This document summarizes the findings of a study on the paddy value chain in Kompot and Takeo provinces of Cambodia. It provides details on production costs, yields, credit services, food security, supply and demand trends, price trends, and a SWOT analysis of different actors in the value chain. Some key findings include: - Rice production is a major livelihood for rural households in the study areas, with over 97% of families engaged in rice farming. - Production costs for wet season paddy averaged around $450/ha compared to $550/ha for dry season. Yields were higher for wet season at over 3 tons/ha. - The majority of paddy is sold to local collectors

1. Synthesis Report
Paddy Value Chain Study
in Kompot and Takeo Provinces
Funded by CARF/CAVAC
(Cambodia Agriculture Research Fund)
Implemented by CEDAC
January 2010
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 1

2. Tables of Contents
I. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................... 4
1.1. RATIONALE .............................................................................................................................................. 4
1.2. OBJECTIVES OF THE RESEARCH ..................................................................................................................... 4
1.3. METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................................................ 5
II. RESULTS OF THE STUDY ........................................................................................................................... 6
2.1 GENERAL STATISTICS OF THE VILLAGES STUDIED .................................................................................................... 6
2.2 PRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................ 7
2.2.1. Rice varieties used in the studied districts ....................................................................................... 7
2.3 PADDY PRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 8
2.4 PRODUCTION COST....................................................................................................................................... 10
2.4.1 Usage of chemical fertilizers ......................................................................................................... 10
2.4.2 Natural Fertilizer ........................................................................................................................... 11
2.4.3 Wet season paddy production cost ............................................................................................... 12
2.4.4 Dry season paddy production cost ................................................................................................ 13
2.4.5 Paddy Harvesting and Yield ........................................................................................................... 14
2.5 PRODUCTION COST OF PADDY PER KILOGRAM .................................................................................................... 14
2.6 CREDIT SERVICES .......................................................................................................................................... 15
2.7 CHARACTERISTIC OF FOOD SECURITY IN THE VILLAGE .......................................................................................... 16
2.8 SUPPLY SIDE ............................................................................................................................................... 18
2.9 DEMAND SIDE ............................................................................................................................................. 21
2.9.1 Demand for paddy by paddy collectors / middlemen.................................................................... 22
2.9.2 Demand of paddy by wholesalers ................................................................................................. 25
2.9.3 Demand for rice by retailers .......................................................................................................... 26
2.9.4 Demand for rice by customers ....................................................................................................... 27
2.10 PRICE TRENDS......................................................................................................................................... 28
2.11 ADVANTAGES AND EFFECTS OF COMMUNITY-BASED RICE MILLS ........................................................................ 29
2.12 SWOT ANALYSIS .................................................................................................................................... 32
2.12.1. SWOT analysis of farmer producers ......................................................................................... 32
2.12.2. SWOT analysis of paddy collectors ........................................................................................... 33
2.12.3. SWOT analysis of rice millers .................................................................................................... 34
2.12.4. SWOT analysis of wholesalers .................................................................................................. 34
2.12.5. SWOT analysis of retailers ........................................................................................................ 35
III. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................................................... 36
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 2

3. Tables
TABLE 1: GENERAL STATISTICAL INFORMATION OF THE VILLAGES STUDIED................................................................................ 6
TABLE 2: PADDY VARIETIES IN THE DISTRICTS STUDIED ......................................................................................................... 7
TABLE 3: POPULAR RICE VARIETIES MOSTLY GROWN BY FARMERS .......................................................................................... 7
TABLE 4: LAND SIZE FOR PADDY PRODUCTION PER FAMILY .................................................................................................... 8
TABLE 5: PERCENTAGES OF FARMER FAMILIES CULTIVATE DRY SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION ........................................................ 9
TABLE 6: FAMILY'S EXPENSE ON PADDY PRODUCTION (EXCLUDED OWN LABOUR) ..................................................................... 9
TABLE 7: EXPENSE ON CHEMICAL FERTILIZER PER FAMILY .................................................................................................... 10
TABLE 8: EXPENSE ON CHEMICAL FERTILIZER PER VILLAGE ................................................................................................... 11
TABLE 9: TYPES OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS MOSTLY USED BY THE FARMERS: ........................................................................... 11
TABLE 10: PERCENTAGE OF FARMERS MAKE NATURAL FERTILIZER/COMPOST PER VILLAGE ........................................................ 12
TABLE 11: EXPENSE ON WET SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION PER HA (RIELS/HA) ....................................................................... 13
TABLE 12: EXPENSE ON DRY SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION PER HA (RIELS/HA) ........................................................................ 13
TABLE 13: YIELD OF WET AND DRY SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 14
TABLE 14: WET SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION PER KILOGRAM ............................................................................................. 15
TABLE 15: DRY SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION PER KILOGRAM .............................................................................................. 15
TABLE 16: FOOD SECURITY IN THE STUDIED VILLAGES ........................................................................................................ 17
TABLE 17: VOLUME OF RICE NEEDED FOR CONSUMPTION IN THE VILLAGE .............................................................................. 17
TABLE 18: AMOUNT OF PADDY PRODUCER IN THE STUDIED VILLAGES ................................................................................... 21
TABLE 19: LIST OF COMMUNITY BASED RICE MILLS ............................................................................................................ 29
Graphs
GRAPH 1: AVERAGE AMOUNT OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS AND EXPENSE PER FAMILY PER YEAR .................................................... 10
GRAPH 2: AVERAGE AMOUNT AND EXPENSE OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZER PER VILLAGE PER YEAR .................................................... 11
GRAPH 3: AVERAGE EXPENSE OF WET SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION (RIEL/HA) ....................................................................... 12
GRAPH 4: AVERAGE EXPENSE OF DRY SEASON PADDY PRODUCTION (RIEL/HA) ........................................................................ 13
GRAPH 5: AVERAGE YIELD OF PADDY PRODUCTION (T/HA) ................................................................................................. 14
GRAPH 6: PRODUCTION COST OF WET AND DRY SEASON PADDY PER KILOGRAM (RIEL/KG) ........................................................ 15
GRAPH 7: PERCENTAGE OF FARMERS ASK FOR CREDIT SERVICE FROM EACH MFI ..................................................................... 16
GRAPH 8: AMOUNT OF RICE LACK PER FAMILY (KG/FAMILY/YEAR) ....................................................................................... 17
GRAPH 9: PERCENTAGE OF SOURCES THAT VILLAGERS BUY RICE FROM .................................................................................. 18
GRAPH 10: AVERAGE PADDIES PRODUCED AND SOLD PER FAMILY PER YEAR ........................................................................... 19
GRAPH 11: AVERAGE PADDIES PRODUCED AND SOLD PER VILLAGE PER YEAR .......................................................................... 19
GRAPH 12: INCOME FROM SELLING PADDY PER FAMILY PER YEAR (RIEL/FAMILY/YEAR) ............................................................ 20
GRAPH 13: INCOME FROM SELLING PADDY PER VILLAGE PER YEAR (RIEL/VILLAGE/YEAR)........................................................... 20
GRAPH 14: PERCENTAGE OF PADDY VARIETIES BOUGHT BY THE PADDY COLLECTORS/MIDDLEMEN IN KOMPOT.............................. 22
GRAPH 15: PERCENTAGE OF PADDY VARIETIES BOUGHT BY THE PADDY COLLECTORS/MIDDLEMEN IN TAKEO ................................. 23
GRAPH 16: PROBLEMS FACED BY THE PADDY COLLECTORS/MIDDLEMEN ............................................................................... 23
GRAPH 17: VOLUME OF PADDIES SELLS FROM PADDY COLLECTORS IN KOMPOT (%) ................................................................ 24
GRAPH 18: VOLUME OF PADDIES SELLS FROM PADDY COLLECTORS IN TAKEO (%) ................................................................... 25
GRAPH 19: VOLUME OF PADDIES SELLS FROM WHOLESALERS IN KOMPOT (%) ....................................................................... 25
GRAPH 20: VOLUME OF PADDIES SELLS FROM WHOLESALERS IN TAKEO (%) .......................................................................... 26
GRAPH 21: VOLUME OF RICE BUY BY RETAILERS IN KOMPOT FOR SELLING (%)........................................................................ 26
GRAPH 22: VOLUME OF RICE BUY BY RETAILERS IN TAKEO FOR SELLING (%) ........................................................................... 27
GRAPH 23: PERCENTAGE OF RICE VOLUME BUY BY DIFFERENT CUSTOMERS IN KOMPOT ........................................................... 27
GRAPH 24: PERCENTAGE OF RICE VOLUME BUY BY DIFFERENT CUSTOMERS IN TAKEO .............................................................. 28
GRAPH 25: PRICE TREND OF TRADITIONAL PADDY VARIETIES ............................................................................................... 28
GRAPH 26: PRICE TREND OF IR VARIETY ......................................................................................................................... 29
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 3

