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Purpose – The purpose of the research aims to observe the high growth of corn crops with a different cropping pattern.

Design/Methodology/Approach – The research is conducted based on field experiments with Group Randomized Design (hereafter RAK shortened from Cluster Random Design). The treatment of cropping pattern I is that corn crops are planted in one row with the size of plot 9 m × 4 m, and the distance planting of the crops is 70 cm × 40 cm. Cropping pattern II is that corn crops are planted in two rows with the size of plot 9 m × 4 m, and the distance planting is 70 cm × 40 cm. Cropping pattern III is that corn crops are planted in three rows with the size of plot 9 m × 4 m, and the distance among the crops is 70 cm × 40 cm.

Findings – The result of research shows that the highest corn crops are from cropping pattern II.3 at age 15 and 30 after planting time (called HariSetelahTanam or HST). The increase of cropping rows from one row to two rows indicates that intra-specific competition are more dominant. The growth of crops is faster because they need full sunlight at vegetative and generative stages. The need of full sunlight at the growing stage causes the increasing of stem height of crops to enable the crops to receive the sunlight optimally due to the continuity of photosynthesis process. The increasing growth of stem diameter is in accordance with the growth speed of height plant at the same age.

Research Limitations/Implications – This research intends to find out the best growing process of the plant. Further research is needed to study the outcome of final product of the plant.

Practical Implications – This is to see the utilization of the best cropping pattern and optimal land utilization.

Originality/Value – High growth of corn crops and stem diameter (Zea may, S) with a different cropping pattern has not yet been published.

This study aims to examine the effects of climate change and agricultural technologies on crop production in Vietnam for the period 1990–2018.

Several econometric techniques – such as the augmented Dickey–Fuller, Phillips–Perron, the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds test, variance decomposition method (VDM) and impulse response function (IRF) are used for the empirical analysis.

The results of the ARDL bounds test confirm the significant dynamic relationship among the variables under consideration, with a significance level of 1%. The primary findings indicate that the average annual temperature exerts a negative influence on crop yield, both in the short term and in the long term. The utilization of fertilizer has been found to augment crop productivity, whereas the application of pesticides has demonstrated the potential to raise crop production in the short term. Moreover, both the expansion of cultivated land and the utilization of energy resources have played significant roles in enhancing agricultural output across both in the short term and in the long term. Furthermore, the robustness outcomes also validate the statistical importance of the factors examined in the context of Vietnam.

This study provides persuasive evidence for policymakers to emphasize advancements in intensive agriculture as a means to mitigate the impacts of climate change. In the research, the authors use average annual temperature as a surrogate measure for climate change, while using fertilizer and pesticide usage as surrogate indicators for agricultural technologies. Future research can concentrate on the impact of ICT, climate change (specifically pertaining to maximum temperature, minimum temperature and precipitation), and agricultural technological improvements that have an impact on cereal production.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to examine how climate change and technology effect crop output in Vietnam from 1990 to 2018. Various econometrics tools, such as ARDL modeling, VDM and IRF, are used for estimation.

The purpose of this paper is to explain the factors affecting crop insurance purchases by farmers in Inner Mongolia, China.

A survey of farmers in Inner Mongolia, China, is undertaken. Selected variables are used to explain crop insurance purchases, and a probit regression model is used for the analysis.

Results show that a number of variables explain crop insurance purchases by farmers in Inner Mongolia. Of the eight variables in the model, seven are statistically significant. The eight variables used to explain crop insurance purchases are: knowledge of crop insurance, previous purchases of crop insurance, trust of the crop insurance company, amount of risk taken on by the farmer, importance of low crop insurance premium, government as the main information source for crop insurance, role of head of village, and number of family members working in the city.

A possible limitation of the study is that data includes only one geographic area, Inner Mongolia, China, and so results may not always fully generalize to all regions of China, for all situations.

Crop insurance has been recently expanded in China, and the information from this study should be useful for insurance companies and government policy makers that are attempting to increase the adoption rate of crop insurance in China.

Crop insurance may be a useful approach for stabilizing the agricultural sector, and for increasing agricultural production and food security in China.

This is the first study to quantitatively model the factors affecting crop insurance purchases by farmers in Inner Mongolia, China.

The purpose of this paper is to present a procedure to estimate the total irrigation water requirement for a command area of 2,500 hectares in an arid environment under various crops and soil types using GIS for data storage, analysis and visualization of results.

Bani Al‐Harith agricultural area in Sana'a basin, Yemen was chosen for the study. ArcView GIS was used to plan for suitable crops and estimate the irrigation water requirements based on the farmer's preference and soil types. Using the available soil maps, the soil characteristics such as salinity, texture and suitable crop types were overlaid to produce the crop blocks map. The water balance equation was used to produce the crop water requirement map considering the crop coefficient for different crop stages. The total water demand for each irrigation block was calculated by summing the three components, namely percolation loss through the soil, maximum evapotranspiration of the crop and leaching requirement (LR) to maintain an acceptable salinity level.

