How Much Do Rice Farmers Earn from Their Crops? Evidence from a Rice-Exporting Country

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the earning capability of rice-farming households in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. The Delta is recognized as the largest rice-producing region in Vietnam that is known as the world’s third rice exporter. We used data collected from a farm-household survey with 110 rice farmers and applied descriptive statistics and correlation model for data analysis. We found that although the production scale of rice farmers is relatively small, their rice cultivation is profitable. The findings illustrated that the rice-farming household’s income was significantly associated with rice income and rice land size. This suggests that the rice households’ income is likely to rely on their farm size. Evidence from the study showed that rice households, particularly small-scale farms earn low income and they are likely to remain poor and in a state of poverty. The implication of the study may be that the Vietnamese government should amend the policy on rice land use and pay more considerable attention to small-farm households.