Global Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences

Abstract

The Impact of External Factors on the Sustainability of Rice-Livestock Integrated Farming System in West Java: A Household Economic Approach

Lindawati, Nunung Kusnadi, Sri Utami Kuntjoro and Dewa K.S. Swastika

The objective of this study was to analyze the impact of external factors on the sustainability of rice-livestock integrated farming system. This study also analyzed the factors that affected the household economic behavior. Data was collected from 199 farmers, consisted of 134 Rice-Livestock Integrated Farming System (RLIFS) farmers and 65 non RLIFS farmers. Simultaneous equations model was used to estimate the household economic behavior. The result showed that the household economic behavior of the farmer’s production activities was positively affected by several factors such as rice seeds, rice straw, grass, bran, labor, credit, rice and livestock production as well as ricefield area. The consumption expenditure was positively affected by family members, schoolchildren and the total household income. The result also showed that RLIFS farmers were unresponsive to the increase of price such as rice seeds, SP- 36 fertilizer, medications and livestock vitamins as well as wages so that the farmers were relative more sustainable than non RLIFS farmers. Otherwise, RLIFS farmers were responsive to the increase of price such as manure, bran, rice straw, rice as well as livestock so that the farmers were relative more unsustainable than non RLIFS farmers.