ration, seeding and transplanting of traditional varieties without much Insecticide. These inputs, however, appear to affect yield less
penalty, though the tendency in rainfed areas is to plant nearly strongly than does fertilizer.
simultaneously with the onset of the rainy season. At harvest time, all
rice in the area matures at once, creating a large demand for harvest Contribution to hoUsegld objectives. Early maturing varieties
labor. As Iloilo is not a particularly labor abundant areas, the har- provide the potential for increased food production and farm Income
vesting process for any one farm often lasts the whole month of December through increased yield per planted crop and through the possibility of
and absorbs large amounts of labor, thus creating a labor "bottleneck." increasing the number of crops planted on the same field during a crop
season. Since the time between planting and harvest is reduced, food
An actual labor profile for a rainfed farm planting only tra- becomes available earlier in the season to replenish diminishing stocks,
ditional rice varieties is presented in Figure 4. Land and seedbed an Important advantage to those farmers producing at or near subsistence
preparation take place during the June to early August period, levels. Although many of the new varieties approximate the eating
Seedlings are transplanted during mid-August through early September, quality of traditional varieties, some farmers continue to plant preand the mature plants harvested during December and January. The early ferred traditional varieties to fill family food needs, while planting
onset of rainfall enables planting of an upland crop such as green corn new varieties for income generation.
before rice crop establishment on at least a portion of the farm.
Alternatively, drought-resistant crops such as mungbean and cowpea can Institutional reautremefiA. The EMVs require an Increase in the
be successfully planted after rice on lower fields with heavy soils application of productive inputs, especially fertilizer. However,
capable of retaining sufficient amounts of moisture, farmers generally apply amounts of Inputs less than those recommended by
researchers. Increasing yields and cropping Intensity have greatly
increased the amount of grain which passes through the largely
EVALUIATION OF EXISTING NEW TECHNOLOGIES government-controlled marketing system. Therefore, storage capacity has
become a major problem in'the Iloilo area. The government offers to buy
With the technology evaluation criteria in mind, three alternative rice at a fixed price until its storage capacity is filled. At that
existing technologies are evaluated to determine their suitability to point, the informal market begins to function. During periods when
current farming systems In Iloilo. One of the technologies, namely the large amounts of rice are being harvested and the government is no
utilization of early maturing varieties, is already in an advanced stage longer able to purchase rice, produce is sold through local
of adoption by Iloilo farmers. The remaining existing technologies have Intermediaries, often at prices substantially lower than the government
been tested by the CSP on farmers' fields, but their adoption is not yet *guaranteed" price. Thus, while production may have increased, the
widespread. All of the technologies discussed pertain to the growing of possibility exists for a net reduction in farm income If the reduced
rained owlad rce.output price received by farmers more than offsets the value of the increased production.
Existing Technology I Early maturing varieties (EHl
Managerial requirements. Modern varieties were developed on
Resource utilizatioQn. The early maturation characteristic of new experiment stations under tightly controlled environmental conditions.
varieties causes them to use land for a shorter period during the wet Based on those experiments.' recommendations were made as to crop
season than do traditional varieties. This allows greater cropping management practices necessary to achieve maximum output. The recoinintensity, assuming the time gained during the wet season can be used mendations were rather rigid, calling for large amounts of capital
productively. Low photoperiod sensitivity allows better use of a inputs and a high degree of water control. Furthermore, the reconusually abundant resource, labor. The EMVs generally require as much mendations contained strict guidelines as to the timing of operations
labor as do the traditional varieties, but soine of the requirements such as transplanting and Input application. In general, small farmers
during periods of high labor demand can be reduced. For example, labor do not possess the quantity and quality of resources necessary to carry
requirements can be spread out over time by staggering land preparation out these management recommendations, and therefore do not fully realize
and planting. Furthermore, since new varieties are of a relatively the production potential of the new .varieties.
fixed field duration, harvesting labor requirements can also be spread
out. The early maturation characteristic has reduced the risk of yield
loss due to drought stress, as EN~s are normally harvested within the
In order to realize their yield potential EM~s require Increased bounds of the rice growing season. Traditional varieties, on the other
amounts of fertilizer (especially nitrogen). This implies the increased hand, generally mature in December, and often face drought conditions
use of relatively scarce small farm resources, namely cash or credit to before harvest.
obtain the needed inputs. Recommendations by researchers alsa call for
increased use of other complementary inputs such as herbicide and
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