Is the Philippines' leading rice-producing province faring good enough? The case of rice farming in Nueva Ecija

Achieving “zero rice import” remains the single most sought-after target in Philippine agriculture, irrespective of any political administration. This resolve is strengthened each time a major rice crisis hits the world or the country itself. Two commonly asked questions are “How profitable is rice production in the Philippines?” and “Can it produce at a price competitive with that in the world market?”. A 1996-to-1999 IRRI study in Nueva Ecija partly answered the question on how the country compares with other Asian countries. This study revisited the case of the Philippines’ largest rice- producing province using 2013 two-season survey data gathered from 103 irrigated rice farmers.