4. I. INTRODUCTION
1.1.Rationale
About 80 percent of Cambodia’s population of 14 million inhabitants live in rural areas,
depending primarily on rice production for their livelihoods. There are around 1.8 million rice
farming households with on average 5-6 members per household. The majority are
subsistence rice farmers with land holdings of less than 1 hectare (ha) per family. Chumkiri,
Dong Tong and Kompong Trach districts are located in Kompot province. Angkor Borey,
Borey Chulsa and Koh Andet are districts located in Takeo province. These districts are
located close to the Vietnam border where the farmers produce paddy for their own
consumption and export to Vietnam.
To date, there has been no adequate in-depth study of the paddy value chain in these districts,
especially of rice farmer producer communities, other rice producers in the villages and local
stakeholders. The results of research conducted in these districts will provide critical
knowledge and marketing information to all of them. While there are some paddy producer
groups set up in the proposed target areas to be studied, they lack information for developing
their business plans and marketing strategies.
There are many paddy market chain actors. A study that includes a SWOT analysis of each
actor has not yet been conducted so it is difficult to generate efficient and effective ways for
improving the rice market chain in these districts. A more detailed analysis will enable
government and NGOs/institutions to provide support to ensure that all the market chain
actors are able to benefit equitably.
Based on farmers’ observation, there is a huge amount of rice exported from the proposed
studied districts to Vietnam especially after the harvesting season in December or January, but
some farmers also buy imported rice from outside their community or from a neighboring
country (from Vietnam and Thailand) for family consumption as well. At the current time,
there is no study to check the balance between amount of imported rice and exported paddy in
the proposed study districts and there is also no financial flow analysis in terms of rice in
those communities. It is particularly important to determine the estimated volume of rice
exported from the studied districts to Vietnam.
Recently, CEDAC has set up community-based rice mills in the proposed study districts.
Based on the information from farmers, farmers can get better prices where there are
community-based rice mills. The rice middlemen give better prices to farmers and it is easier
for the traders to collect paddy. However, a detailed study on the effectiveness and impact of
community-based rice mills has not yet been conducted.
1.2.Objectives of the research
The objectives of the research were as follows:
- To assess the trends in rice production and import and export in the studied areas.
- To determine market value chains and farmers’ position in the chains.
- To conduct financial flow analyses in term of paddy export and rice import in the villages
studied.
- To assess the impact of community-based rice mills supported by CEDAC.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 4

