Farmers sustainability index: The case of paddy farmers in state of Kelantan, Malaysia

Sustainable agriculture is closely related to farming practices. In order to develop sustainable agriculture, there are important farming practices to be focused such as land preparation, use of fertilizers and weedicides among other indicators of farming practices. In particular, weed and pest control are focus points for certain crops such as cotton, rice, vegetables, and fruit with heavily applied chemical inputs. Among food crops, paddy requires heavy doses of fertilizers, weedicides and pesticides to keep it healthy and productive. This study, conducted in 2013, observes paddy farming practices, and estimate the Paddy Farmer Sustainability Index (PFSI) as a measurement to estimate whether or not farmers are practicing sustainable agriculture. The objective of this study is to examine the degree of sustainability at field level under the current paddy farming systems through Paddy Farmer Sustainability Index (PFSI) based on the current 30 practices at field level. A field survey was conducted by personal interviews targeting 61 paddy farmers in PPKs (Farmer Organization Association) areas of KADA, Kelantan. The PFSI was measured on a scale of 0 to 100. The results indicate that the average sustainability level in the paddy farming is relatively unsustainable implying that it requires further extension of proper farm practices among paddy farmers. Chi-square analysis shows that the level of farmers’ awareness toward sustainable agriculture and positive attitude are significantly different with the level of PFSI.