Yield and Income Effects of the Green Super Rice (GSR) Varieties: Evidence from a Fixed-Effects Model in the Philippines

With the increasing frequency of extreme climatic events, the new challenge is to develop rice varieties that are tolerant of drought, water submergence, and salinity. There are now new high yielding GSR cultivars developed at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) with increased tolerance of multiple abiotic stresses, such as drought, submergence, and salinity. But a clear understanding of the economic benefits of these varieties under farmers’ production environments is not yet fully understood. In this paper we assess the yield and income effects of GSR rice varieties using a two-year panel data from one province. We use the survey data and a fixed-effects model within a difference-in-difference (DID) framework to estimate the yield effects. The income effects were evaluated with a profit function using the parameter estimates from the yield/production function model. The results of the OLS and DID fixed-effects regressions both reveal significant and positive effects of GSR varieties on yield. The most important finding is that the benefits from these varieties are more strongly felt when there is flooding, which traditional varieties cannot withstand because of sensitivity to submergence. We also find that farmers who achieved higher yield through the use of GSR rice varieties in the presence of abiotic stresses, also obtained higher net farm income per hectare. These findings have very important implications for food security in the Philippines. With the dramatic climatic shifts, particularly in areas where rice production is dominant and extensive, the benefits that the GSR varieties could offer may be significant to secure more rice and alleviate poverty in the country.