5. 1.3.Methodology
The paddy value chain study was conducted in 50 villages across 12 communes, in 6 districts
of Kompot and Takeo provinces. The research team selected 25 villages across 6 communes,
in 3 districts in Kompot province. The research team also selected the same number in Takeo
province. The following is the description of the roles and main responsibilities of the
research team:
- Team leader will be responsible for the overall responsibility of the research project. This
includes formation of the study team, the facilitation of a reflection session with the study
team for writing up the study findings and also for writing the synthesis report.
- Data collectors will be divided into groups: Each group will be responsible for making
appointments with villagers, conducting interviews (group discussions, individual
interviews). In addition, each group will take responsibility for writing individual
interview notes, group discussion notes. Moreover, they will be responsible for writing the
district reports and case studies.
Concerning the data collection method, the research team has conducted both secondary data
and primary data collection. The focus group discussions with key informants and respondent
interviews were conducted in order to find out the main findings of this research project.
Checklists and questionnaires were developed for group discussions and respondent
interviews. The following are the number of various respondents to be interviewed.
Expected Actual Results %
400 farmers will be interviewed 401 100
60 paddy collectors will be interviewed 44 73
30 wholesalers will be interviewed 27 90
42 rice retailers will be interviewed 40 95
42 rice millers will be interviewed 36 85.7
60 customers will be interviewed 60 100
50 village chief will be interviewed 50 100
2 custom officers will be interviewed 0 0
6 agricultural district officers will be interviewed 6 100
50 focus group discussion meetings will be organized 49 98
It is to emphasize that the research team could not meet the custom officers at the Vietnam
border due to the custom officers were not at the offices. The custom officers come and work
in the offices about a few days per month.
On average, the research team was able to collect about 94.5 % of the total planned number of
questionnaires.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 5

6. II. RESULTS OF THE STUDY
2.1 General statistics of the studied villages
Table 1: General statistical information of the villages studied
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Number of families per village 391 182 261 254 221 167
Number of population per
1803 1740 1384 1346 1004 806
village
Number of landless families
per village
6 2.5 2.5 18 13 4
Number of families with no
draft animals for farming
30 11 20 70 90 51
Total village land (hectare) 603 390 679 672 527 359
Land area for house settlement
138 44 40 60 29 19
(hectare)
Land area for wet season rice
(hectare)
362 166 222 156 185 264
Land area for dry season rice
(hectare)
217 15 40 218 303 113
Source: village statistical book (2009)
On average, there are 5-6 members per family. About 50% of the total family members are
the main farming labour, especially for paddy cultivation. The majority of the farmer families
in the studied villages are rice-based farming families except for some landless families who
don't have a paddy field. Based on the table above, the number of landless families is 3% of
the total families per village on average. In other words, 97% of all families in the villages are
rice-based farming families.
The average number of cattle per family is three. The farmers prefer to use cows as draft
animal rather than buffalo. Among the studied villages in Kompot province, only 3.45% of
farmers interviewed use buffalo for farming activities; only 1% of farmers interviewed in
Takeo use buffalo. Concerning dry season paddy production, farmers normally rent
agricultural machines for ploughing, harvesting and threshing. The rent of agricultural
machines is one among other factors contribute to the increase of production cost of dry
season paddy production.
Based on the data presented in the table above, the land area of wet season paddy production
in some studied districts is larger than dry season paddy production and vice versa. For
instance, the largest wet season paddy field is in Chhumkiri district, Kompot province. But
the largest dry season paddy field is in Boreychulsa district, Takeo province. There are more
farmers cultivate dry season paddy in Takeo, which is why the area of dry season paddy
production is bigger than in Kompot.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 6

7. 2.2 Production
2.2.1. Rice varieties used in the studied districts
Table 2: Rice varieties in the studied districts
Early varieties Medium Varieties Late Varieties
3 Sanlik Changkom Rompak 6 Khuor
Damnerb Kanlas Chhmar Prom 8 Khuor
Damnerb Krachokses Damnerb Chhmal Angkongh
IR Damnerb Khmoa Battambang
Makari Kha 1 Kha 8
Nam Kong Bong Kha 4 Kha 9
Neang Kra Ob Kong Til Kong Sar
Neang Noy Krachork Chab Krahorm Chin
O M Krahorm Sral Krahorm Hamat
Philippine Neang Dom Krahorm Laksenlik
Senpidour Neang Meas Krahorm Thngon
Srov Yuon Neang Smer Neang Chin
Pka Khnhey Neang Kong
Pka Malis Neang Minh
Pka Romdol Pka Sla
Porng Lorlok Pka Sla Thngon
Prasac Pka Trakeat
Romchol Rang Chey
Sambok Angkrong Smer
Sambok Tortim
Sen Sangha
Somaly
Sophor Dong
Srov Sar
Totally, there are 55 rice varieties in the studied districts, including 12 early-maturing
varieties, 24 medium-maturing varieties and 19 are late-maturing varieties. In case of the early
rice varieties, farmers could harvest it for about 3 months from planting to harvesting,
medium rice varieties is about 4-5 months and the late rice varieties is about 6 months.
There are 7 rice varieties that are popularly grown by farmers. Based on the analysis of
individual interviews with farmers, majority of the farmers prefer to use early and medium
rice varieties because they can harvest their paddy at the early time and they also expect to
have adequate rain water.
The table below shows the name of popular varieties and their special characteristics.
Table 3: Popular rice varieties grown by most farmers
Name of popular varieties Special characteristics noted
1. Senpidour
- good taste and smell
- soft and aromatic rice so it also attract pests (rats, insects, etc)
- high marketing price
- the farmers can harvest it early
2. IR
- high yield
- the farmers can harvest early to support the family's consumption
3. Makari
- high yield
- more tolerant to flood and drought
- it is better market price than IR variety
- the life cycle is short that enables farmers to harvest early
- good growth even on poor soil
4. Pka Malis
- lower yield if compared to normal rice varieties but high marketing
price
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 7

