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Integrated rice-fish farming in Bangladesh: meeting the challenges of food security

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Abstract

In order to meet the soaring demand for food, there is a need to increase rice and fish production in Bangladesh. In spite of the potential for rice-fish farming, rice monoculture remains the main farming system in Bangladesh. However, rice monoculture cannot provide a sustainable food supply without a cost to long-term environmental sustainability. We provide evidence that integrated rice-fish farming can play an important role in increasing food production as the integrated farming system is better than rice monoculture in terms of resource utilization, diversity, productivity, and both the quality and quantity of the food produced. The Cobb-Douglas production function model also suggests that higher yields can be achieved by increasing inputs in the integrated farming system. Integrated rice-fish farming also provides various socioeconomic and environmental benefits. Nevertheless, only a small number of farmers are involved in integrated rice-fish farming due to a lack of technical knowledge, and an aversion to the risks associated with flood and drought. We conclude that integrated rice-fish farming can help Bangladesh keep pace with the current demand for food through rice and fish production but requires greater encouragement if it is to realize its full potential.

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Notes

  1. According to Swann (1992), inputs in aquaculture can be classified as material inputs (seed, feed and fertilizer) and management input (labor).

  2. Aman is the main rice crop in Bangladesh, occupying about 53% of total rice area (Hossain et al. 2006). Aman rice is planted during the monsoon, beginning in June, and harvested in November-December.

  3. Boro rice is mostly transplanted in January and harvested in April.

  4. Productivity is a ratio between a unit of output and a unit of input. According to Mainuddin and Kirby (2009), three types of productivity can be distinguished: physical productivity, economic productivity and social or environmental productivity.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported through the Australian Government Endeavor Research Fellowship. It was a part of the first author’s postdoctoral research at the School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Charles Darwin University, Australia. We are grateful to three anonymous reviewers for their very helpful and constructive comments. The views and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the authors.

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  1. Nesar Ahmed

    Present address: Department of Fisheries Management, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, 2202, Bangladesh

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT, 0909, Australia

    Nesar Ahmed

  2. Research Institute for Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT, 0909, Australia

    Stephen T. Garnett

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  1. Nesar Ahmed
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Correspondence to Nesar Ahmed.

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Ahmed, N., Garnett, S.T. Integrated rice-fish farming in Bangladesh: meeting the challenges of food security. Food Sec. 3, 81–92 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-011-0113-8

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