Adoption of minimum tillage and mid-season drainage in rice production and their impacts on farm and economic performance

Abstract

This paper investigates the effects of two greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation practices—minimum tillage and mid-season drainage—on rice farmers' farm performance (e.g., crop yield and risk) and economic outcomes (e.g., income and vulnerability). Minimum tillage reduces carbon dioxide emissions by preserving soil carbon and lowering machinery energy use, while mid-season drainage reduces methane emissions by interrupting anaerobic conditions in rice paddies. We employ a multinomial endogenous switching regression model to analyse survey data collected from rice farmers in China. The results show that adopting mid-season drainage alone significantly increases rice yield, while adopting minimum tillage—alone or combined with mid-season drainage—reduces yield variance. In addition, adoption of either practice or both, substantially improves yield skewness, raises household income and reduces vulnerability to poverty. The findings highlight that promoting GHG mitigation practices like minimum tillage and mid-season drainage requires emphasising their benefits in reducing production risks and poverty vulnerability, alongside their environmental impact, to encourage broader adoption among farmers.