8. - soft and fragrant rice
- more pests
5. Krahorm Laksenlik
- high yield
- adapts to most kinds of soils
- strong and high trunk
- it is not soft so that it is appropriate for the family that have many
members
- resistant to disease
6. Nam Kong Bong
(504)
- high yield
- it is can be harvested early
- good market demand for exporting to Vietnam
7. Banteay Meas
- favourable for paddy traders
- more tolerant to drought
- farmers can harvest a good yield
2.3 Paddy Production
Amongst the studied villages in Kompot province, only 45.8% cultivated dry season paddy
production. In Kompot province, Chhumkiri district has more farmers cultivating dry season
paddy production as it has more water sources compared to other districts. Chhumkiri is also a
bigger district in terms of the number of families per village compared to other studied
districts, both Kompot and Takeo provinces.
Farmer families in Koh Andet district have bigger paddy fields because of lower population
density compared to other studied districts. All studied villages in Takeo province conduct dry
season paddy production.
On average, farmers have 1.5 ha of paddy field per family. In Borey Chulsa and Koh Andet
districts in Takeo province, the farmers possess about 2.3 ha per family. According to the
table below, dry season paddy production is mostly conducted in the districts of Takeo
province.
Table 4: Land size for paddy production per family
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong Tong Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Total paddy field holding per family (family/ha)
Maximum 7 4 4 4 5 5
Average 1.7 1.37 1.52 1.54 2.24 2.38
Minimum 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.12 0.5 0.5
Total land area for wet season paddy production holding per family (family/ha)
Maximum 7 5 4 1.5 8 5.4
Average 1.7 1.35 1.52 0.6 1.6 1.63
Minimum 0.2 0.26 0.4 0.1 0.2 0.5
Total land size for dry season paddy production holding per family (family/ha)
Maximum 2 2 - 12 4 4.5
Average 0.75 0.54 - 1.54 1.56 1.28
Minimum 0.25 0.1 - 0.16 0.2 0.2
Source: Individual interview with farmers
Generally, the land for cultivating dry season paddy production is the same land used for wet
season paddy production. Therefore, the farmer cultivated the same field for both wet and dry
season paddy production. Dry paddy production is normally conducted after the harvesting of
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 8

9. wet season paddy production. Particularly, in some villages located in districts of Takeo
province, the farmers apply only dry season paddy production. In Takeo, approximately 50%
of the total cultivated fields are used for dry season paddy production.
Table 5: Percentage of farmer families cultivated dry season paddy production
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Percentage of farmer families
conducting dry season paddy
production in the studied districts
(%)
41.33 12.5 N/A 78.38 62.30 66.15
About 19% of the interviewed farmers in the studied villages in Kompot province conduct dry
season paddy production. At the same time, 69.5 % of interviewed farmers in the studied
villages of Takeo province conduct dry season paddy production. Generally, many more
farmers in Takeo apply dry season paddy production than in Kompot. The studied villages in
Takeo are located close to Vietnam border, and farmers produce dry season paddy mainly for
selling to Vietnamese traders. Most of the farmers in Takeo sell out the dry season paddy
production, but buy in the wet season paddies from other villages for family consumption.
Table 6: Family's expenses on paddy production (excluding own labour)
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong Tong Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chulsa
Koh
Andet
Expense on wet paddy production (Riels/family/year)
Maximum 4,197,000 1,550,000 2,080,000 1,942,000 3,936,000 5,941,000
Average 574,000 337,800 374,000 617,000 1,532,800 1,766,000
Minimum 500,000 80,000 56,000 78,000 183,700 20,4000
Expense on dry paddy production (Riels/family/year)
Maximum 743,800 756,700 N/A 6,600,000 8,085,000 481,5000
Average 238,000 240,900 N/A 1,867,000 3,165,500 1,887,600
Minimum 140,000 84,600 N/A 225,000 798,500 744,000
Based on the table shown above, it is able to know that, in Kompot province, the expense on
dry season paddy production is lower than the expense on wet season paddy production. on
contrary, the expense on dry season paddy production in Takeo province is more expensive
than the expense for wet season paddy production.
Wet season paddy production is normally started in the rainy season, in June or July.
However, this is highly dependent on the availability of rains. If there are adequate rains early
the rainy season, the farmers are able to cultivate rainy season paddy production early.
In case of dry season paddy production, the farmers usually cultivate it after harvesting rainy
season paddy production. Based on farmers' cropping calendar, the farmers harvest rainy
season paddy production in December and January. So, the dry season paddy production
starts from January until March or April. In Takeo province, some farmer families can
cultivate two crops for dry season paddy production when they have adequate water.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 9

10. 2.4 Production cost
2.4.1 Usage of chemical fertilizers
Generally, all farming families in the studied villages use chemical fertilizers for the paddy
cultivation. The quantity of chemical fertilizer used is different according to the methods of
the paddy production. Specifically, the farmers used a lot of chemical fertilizers and chemical
pesticides for dry season paddy production, especially in the studied districts of Takeo
province.
Due to dry season paddy production, the farmers in Takeo province use more chemical
fertilizers compared to the farmers in Kompot province. On average, one family uses 125
kg/year. But the farmers in Takeo use around 483 kg/family/year, almost four times higher
than the farmers in Kompot province.
Table 7: Expense on chemical fertilizer per family
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chulsa
Koh
Andet
Amount of chemical fertilizer use per family per year (kg/family)
Maximum 500 200 300 1175 1900 1600
Average 150 75 150 350 550 550
Minimum 25 25 25 50 100 100
Total expense on chemical fertilizers per family per year (Riel/family/year)
Maximum 1150000 460000 690000 2350000 3200000 3700000
Average 345000 172500 345000 702000 1148000 1254000
Minimum 57500 57500 57500 100000 160000 270000
Source: Individual interview
Graph 1: Average amount of chemical fertilizers and expense per family per year
Additionally, based on the analysis of individual interviews with farmers, villages in Kompot
province use on average approximately 36.65 tons/village/year of chemical fertilizer. The
average use of chemical fertilizers in studied villages in Takeo province was 139
tons/village/year.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 10

11. Table 8: Expense on chemical fertilizer per village
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh Andert
Amount of chemical fertilizer use per village per year (ton/village)
Maximum 192 36 77.4 270 400 254
Average 57.75 13.5 38.7 131 204 82
Minimum 9.63 4.5 6.5 85 58 25
Total expense on chemical fertilizers per village per year
Maximum 422,400,000 79,200,000 170,280,000 541,000,000 686,000,000 508,500,000
Average 127,050,000 29,700,000 85,140,000 224,430,000 327,379,000 162,770,000
Minimum 21,186,000 9,900,000 14,300,000 85,000,000 116,000,000 48,260,000
Source: group discussion
Graph 2: Average amount and expense of chemical fertilizer per village per year
There are 8 types of chemical fertilizers widely used in the studied districts. They are listed in
the table below.
Table 9: Types of chemical fertilizers used most often by farmers:
Name of chemical fertilizer / Trade name Scientific name / Formula
AMERICA N/A
DAP 18.46.0
FRUIT1 20-20-25+TL
NPK 16.20.0
Buffalo 4.10.10
UREA 46.0.0
PHILIPPINE 16.16.18
16 20 0 16.20.0
2.4.2 Natural Fertilizer
At the same time, farmers also save natural fertilizer or compost for paddy production.
Farmers can make an average amount of compost of 2.5 ton/family/year. The maximum is
1 Fruit and Buffalo are names of chemical fertilizer called by the community farmers
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 11