The case study is an example of using GIS as an effective tool in irrigation planning. GIS facilities to acquire, store, analyze and display spatial data were used to produce the soil class map, soil profile map, crop map and water requirement map. The profile EC_e values for the chosen crops is within the crop salinity tolerance for 100 percent yield except for blocks 4 and 5 where grape and coffee respectively are suggested to be grown. The profile EC_e values are 18.37 dS/m in block 4 and 3.27 to 7.88 dS/m in block 5. The tolerance threshold of 100 percent yield for grape is 1.5 dS/m and for coffee is 3 to 6 dS/m. The salinity of the irrigation water was 2.08 dS/m. From the crop blocks map, the salinity tolerance level for 100 percent yield of onion for block 1 is 1.2 dS/m, tomato for block 2 is 2.5 dS/m, alfalfa for block 3 is 2 dS/m, grape for block 4 is 1.5/ dS/m, and the salinity tolerance level for 100 percent yield of coffee for block 5 is 5 dS/m. Leaching requirements were obtained by taking EC_w value of 2.08 and EC_e of 1.2, 2.5, 2, 1.5 and 5 for onion, tomato, alfalfa, grape and coffee respectively. The peak total water requirement occurred in May and was found to be 5,595 m³/ha, or 560 mm. The design irrigation water requirement for every block is shown in a map for easy visualization and manipulation to produce the best combination of soils, crops and water use.

This method of determining the total irrigation water requirement is dependent on the selected irrigation system and crops whether shallow‐rooted, deep‐rooted or tree crops. The use of water in agriculture should be judicious, precise and sustainable. Application of GIS can be a useful tool in irrigation management since it provides rapid access to underlying information of crop suitability. The designer can try out various combinations of crops, to suit the soils and available water.

This methodology is useful for training irrigation engineers and water resource planners on the use of GIS technique to plan irrigation projects in arid areas.

This technique has never been applied to the study area.

The choice of crops to produce at a location depends to a large degree on the climate. As the climate changes and food demand evolves, farmers may need to produce a different mix of crops. This study assesses how much cropland may be subject to such upheavals at the global scale, and then focuses on China as a case study to examine how spatial heterogeneity informs different contexts for adaptation within a country.

A global agricultural economic model is linked to a cropland allocation algorithm to generate maps of cropland distribution under historical and future conditions. The mix of crops at each location is examined to determine whether it is likely to experience a major shift.

Two-thirds of rainfed cropland and half of irrigated cropland are likely to experience substantial upheaval of some kind.

This analysis helps establish a global context for the local changes that producers might face under future climate and socioeconomic changes. The scale of the challenge means that the agricultural sector needs to prepare for these widespread and diverse upheavals.

Despite the susceptibility of cotton crops to pest attacks in the Malwa Region of Indian Punjab, no crop insurance policy has been implemented there– not even the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), which is a central scheme. Therefore, this paper attempts to gauge the likely impact of the PMFBY on Punjab cotton farmers and assess the changes needed for greater uptake and effectiveness of PMFBY.

The authors have conducted a primary survey to conduct this study. Initially, the authors compared the costs of cotton production with the returns in two scenarios (with and without insurance). Additionally, the authors have applied a logistic regression framework to examine the determinants of the willingness of farmers to participate in the crop insurance market.

The study finds that net returns of cotton crops are conventionally small and insufficient to cope with damages from crop failure. Yet, PMFBY will require some modifications in the premium rate and the level of indemnity for its greater uptake among Punjab cotton farmers. Additionally, using the logistic regression framework, the authors find that an increase in awareness about crop insurance and farmers' perceptions about their crop failure in the near future reduces the willingness of the farmers to participate in the crop insurance markets.

The present study looks for the viability of PMFBY in Indian Punjab for the cotton crop, which can also be extended to other crops.

Punjab could also use crop insurance to encourage diversification in agriculture. There is a need for special packages for diversified crops under any crop insurance policy. Crops susceptible to volatility due to climate-related factors should be identified and provided with a special insurance package.

There exist very scant studies that have discussed the viability of a central crop insurance scheme in the agricultural-rich state of India, i.e. Punjab. Moreover, they do not also focus on crop losses accruing due to pest and insect attacks.

Purpose – The role of genetically modified (GM) crops for food security is the subject of controversial debates. Consequently, policy-makers are unsure whether this technology is suitable for developing countries. This chapter reviews the scientific evidence.

Methodology/approach – Starting from a food security definition, potential pathways of how GM crops could contribute to hunger reduction are analyzed conceptually. Furthermore, studies about the socioeconomic impacts of GM crop applications are reviewed. This includes ex post studies for present applications such as insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant crops, as well as ex ante studies for future GM technologies such as Golden Rice and drought-tolerant varieties.

