PR - Strategies Of Precision Agriculture: Comparison Of Countries With/Without Land Resource (p297-306)

This paper compares the present situation of precision agriculture (PA) practices in US and Japanese rice production and presents desirable strategies for implementation. First, the accessibility of PA technology in the farm equipment market by farmers is investigated through interview surveys among Global Positioning System (GPS) dealers and salespersons of leading companies. Second, the actual uses of PA equipment are assessed by interview surveys among rice farmers in California and Japan. Third, the break-even cost reduction rate (BECR) of PA investment on farms is calculated to find out how much a farmer should reduce cost (or improve profit) to cover the overhead of PA equipment. The technology seems to be disseminating among relatively large farmers there in spite of the limited accessibility of PA and the small scattered rice fields in Japan. The BECR of the farms in both countries is quite similar—around 1%. It probably reflects the risk and benefit of introducing PA to each farm. Since Japanese rice farmers obtain higher prices for the rice they produce not only because of the tariff barrier but also the quality standard, they can achieve a low BECR despite the smaller farm size.

Keywords: Precision agriculture, Rice production, Global Positioning System (GPS), Break-even point