12. about 5 tons/family/year and the minimum is 0.5 ton/family/year. It is to note that the
compost is used only for wet season paddy production. In case of dry season paddy
production, the farmers use only chemical fertilizers.
Farmers who are cultivating organic paddy try to save natural fertilizer/compost in order to
fertilize their paddy field, as it is needed to follow the standard of organic paddy. According
to the individual interviews with farmer respondents, farmers who are members of organic
paddy producer groups confront a shortage of organic matter for compost making, which is a
barrier for them to expand the arable land for organic paddy production. It should be
emphasized that some organic paddy producer groups were established in the studied villages
of Kompot province under the facilitation and support by NGOs, such as GTZ and CEDAC.
Table 10: Percentage of farmers who making natural fertilizer/compost per village
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Percentage of farmer families
making natural fertilizer per
village (%)
90 92 93.5 82 46.5 69
2.4.3 Wet season paddy production cost
Based on the data in the table below, the production cost of dry season paddy production is
generally higher than the wet season paddy production. The average expense of wet season
paddy production is around 1.3 million riels. About 50% of the total production cost is for
hiring labour and payment for the cost on external agricultural inputs (chemical fertilizer and
pesticide); the other 50% is for own labour costs.
Graph 3: Average expense of wet season paddy production (riel/ha)
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 12

13. Table 11: Expense on wet season paddy production per ha (riels/ha)
Province
District
Production cost (riels/ha) Own labour cost (riel/ha)
Maximum Average Minimum Maximum Average Minimum
Kompot Chhumkiri 1120,000 338,000 200,000 1,487,000 575,000 110,000
Dong Tong 1150,000 347,000 124,000 1,663,000 738,000 105,700
Kompong Trach 770,000 305,000 100,000 1,822,500 685,000 110,000
Takeo Angkor Borey 1200,000 984,000 803,000 2,248,000 620,000 144,700
Borey Chuolsa 1688,000 963,000 750,000 2,555,000 781,000 111,000
Koh Andert 1740,000 1160,000 460,000 1,719,000 454,000 106,000
2.4.4 Dry season paddy production cost
The production cost for dry season paddy production in Takeo is higher than in Kompot,
because farmers in Kompot cultivate smaller paddy fields than the farmers in Takeo.
The farmers in Takeo conduct dry season paddy production for selling, mainly to Vietnam.
Therefore, that is why the farmers in Takeo can produce more volume of paddy for selling.
They normally use similar production methods and agricultural inputs as Vietnamese farmers.
Graph 4: Average expense of dry season paddy production (riel/ha)
Table 12: Expense on dry season paddy production per ha (Riels/ha)
Province
District
Production cost (Riels/Ha) Own labour cost (riel/ha)
Maximum Average Minimum Maximum Average Minimum
Kompot Chhumkiri 2880000 572000 125000 1,392,000 792,000 132,000
Dong Tong 1300000 377000 109000 2,505,000 1,356,000 452,300
Kompong Trach 1585000 363000 100000 N/A N/A N/A
Takeo Angkor Borey 2550000 1606000 750000 1,658,700 704,600 187,500
Borey Chuolsa 3053000 2388000 1500000 1,315,000 679,000 110,000
Koh Andert 2922000 2336000 1250000 1,172,000 431,000 105,000
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 13

14. 2.4.5 Paddy Harvesting and Yield
Generally, the yield of paddy production in the studied villages of Takeo province is higher
than in Kompot province for both wet and dry season. Based on the graph below, in case of
Kompot province, the yield of dry season paddy production is lower than in the wet season.
This is opposite to Takeo. In Takeo province, the yield of dry season paddy production is
higher because the farmers mainly produce dry season paddies for selling; dry season paddy
production is a commercial activity of the farmers in the studied villages in Takeo.
Graph 5: Average yield of paddy production (t/ha)
Table 13: Yield of wet and dry season paddy production
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Yield of wet season paddy production (ton/ha)
Maximum 5.5 3.5 3 3.3 8 3.6
Average 2.8 2.4 2.53 3 3 3.1
Minimum 2.5 1.1 0.5 2.1 1.5 2.3
Yield of dry season paddy production (ton/ha)
Maximum 4.5 3 2.27 5.5 10 4.5
Average 3 2.3 2.19 4 4 3.5
Minimum 2.7 1.5 2 2.5 2.5 3
2.5 Production cost of paddy per kilogram
In Kompot, the farmers spend around 390 riels on average to produce one kilogram of paddy
from wet season production. At the same time, the farmers in Takeo province spend about 655
riels to produce one kilogram of paddy from wet season production. It should be noted that
the farmers in the studied villages in Takeo normally use higher external agricultural inputs
than in Kompot province, which is why the production cost of paddy per kilogram is more
expensive than in Kompot.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 14

