2. FRAMEWORK FOR ASSESSING THE SUSTAINABILITY OF ORGANIC
RICE FARMING
Sustainability indicators should be location-specific and considered within the context of the contemporary socio-economic situation Dumanski Pieri, 1996; Rasul
Thapa, 2003. Most of the indicators, however, cannot be used to assess sustainability at the farm level, although individual farmers take the major decision in land-use
including mode of use and choice of technology Webster, 1999. Hayati et al 2010 define, measuring sustainability at the farm level is the most precise method. The
indicators assessment should analytical soundness and measurability; really measures what it is supposed to detect; measures significant aspect; problem specific; can be
reproduced and repeated over time, and have to be specified in terms of quantity, quality and time horizon.
Management of natural resources is the key point of a better production. In the context of organic farming systems within this study, economic and social aspects were
considered in the assessment of sustainability of the organic farming. The ecological components such as the usage of organic fertilizer, green manures, as well as organic
pesticide, and herbicides, were the causes of the social-economic components. Assessment of variables such as food security, risk and uncertainties is highly relevant
for agriculture sustainability and livelihood security in rural areas Pretty, 1995; Rasul Thapa, 2003. Therefore, social indicators in this study included aspects of food
security, input self-sufficiency, and participation in local organizations. This study short-term goals are increasing rice production and reducing poverty.
Indicator’s goal setting is an important part of its planning and development by ensuring that participants have a clear understanding on what they do to obtain or assist to obtain
an essential set of indicators. This study proposed operational socio-economcs indicators for measuring rice
farming sustainability, which are crop productivity, benefit-cost ratio, input self- sufficiency, land-ownership, rice self-sufficiency, access to market and banking,
dependency on subsidy, and participation on local organization.
Table 1. Indicators for Organic Farming Sustainability Asssesment
Activities Dimension
Sources for operational indicators
Criteria for selection
Proxy-Indicators
Usage of animal
organic manures and
green manures,
integrated pest
management Economic
Zhen and Routray 2003 -
crop productivity, -
net farm income, -
benefit-cost ratio of production.
Nijkamp and Vreeker 2000 -
land ownership -
economic efficiency Gowda and Jayaramaiah 1998
- input self-sufficiency
- crop yield security
- input productivity
1. relevant to
short-term goal increasing and
maintaning rice production and
farming profitability
2. relevant to
organic farming
practice at farmer level
and to users
3. farmer
understand and easy to
measure 4.
representative 5.
data available 6.
easy to interpret
7. accepted
indicators 1.
Crop productivity 2.
Benefit-cost ratio 3.
Input self- sufficiency
4. Land-ownership
Social Zhen and Routray 2003
- food self sufficiency,
- equality in income and food
distribution, -
access to resource and support services
Gowda and Jayaramaiah 1998 -
information self-reliance -
family food sufficiency Rasul Thapa 2003
- food security
- livelihood security
1. Rice self-
sufficiency 2.
Access to market and banking
3. Farming viability
4. Dependency to
subsidy 5.
Participation on local organization
3. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHOD
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