You reap what you sow? Reasons for low profit margins among smallholding rice farmers in the Philippines

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Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2016 in the subject Agrarian Studies, grade: 1.10, , language: English, abstract: Using a case study approach, this article explores why the smallholding rice farmers in the Philippines receive low profit which is even as less as the minimum wage when the retail price of rice is significantly higher in comparison to those of nearby countries. In the Calumpit municipality of Bulacan province of the Philippines, the study uses mixed design with both qualitative and quantitative tools. It is a general perception that presence of middlemen in the rice value chain minimizes the profitability of the farmers but in Philippines, the scenario is not the same. This study explains how the limited or almost no access to the factors of production can make the smallholding farmers dependant on the other actors who eventually extracts the major profit share from the value chain. It also emphasizes on the promotion of multi-cropping by making water and other inputs available for farming, which eventually can make smallholding farming profitable in the study area.