15. Graph 6: Production cost of wet and dry season paddy per kilogram (riel/kg)
Table 14: Wet season paddy production per kilogram
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Average total expense on
production of wet season paddy
production (riles/ha)
913,000 1,085,000 990,000 1,604,000 1,744,000 1614,000
Average yield of wet season
paddy production (ton/ha)
2800 2400 2530 3000 3000 3100
Production cost of wet season
paddy production (riel/kg)
326 452 391 534 580 520
Table 15: Dry season paddy production per kilogram
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Average total expense on
production of dry season paddy
production (riles/ha)
1364,000 1,733,000 1437,000 2,310,600 3,067,000 2,767,000
Average yield of dry season
paddy production (ton/ha)
3,000 2,300 2,190 4,000 4,000 3,500
Production cost of dry season
paddy production (riel/kg)
455 750 656 577 766 790
2.6 Credit services
There are nine credit providers in the studied districts as listed in the graph below. These
include international organizations, like FAO and IFAD, as well as Micro Finance Institutions
(MFIs). FAO and IFAD are the donors of some community development projects in the
studied districts, the projects that are financially supported by FAO and IFAD provided to
farmers some no-interest loan, for example the farmers can borrow some money to buy
chicks, piglets for raising, etc. Some farmers also borrow money from private moneylenders
and relatives to invest in paddy production and other purposes. The interest charged by the
MFIs is around 3 % per month on average. Normally, the interest rate of loans from private
moneylenders is higher than the MFIs.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 15

16. About 69% of the studied villages in Kompot and Takeo have collective saving groups, which
were formed through the facilitation of CEDAC's projects. The graph below indicates that
46% of total interviewed farmers asked for credit services from the collective saving groups.
However, the size of the loan is smaller than from MFIs and banks. If farmers are members of
a collective saving group, they prefer to borrow from their own collective saving group.
In the studied villages in Takeo province, the main purpose of borrowing money from
MFIs/banks is to invest in dry season paddy production. The farmers need further capital in
order to pay for external agricultural inputs such as chemical fertilizers, pesticides, hiring
labour, petroleum, etc. There are many MFIs/banks operating in the studied villages in Takeo
as there are many farmers doing dry season paddy production in those villages.
Therefore, the farmers need to pay interest on a monthly basis. The loans can be paid after
harvesting season. According to the interviews with farmers, about 30% of total production
costs are financed through loans from MFIs.
Graph 7: Percentage of farmers asking for credit from each MFI
2.7 Characteristic of Food Security in the Village
According to the table below, the number of families who lack rice for family consumption in
the studied villages in Takeo is higher than Kompot; 53% of the all families experienced a
shortage of rice in Takeo, but only 46% in Kompot.
As noted previously, the farmers in Takeo cultivate dry season paddy production for selling
out and buy in wet season paddy from neighbouring villages for home consumption. For this
reason the percentage of families who lack rice for consumption in the villages of Takeo is
higher than Kompot.
Most of the families lack rice for 1 to 3 months per year. At the same time, there are families
who lack rice throughout the whole year, and most of them are the landless families.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 16

17. Graph 8: Amount of rice shortfall per family (kg/family/year)
Based on the graph above, the amount of rice shortage for family's consumption in Takeo
province is about three times more than the amount of rice shortage in Kompot province.
Table 16: Food security in the studied villages
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh
Andert
Average number of families per
village
391 182 261 254 221 167
Percentage of families who lack
paddy for family consumption (%)
55 44 40 45 60 55
Percentage of families who lack
paddy for family consumption
throughout the year (%)
2.5 1.22 1 4.8 33 3.3
Percentage of families who lack
paddy for family consumption 6-12
months (%)
10 12 9 18 17 19
Percentage of families who lack
paddy for family consumption 3-6
months (%)
15.39 11 10.5 12.60 12.77 9.30
Percentage of families who lack
paddy for family consumption 1-3
months (%)
25 19.5 18.5 17.5 26 22
On average, the families in the villages of Kompot province have a shortfall of 219
kg/family/year. Families in Takeo province have a shortfall of 800 kg on average. In Kompot,
one family spent about 406,200 riels on average to cover the shortage of rice for the family's
consumption in the whole year. In Takeo, one family spent about 1,034,100 riels to cover the
shortage of rice for the family's consumption throughout the year.
Table 17: Volume of rice needed for consumption in the village
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong
Tong
Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh Andert
Quantity of rice lack per family (kg/family/year)
Average 274 162 221 587 977 847
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 17

18. Maximum 484 400 466 2,017 2,689 3,630
Minimum 135 52 77 158 136 71
Quantity of rice lack per village (ton/village/year)
Average
(ton/village)
59 13 23 67 129 78
Maximum 104 32 48.5 230 355 334
Minimum 29 4.2 8 18 18 6.6
Expense per family for rice shortage (riel/family/year)
Average 498,800 351,800 368,000 738,400 1,055,000 1,309,000
Maximum 800,200 616,000 592,700 1,712,700 1,893,000 5,362,500
Minimum 220,700 54,000 265,900 345,800 438,000 314,000
Expense on rice per village per year (riel/village/year)
Average 98,298,000 24,823,000 41,255,000 120,330,000 232,163,000 140,024,000
Maximum 168,975,000 57,350,000 87,134,000 414,477,000 639,870,000 600,600,000
Minimum 52,986,600 7,560,000 14,093,000 32,000,000 32,900,000 11,880,000
Based on the data from individual interviews with the farmers, majority of families who lack
rice for their consumption buy rice from other farmers in their villages or they buy rice from
rice millers and rice retailers at the commune level. However, some families who are the
district dwellers buy rice from rice retailers at the district level, which is located outside their
villages.
Graph 9: Percentage of sources that villagers buy rice from
2.8 Supply Side
The majority of the farmer families in the studied villages can produce adequate paddy for
family consumption and sell surplus paddy in the market. About 38% of the families in
Kompot province can produce paddy for selling after supplying for own family's needs.
Approximately 46% of the families in the studied villages s in Takeo province can produce
paddy for selling after meeting the family's consumption. Therefore, the number of families in
Takeo who can produce surplus for selling is higher than in Kompot as the farmers produce
dry season paddy for selling purposes.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 18

