Adoption of Environment-Friendly Rice Farming System and Adjustment of Food Self-Sufficiency Policy

친환경(親環境) 쌀농업체계(農業體系)로의 전환(轉換)과 식량수급정책(食糧需給政策)의 조정문제(調整問題)

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of environmental sound rice farming method on the productivity of rice industry which may result in impacts on the staple food securities. Recently fanners have been concerned about adopting new rice cultivation method such as organic and low input farming system in which fertilizer and pesticide can be substantially reduced so as to alleviate the burden of agro-ecosystem. However, It has been argued about whether or not there are negative impacts on the self sufficiency rate of food, income of farm household and technological adaptability. Therefore this study examined the productivity trend of environmental rice farming system and predicted the long term rice self-sufficiency rate when environmental rice farming system are adopted by assuming various scenarios. It was estimated that rice self-sufficiency rate can be decreased up to 52.2% by 2010. Based on the analysis of results, policy recommendations for environmentally sound rice farming were suggested as follows: 1) gradual adopting and transferring of environmental rice cultivation method, 2) increasing profitability of rice growing fanners 3) developing the farm level technology specific to Korean farming condition, 4) institutionalization of direct payments for encouraging environmental rice fanning.