THE PROBLEMS OF AGRICULTURAL INTENSIFICATION IN A MARGINAL RAINFED ENVIRONMENT A Study of Farmers* Practices and Government Policies in Two Villages in Northeastern Thailand Jonathan D. Rigg A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The School of Oriental & African Studies The University of London January 1985 ProQuest Number: 10731287 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10731287 Published by ProQuest LLC(2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 ABSTRACT In short, the study proposes that farming in a marginal rain-fed environment such as that of the Northeast Region of Thailand presents special problems for the intensification of production, and that government policies should take account of these problems. The thesis is based on fieldwork conducted in ctwo villages in the province of Mahasarakham, Northeastern Thailand, during the period September 1982 to June 1983. The villages were both farming communities in which households grew rain-fed wet-rice to meet their subsistence requirements, and upland cash crops (principally cassava) to supplement their income. A detailed questionnaire was conducted among approximately a fifth of the population. The work involves an analysis of farmers1 practices vis a vis rice and upland cropping and contrasts them with the government recommendations. There were significant disparities between the two and these have been explained from the perspective of the farmer, rather than that of the extension office. The outcome is that many government initiatives are shown to be less than relevant to the position in which the farmer finds himself. This fact - that the government recommendations are often irrelevant to the inhabitants - is then expanded upon to reveal some of the problems of intensifying agricultural production in a marginal environment where the risks are great. The strategy that the farmers adopted appeared to consist of two contrasting, although not contradictory,- elements: firstly, a great specificity of response to varying edaphic and topographic conditions; and secondly, an emphasis on flexibility of response to the variable climate. Both elements combine to stabilise production or minimise risk. The resulting limited opportunities for investment in agriculture forced farmers to look for a large proportion of their cash income outside rice and upland crop cultivation. This was accentuated by the ever-increasing pressure on farmers to have a greater disposable income, and emphasises the importance of diversifying the farm economy and presenting farmers with opportunities outside agriculture. 3 k CONTENTS Page List of Tables^ Maps/ Figures/ Graphs and 5 Appendices Acknowledgements 16 Glossary of Thai Terms 17 Conversion Table 18 Abbreviations 19 Chapter One Introduction/ Theory and Aims 22 Chapter Two 'The Northeast Problem' 62 Chapter Three The Khorat Region and the 121 Province of Mahasarakham: Their Physical Characteristics Chapter Four The Villages of Baan Noon Tae 155 and Baan Tha Song Korn Section I The Strategy of Cultivation in the Study Villages Chapter Five Rice Cultivation in Noon Tae 201 and Tha Song Korn Chapter Six Upland Crop Cultivation in Noon 280 Tae and Tha Song Korn Chapter Seven Cooperative Membership in Noon 344 Tae and Tha Song Korn Section II Alternative Strategies Chapter Eight Alternative Sources of Income 385 Chapter Nine An Alternative Development 413 Project: 'CBIRD' Chapter Ten Synthesis 456 Appendices 476 Bibliography 493 5 List of Tables Chapter Two 2.1 Population, Land Area and Gross Regional Product of Thailand, by Region. 2.2 Land use in the Northeast (1980). 2.3 Population and Contreceptive Use in Thailand and the Northeastern Reion. 2.4 Land Holdings by Tenure and by Region. 2.5 Forested Area of Thailand as Percentage of Total Land Area. 2.6 Distribution of the Poor Population, by Region and by Area, 1962/3 & 1975/6 (% of total poor population). 2.7 Levels of Malnutrition in Thailand. 2.8 Change in the Northeastern Region’s share of the Gross Domestic Product: 1960-1969. 2.9 Tambon Development Programme Funding, per Capita, by Region. 2.10 Estimates of Water Storage Potential and Irrigable Land in the Northeast. 2.11 Average Rates of Fertiliser Application and Yields in Thailand and Other Selected Asian Countries. 2.12 Area Planted to Kenaf in the Northeast: 1950-1980. 2.13 Exports and Imports of Jute and Kenaf: 1975-1980. 2.14 Area Planted and Production of Cassava in the Northeastern Region. 