocative, and scale inefficiency. In a production context, a farm is said to be technically inefficient, for a given set of inputs, if its output level lies below the frontier output (the maximum feasible output) (Rahman, 2003). The popular approach to measuring efficiency, the technical efficiency component, is the use of frontier production function. We used the stochastic production frontier model developed by Aigner et al. (1977) to address our objectives to estimate energy productivity and technical energy efficiency of applying FDP strategy in modern rice production. 2.3. Data and variables To assess the impacts of FDP strategy on modern Boro and Aman rice production, Shimlagachi village in Sharsha Upazila (sub-district) of Jessore district was selected. This village was purposively selected because a sufficiently large number of farmers have adopted FDP strategy using USG while others are still using conventional urea in modern rice production. Initially, a detailed list of farmers who used FDP strategy and who used conventional urea in modern rice production was collected from the Upazila (sub-district) agricultural office. Then a total of 100 farmers using FDP strategy and another 100 farmers using conventional urea to produce modern rice in both Boro and Aman seasons were randomly selected. Selection of the FDP strategy users and conventional urea users from the same village will provide clear information on the relative advantage of this strategy. This is because all farmers in a village face similar input and output prices, set of information regarding both technologies as well as the production environment, and therefore, any observed differences between the two groups of producers could be confidently attributed to FDP strategy alone. Detailed information on various inputs used and output of modern rice produced including socio-economic information of the farmers were collected through administering a structured and pre-tested questionnaire. The survey was conducted during May-June 2013 by one of the authors. 2.4. The empirical model The general form of the Cobb-Douglas stochastic production frontier function is used. We did not use the translog model because we are using a large number of explanatory indicators. Moreover, Kopp and Smith (1980) suggest that the choice of functional form has a limited effect on technical efficiency. Consequently, the Cobb-Douglas specification is widely used in studies (e.g., Rahman and Rahman, 2013; Pishgarh-Komleh et al., 2011).

Source of Information: University of PlymouthPEARLhttps://pearl.plymouth.ac.ukFaculty of Science and EngineeringSchool of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences2015-12-01

Article Link (Online Journal): DOI 10.1007/s12053-015-9391-x

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The principle aim of this study was to econometrically investigate the impacts of FDP strategy on energy productivity and technical energy efficiency in modern rice production under farm-level conditions, as it holds the promise to economize on a vital, finite and expensive resource (urea fertilizer) while at the same time increase rice productivity. IFDC (2013) claimed that the increased value of rice produced by applying FDP strategy in Bangladesh was USD 177.22 million in 2012. Given low growth in modern rice productivity over time, estimated at 1.4% per annum during 1986-2006 (Rahman, 2010), farmers are forced to seek the improved way of production that could economize on resources while increasing productivity. Although adoption of any new strategy is a risky business and takes time, it seems that Bangladeshi farmers are willing to undertake measured risks, as 2.5 million farmers have already adopted this strategy in a space of few years (IFDC, 2013). The technological change includes two components: product innovation and process innovation. The FDP strategy represents a process innovation with some modification of the already used product, urea (i.e., converting commercially available urea fertilizer into USG through briquetting). Also, the process required to apply USG is not strictly new because Bangladeshi farmers have been manually transplanting individual seedlings in irrigated rice fields during Aman and Boro seasons for years. The FDP strategy only requires placing USG in the middle of four plants using almost similar techniques as used for transplanting rice seedlings. Therefore, the adoption of FDP strategy is not likely to be very challenging as it makes use of a practice that the farmers are already familiar with. Our results clearly establish that the adoption of FDP strategy significantly improves energy productivity and technical energy efficiency. The net gain in saving on energy inputs and increasing energy outputs is substantial. Furthermore, the FDP users not only reduced the use of N fertilizer but also pesticides which are very encouraging. The relative gains are much higher for the Boro season as compared with the Aman season. The FDP users are not only producing more energy output per unit of land area but are also operating at a very high level of technical energy efficiency, implying that the farmers have learned to apply this strategy correctly in a short space of time which is an important feature to consider in developing new technologies. The policy implication is clear. The FDP strategy should be promoted throughout Bangladesh so that the farmers could economize on scarce inputs while increasing the outputs of rice and contribute towards improving the food security of the nation following an energy-efficient path. The plan of the Feed the Future (FTF) Multi-year Strategy (2011–2015) to promote FDP strategy to 3.5 million farmers in 120 sub-districts of 16 districts in southern Bangladesh is a step in the right direction (FTF, 2011). However, effective dissemination of this strategy will require measures to support the establishment of small-scale briquetting enterprises. For example, IFDC’s trial of FDP strategy in India did not take off because briquetting facilities to produce USG were not in place (IFDC, 2009). According to IFDC (2013), FDP briquettes are currently produced by little more than 1,000 entrepreneurs with small-scale briquetting machines in Bangladesh, which is clearly inadequate if the nationwide expansion of this strategy is to be implemented effectively in a short space of time. Therefore, measures with appropriate incentive mechanisms are required to increase the number of entrepreneurs to become involved in supporting FDP strategy dissemination (through the rapid conversion of conventional urea into USG) which holds the promise to improve the food security of the economy while exerting less pressure on energy use in agriculture.

Knowledge Management: Report/Proceedings