Findings – GM crops can raise agricultural productivity and thus contribute to better food availability. Especially when tailored to small farm conditions, GM crops can also cause income increases for the rural poor, entailing better access to food. Nutritionally enhanced, biofortified GM crops could reduce problems of micronutrient malnutrition in a cost-effective way.

Research limitations – The examples observable so far are still limited. Impacts also depend on the wider institutional setting. Like any technology, GM crops are not a substitute but a complement to much needed institutional and infrastructure improvement in developing countries.

Social implications – The fact that available GM crops already contribute to poverty reduction and improved food security has not been widely recognized up until now.

Value of paper – Results presented in this chapter can contribute to a more constructive public debate, in which GM crop risks are not discussed out of the context of actual and potential benefits.

Two major regulatory regimes for planting of genetically modified (GM) crops have emerged: one where the property rights for growing GM crops are mainly with the GM farmer and another where the property rights are mainly with the non-GM farmer. In this contribution, the regulatory model chosen by Canada and the United States is compared with that of the EU and its variants, analyzed from an efficiency point of view. While the general view in the literature on ex-ante regulation versus ex-post liability rules under uncertainty holds that the most efficient regulatory regime depends on the specific case under investigation, we have investigated the analytical conditions for one or the other regulatory system to be more efficient, concluding that the property rights systems are almost equivalent, so long as transaction costs are not prohibitively high and using the court system is costless. As using the court system is not cost free, however, we hold that property rights regimes where the GM farmer is not liable are preferable from a social welfare point of view.

In late 2015, the El Nĩno phenomenon induced Vietnam’s worst drought in 60 years, which lasted until mid-2016 and intensified the most expansive saline intrusion in 90 years. The combination of the two hazards resulted in a large-scale disaster, which has led 18 provinces of Vietnam, most of them from the Mekong Delta, to water shortage, insanitation, human and animal diseases, food emergency need and a considerable disruption in local communities’ livelihoods. These devastating effects raise the question of what makes local households vulnerable to drought and saline intrusion. The chapter argues that vulnerability to the natural disaster is not something resulted from external threats, but rather, is derived from the interplay between social structures residing deeply inside the socio-economic systems and agency’s conditions presenting at the household level. Social structures are rules and procedures that constrain and/or enable human actions in agricultural production, risk taking and adaptation. Agency refers to the capacities of disaster-affected households in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta who cultivated third rice crop and suffered heavily from the 2015–2016 disaster. In addition to households’ lack of planning and coping capacities, the constitution of vulnerability to drought and saline intrusion can be attributed to the interaction between farmers’ choice of extra rice crops and the state’s policies and directions in agricultural and irrigation development since 1990s to date.

Purpose – The chapter examines the international welfare effects of biotech crop adoption, based on a transversal literature review and a case study of the introduction of genetically modified (GM) food crops in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Methodology/approach – The analysis is based on (a) a review of lessons from the applied economic literature and (b) simulations using an improved multimarket, multicountry, computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, calibrated with productivity hypotheses formulated with local scientists in the four Asian countries.

Findings – Results from the analysis show that, in the absence of trade-related regulations, GM crop adoption generates economic gains for adopting countries and importing non-adopters, that domestic regulations at adopters and especially non-adopters can reduce these gains, and that import regulations in other countries can also affect gains for exporting adopters. The case study illustrates these conclusions, but it also shows that net importers will mostly benefit from adoption in their terms of trade, and that segregation of non-GM crops for export markets can be beneficial if it is not too costly.

Research limitations/implications – The use of a CGE model allows for accounting for cross-sectoral effects, and for regulations affecting bilateral trade flows, but it also has a number of limitations. The model used here, like the ones used in the other papers in the literature, is static, based on an aggregated representation of the global economy (GTAP database), and assumes perfect competition. This means that the absolute results of each scenario may not perfectly represent the actual welfare effects engendered by the adoption of biotech crops. Still, what matters here is the comparison of the relative welfare effects across countries and scenarios. The simulations are also done ex-ante, so, even if the model here was calibrated with country-based data, the results do depend on hypothetical assumptions about the performance of the selected technologies.

Originality/value of the paper – The chapter aims to illustrate the welfare effects generated by GM crops for adopters, non-adopters, in a segmented and regulated international market. Unlike other papers, the review section provides key transversal lessons from the literature, accounting for results from both partial equilibrium and CGE model studies. The empirical application focuses on four populous Asian countries that have been largely left out of the literature. The model used in the simulation presents a number of improvement from the CGE literature on GM crops, including partial adoption, factor-biased productivity shock in each adopting country, GM labeling regulations modeled as trade filters, and the inclusion of costly non-GM segregation as observed in the international market.