2.15 Kenaf: Five-year Moving Average, 1962-1971 (Northeastern Region). 2.16 Importance of Various Upland Crops in the Northeast Region of Thailand (crop year 1980/1981). 2.17 Interest Rates on Agricultural Credit in the Northeast: Formal and Informal Sources. 6 (List of tables con't) Chapter Three 3.1 Maximum, Minimum and Standard deviation of Monthly Rainfall in Mahasarakham, 1971-1982. 3.2 Possible Rainfed Farming Periods Based on Effective Rainfall: Changwat Mahasarakham. 3.3 Land Suitability and Land Use in the Northeast. 3.4 The Extent of Erosion in the Northeast and in Mahasarakham Province. 3.5 The Soils of Mahasarakham. 3.6a Characteristics of the Soil Series in the Vicinity of Baan Noon Tae and Baan Tha Song Korn. 3.6b Soil Analysis: Changwat Mahasarakham. 3.7 Influence of Soil Organic Matter on Soil Properties. Chapter Four 4.1 Soil Analysis of three Progressions from Riceland to Upland. 4.2 Soil Analysis: Particle Distribution. 4.3 Baan Noon Tae & Tha Song Korn: Land Holdings. 4.4 Certificates of Land Ownership. 4.5 Land Acquisition and Ownership in Noon Tae and Tha Song Korn. 4.6 Rice Production and Rice Consumption. 4.7 Rice Varieties Cultivated in Noon Tae & Tha Song Korn. 4.8 Livestock Owned by those Interviewed. Chapter Five 5.1 Problems Encountered, by Rice Plot. 5.2 Distribution of Rice Seed by the Kaset Amphoe (1982). 7 (List of tables con't) 5.3 Rice Varieties Cultivated, by Riceland Type. 5.4 Characteristics of the Rice Varieties Cultivated in Noon Tae & Tha Song Korn. 5.5 Fertilisers Purchased, by Source. 5.6 Chemical Fertilisers: Details of Sources. 5.7 Diffusion of Information: Fertiliser Use. 5.8 Comparison of Those Farmers Who Applied no Fertilisers in 1982/83 with the Sample Mean. 5.9 Correlation of the Intensity of Fertiliser Use with Various Socio-Economic Variables. 5.10 Costs of Fertiliser Use on Varying Areas of Riceland 5.11 Planted and Harvested area of Rice, by Padiland Type. 5.12 Harvested area, Yield, Standard Deviation of Yield and Fertiliser Use, by Riceland Type. 5.13 Correlation of Yield and Fertiliser Use, by Land Type. 5.14 Reasons Given by Farmers for Applying Little or No Fertilisers. 5.15 Pesticides Used by Farmers in Baan Noon Tae and Baan Tha Song Korn. 5.16 Correlation of Pesticide Use with Various Socio-economic Variables. 5.17 Reasons Given for Using No, or No More, Pesticides. 5.18 Labour Use, by Household. 5.19 Correlation of Labour Use with Various Socio- Economic Variables. 5.20 Comparison of those Farmers who used Long Khaek to Meet their Labour Demands with the Mean for the Sample. 5.21 The Marketing of Rice in Noon Tae and Tha Song Korn. 8 (List of tables con't) 5.22 Comparison of the Farmers who Sold Glutinous Rice with those who Sold Non-Glutinous Rice. 5.23 Rice: Marketing Channels and Prices Paid. Chapter Six 6.1 Upland Cropping in Noon Tae and Tha Song Korn. 6.2 The Area Planted to Kenaf and Cassava: 1975 & 1980. 6.3 The Relative Wholesale Prices of Kenaf and Tapioca: 1968-1982. 6.4 Average Gross Returns per rai on Cassava and Kenaf: 1967/68 - 1980/81. 6.5 Field Crops Cultivated in Amphoe Muang Mahasarakham: 1981/82 Season. 6.6 Comparison of those Farmers who Grew Kenaf or Jute and those who Cultivated Cassava. 6.7 Seeds Available to Farmers from the Upland Crop S tation. 6.8 The Identification of Upland Crop Varieties by the Farmers. 6.9 Land Use Problems Facing Farmers Cultivating Upland Crops. 6.10 Comparison of those Farmers who Cultivated Upland Crops and Used Manure and/or Fertilisers with those who did not. 6.11 Type of Labour Use on Upland Crops. 6.12 Labour Use on Upland Crops. 6.13 Correlation of Labour Use with Various Socio- Economic Variables. 6.14 Comparison of those Farmers who Sold their Cassava 'Green* with those who Harvested the Crop. 6.15 Comparison Data for Upland Crop Yields. 6.16 Costs; Returns and Profits from Upland Cash Crops (per rai). 9 (List of Tables con't) 6.17 The Marketing of Upland Crops in Baan Noon Tae & Baan Tha Song Korn. 6.18 Buying of 'Green* Cassava. 6.19 Breakdown of Costs and Profits Incurred by a Middleman in the Marketing of Chipped and Dried Cassava. Chapter Seven 7.1 Cooperative Membership. 7.2 Services Extended to Cooperative Groups 17 & 18: 1982/83 Season (per member). 7.3 Comparison of Cooperative Members and Non-Members 7.4 Credit Extension to Cooperative Members. 7.5 Reasons Given for Failing to Join the Cooperative 7.6 Credit Use in Noon Tae & Tha Song Korn/ by Source 7.7 The BAAC's Loan Structure for Loans to Client Farmers.