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Laser leveling in small scale rice production benefits from
advanced
technologies for resource poor farmers
Caling BalingbingNguyen Van Hung, Martin Gummert
Postharvest and Mechanization Unit, IRRI
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Topic Outline
Field sizes in Asian farms and productivity Current practices on
land levelingHow does laser land leveling (LLL) work?Benefits and
impacts of laser levelingLessons learned from AsiaBottlenecks and
challengesWays to move forward
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Typical farmers field in Asia
Average farm size: 1-2ha; Field sizes: 0.1-0.5 ha (12-15 plots
per hectare)
Average elevation difference: 160mm;
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Farmers leveling practice
Animal-drawn leveling plank
Field harrow
2WT with leveling boards/harrow
Flooding the fields to identify low and high spots
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How does laser leveling work?
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Field levelingLand forming
Land consolidation Drag bucket or front blade Shift large
amounts of soil Once every 3-6 years
Surface leveling Rotary hoe plus leveling board Moves only small
amounts of
soil Not economical due to annual
cost
Dry leveling Wet leveling
How does laser leveling work?
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LLL is a resource conservation technology (Savings in water:
20-25%)
LLL is a scale neutral technology
Benefits & impacts of laser leveling
Field enlargement with bund removal Generates rural employment
Helps ensure food security Aids marginalized groups in CC
adaptation
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Reduces GHGE: 5-10% Increases yield: 5-15% Efficiency in input
use
Benefits & impacts of laser leveling
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Benefits & impacts of laser leveling
https://ccafs.cgiar.org/research/annual-report/2014/
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1996 2001 2006 2014
Cambodia IRRI designed bucket; Spectra provided laser equipment;
CIAP conducted research in 1996-1999 In 2012, IRRI conducted trng
at Don Bos Farm, BTB
2015
Vietnam A unit was provided at BacLieu Seed Center Trimble
partnered with Ideal Farming Corporation 32 distributed by projects
(IRRI, ACP-WB) NLU works on optimizing performance of the
system
Thailand Introduced in 2014 by IRRI CTA provides custom service,
trng & sales Thai RD plans for large field
Lessons learned from Asian rice fields
2004
Philippines 6 DA technicians attended training at IRRI A private
farm in Mindoro invested on a unit LL is promoted/supported in
several programs on agricultural mechanization
.
India Began in 2001 and service providers increased sharply
(10,000+) ~7% productivityUS$ 113-175/ha system profitability
10-13% agronomic efficiency of N
ChinaIntroduced at the same period as IndiaPerceived as
successful but no updates on progress
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Opportunities & Challenges
Technical Side, Expensive and complicated equipment Lack of
reliable and competent after sales
service for broken LL equipment Fragmented Asian rice fields
Disturbance of leveled land with subsequent
cultivation and harvesting operations
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Opportunities & Challenges
Social Side, Lack of incentives for the private sector to
support mechanization for the poor farmers Heterogeneity of
benefits derived from laser
leveling technology
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Ways to move forward
Lets collaborate more! Lesson sharing from stakeholders thru
Learning Alliance for better understanding of the technology
Develop viable business models for custom service to reach small
farmers profitable for entrepreneurs & farmers
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Acknowledgements:
Dr. Bas Bouman ([email protected])
Zeigler Experiment Station (ZES): Dr. James
Quilty([email protected])
Dr. Matty Demont ([email protected])
Dr. Bjoern Ole Sander ([email protected])
Dr. Sudhir Yadav ([email protected])
Rainfed Lowland Agronomy Team : Dr. Yoichiro Kato
([email protected]) /Nio Banayo ([email protected])/ CrisantaBueno
([email protected])
www.postharvestla.irri.org
[email protected]
http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/http://www.postharvestla.irri.org/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected])/mailto:[email protected]://www.postharvestla.irri.org/mailto:[email protected]
Laser leveling in small scale rice production benefits from
advanced technologies for resource poor farmersTopic OutlineTypical
farmers field in AsiaFarmers leveling practiceHow does laser
leveling work?How does laser leveling work?Benefits & impacts
of laser levelingBenefits & impacts of laser levelingBenefits
& impacts of laser levelingLessons learned from Asian rice
fieldsOpportunities & ChallengesOpportunities &
ChallengesWays to move forwardSlide Number 14