19. However, based on the results of group discussions in the studied villages, almost all of the
families in the villages sell some paddy. However, some families don’t have enough paddy
for family needs after they sell some of their rice and later on need to buy rice in. The farmers
need to sell paddy immediately after harvesting because they need money to repay loans for
external agricultural inputs and for other family purposes.
In the villages of Kompot province, about 57.5% of the total paddy harvested per family is
sold. At the same time, 70.5% of the total paddy harvested per family is sold in the studied
villages of Takeo province. Therefore, the farmers in those villages mainly cultivate paddy for
selling. The amount of paddy produced for selling by the farmers in Takeo is about four times
higher than the farmers in Kompot province.
Graph 10: Average paddy produced and sold per family per year
Based on the graph below, the villages in Takeo province are able to produce paddy three
times more if compared to the amount of paddy produced in the villages of Kompot province.
In Kompot, 24.5 % of total paddy per village per year is sold. At the same time, 50.5 % of
total paddy per village per year is sold in Takeo province.
Graph 11: Average paddy produced and sold per village per year
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 19

20. Graph 12: Income from selling paddy per family per year (riel/family/year)
Based on the graph above, farmers in studied villages in Takeo province can generally
achieve very high incomes from selling paddy compared to the income of farmers in Kompot
province earn from selling paddy. However, the farmers in Takeo mostly cultivate dry season
paddy production, so that the production cost is definitely higher if compared to the
production cost of paddy production in Kompot.
Graph 13: Income from selling paddy per village per year (riel/village/year)
Based on the graph above, the income from selling paddy per village per year in Takeo is
about 15 times higher than Kompot. However, the expense on external agricultural inputs
such as chemical fertilizers, chemical pesticide, and petroleum has not been included in the
calculation.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 20

21. Table 18: Amount of paddy produced in the studied villages
Description Kompot Takeo
Chhumkiri Dong Tong Kompong
Trach
Angkor
Borey
Borey
Chuolsa
Koh Andert
Average
number of
families per
village
391 182 261 254 221 167
Percentage of
families who
produce paddy
for selling (%)
25.5 48 41 46 48 45
Total paddy harvested per family per year (kg/family/year)
Average 2,622 2,077 1,484 7229 9395 4924
Maximum 5,052 4,796 2,144 15278 12828 1018
Minimum 1,444 1,608 1,100 4232 6520 2622
Average amount of paddy sold per family per year (kg/family/year)
Average 1889 932 729 5336 6513 3332
Maximum 4150 2247 1200 7857 9630 7689
Minimum 569 263 237 3227 4312 941
Percentage of paddy produced for selling per family per year (%)
Average 53.91 57 40.32 72.45 70.41 61.74
Maximum 75.53 88.54 68.59 99 89 85.97
Minimum 31.12 22.22 15.47 57.04 41.23 35.89
Amount of paddy produced for selling per village per year (ton/village/year)
Average 261.63 90 90.93 950 1093 636
Maximum 781 280 240 2145 2451 2022
Minimum 44.6 17 51 355 831 158
Total amount of paddy produced in the village per year (ton/village/year)
Average 972.52 484.73 355 2129 2229 943
Maximum 1429.68 825 509 5760 4131 2678
Minimum 650 239 227 745 1128 339
Income from selling paddy per family per year (riel/family/year)
Average 1,611,000 846,300 627,500 17,291,400 5,287,900 2,760,800
Maximum 3,323,000 1,798,000 1,020,000 70,708,800 8,667,700 6,881,800
Minimum 484,200 21,400 237,500 2,134,600 4,083,300 799,900
Income from selling paddy per village per year (riel/village/year)
Average 239,547,000 81,833,000 79,276,000 4,375,020,000 1,091,112,500 537,343,900
Maximum 820,050,000 252,000,000 204,000,000 19,393,500,000 2,083,350,000 1,809,913,700
Minimum 35,680,000 13,676,000 45,280,000 32,8500,000 473,670,000 134,300,000
2.9 Demand Side
The main actors of paddy market chains are the paddy collectors, stock owner, rice millers,
wholesalers, retailers, and customers. Each market chain actor interacts with each other to
operate the paddy market chain system in the communities. Furthermore, each market chain
actor has its own particular demand and the quantity of demand varies among different actors.
A detailed description of each market chain actor follows below.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 21

22. 2.9.1 Demand for paddy by paddy collectors / middlemen
Based on the individual interviews with farmers, all farmers sell their paddies to paddy
collectors. The paddy collectors do not only buy paddy from the farmers, but also from the
village-based rice mills. However, 98% of all paddy was bought from the farmers and only 2
% was bought from the village-based rice mills.
Based on individual interview with paddy collectors, one rice collector could buy paddy in the
amount of 51 tons/year on average. The maximum is 114 tons/year and the minimum is 20
tons/year. The rice collector does not buy paddy from only one village in the communities,
but they can afford to buy paddy from farmers in different villages.
Concerning the paddy varieties, the traditional paddy varieties are more popular to cultivate
than the external varieties like IR. At the same time, it is observed that the farmers in the
studied villages of Takeo province mostly cultivate IR variety for their dry season paddy
production.
Graph 14: Percentage of paddy varieties bought by the paddy collectors/middlemen in Kompot
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 22

23. Graph 15: Percentage of paddy varieties bought by the paddy collectors/middlemen in Takeo
Graph 16: Problems faced by the paddy collectors/middlemen
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 23

24. Based on the graph above, fluctuating selling prices of paddy, competition from other paddy
collectors, and lack of capital are the main problems and constraints of the paddy collectors.
However, in some cases, the paddy collectors do no need to have their own capital to buy
paddy from farmers because they receive capital from stock owners.
Paddy collectors then sell their bought paddy to different actors such as wholesalers, district-based
rice mills, Vietnamese traders, etc. In the case of villages in Kompot province, 99% of
the total paddy sold by the paddy collectors to the wholesalers and only 1% to the district-based
rice mills. In case of Takeo province, 100 % of the paddy bought by the paddy
collectors was sold to Vietnamese traders directly. It should be recalled that most of the
studied villages of Takeo province are located close to the Vietnam border so the paddy
collectors sell the paddy that they purchased to Vietnam.
Volume of paddy distributed by paddy collectors
In Kompot province, the majority of paddy bought by the paddy collectors was sold to
Vietnamese traders and Khmer traders in the districts. Only 13.6% of total paddy bought by
the paddy collectors was sold to district-based rice mills. Although 40.9% of total paddy
bought by paddy collectors was sold to wholesalers in the districts, the wholesalers continue
selling their bought paddy mainly to Vietnamese traders and other traders in the province.
Graph 17: Volume of paddies sells from paddy collectors in Kompot (%)
In the studied villages in Takeo province, 73% of total paddy bought by the paddy collectors
was sold to wholesalers in the districts. Therefore, the wholesalers in the districts play an
important role in collecting paddy from paddy collectors to continue selling paddy to
Vietnamese traders and others. Only 16% of total paddy bought by paddy collectors was sold
to district-based rice mills and only 10 % to the villagers.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 24

25. Graph 18: Volume of paddy sold by paddy collectors in Takeo (%)
2.9.2 Demand of paddy by wholesalers
Volume of paddy distributed by wholesalers
In Kompot province, 65% of total of paddy volume is distributed to Vietnamese traders. The
study found that only 1.5 % of paddy was distributed from wholesalers to Khmer traders in
the local areas. However, 32.9 % of total paddy was distributed from wholesalers to district-based
rice mills.
Graph 19: Volume of paddy sold by wholesalers in Kompot (%)
In Takeo, 60% of total paddy was distributed from wholesalers to Vietnamese traders.
Furthermore, 26% of total paddy was also distributed to Thailand. Only 7% was sold to
Khmer traders in the local areas, 5.5 % to villagers and only 1.5 % to the district-based rice
mills.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 25

26. Graph 20: Volume of paddies sells from wholesalers in Takeo (%)
2.9.3 Demand for rice by retailers
It is to note that rice retailers sell rice, not paddy. Majority of the rice retailers buy rice from
rice millers and there are only a few of them buy paddies from farmers. In Kompot, the rice
retailers sold on average about 2 tons of rice per year. The maximum is about 10 tons/year
and the minimum is about 0.3 ton/year. Particularly, a few retailers could sell as much as 30
tons/year. Based on the graph below, Srov Sar, Rang Chey and Krahom Laksenlik are the
most popular rices.
Graph 21: Volume of rice purchased by retailers in Kompot for selling (%)
In Takeo province, Pka Khnhey is the most popular rice being sold by retailers. The retailers
could sell rice in the amount of 3.5 ton/year. The minimum is about 0.3 ton/year and the
maximum is around 10 tons/year.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 26

27. Graph 22: Volume of rice purchased by retailers in Takeo for selling (%)
2.9.4 Demand for rice by customers
Generally, customers such as villagers, district dwellers, restaurant owners, etc. also need rice
for their consumption. All of them buy rice from different rice sellers such as rice retailers and
rice mills.
Graph 23: Percentage of rice purchased by different customers in Kompot
The majority of customers in Takeo province buy rice from rice retailers at the markets.
Restaurants, though, and cooked rice sellers prefer to buy rice directly from the rice mills
because they can get a lower price compared to the price of rice from rice retailers at markets.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 27

28. Graph 24: Percentage of rice volume buy by different customers in Takeo
2.10 Price trends
Generally, the selling price of paddy gradually increases from September to November as it is
harvesting season of the paddy production. During the harvesting, there is high demand from
Vietnamese traders so that the paddy collectors actively collect the paddy during this period,
which is why the price of paddy is increased during that time. Due to the amount of paddies
demanded by Vietnamese traders is higher than the local demand so the fluctuation of paddy
price is highly depended on Vietnamese traders.
However, the price decreases at the end of harvesting period, in December. The price of
paddy increases or decreases depending on the market demand, especially the demand for
paddy from Vietnamese traders.
Graph 25: Price trend of traditional paddy varieties
IR variety is one of the most popular paddy varieties for dry season paddy production. Based
on the graph below, the average price of IR variety is about 800 riels per kilogram. IR is
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 28

29. mostly adopted for dry season paddy production. Furthermore, the higher price of IR variety
is from September to November. Generally, the price of paddy in Takeo is normally higher
than Kompot.
Graph 26: Price trend of IR variety
2.11 Advantages and effects of community-based rice mills
In the target districts of this research, it is to note that the community-based rice
mills/agricultural cooperatives formed under CEDAC's support existed only in Kompot
province. In all there are four community-based rice mills in four districts, namely Dong
Tong, Chhouk, Chumkiri and Kompong Trach districts.
Those community-based rice mills are now working on collective buying and selling of paddy
in their respective communities. Some of the community-based rice mills conduct rice milling
to sell rice in the communities. On average, there are 100 members in each community-based
rice mill. The members of the community-based rice mills consist of farmers from different
villages in the commune or district.
Farmers who are members of community-based rice mills deposit their capital together
(shareholder subscribe) in order to develop a capital account for their collective business. To
date, each community-based rice mill has an average capital account of about 24,425,000 riels
(approximately 6,100 USD).
Table 19: List of community-based rice mills
N Name of
community based
rice mill
Commune District Date
established
Number of
total
members
Number from
village under
the affiliation
Total
capital
(riels)
1 Dong Tung Rice
Agricultural
Development
Cooperative
Damnak
Sokrom
Dong
Tong
08/06/2009 69 18 35,000,000
2 Chhouk Sakri
Reing Agricultural
Development
Cooperative
Sat Pong Chhouk N/A 77 3 26,000,000
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 29

30. 3 Srecheng Sakry
Reang Sen
Monorom
Agricultural
Development
Coopertive
Sre Cheng Chumkiri 02/06/2006 202 5 35,000,000
4 Kaksekor Phros
Psay Bom Reu
Sevakam Pakchek
Tes Kaksekam
Sruk Kampong
Trach
Domnak
Kantuot
Khang
Chheung
Kompong
Trach
25/01/2008 114 17 1,700,000
a) Rationale for setting up community-based rice mills
- Farmers lack negotiating power with middlemen in terms of determining the selling price
of paddy. Normally, the price of paddy is cheaper when the farmers sell their paddy
individually. The capacity of farmers is still low to produce paddy in terms of both
quantity and quality. At the same time, there is a lack of coordination among farmers in
order to sell their paddy collectively. Generally, farmers can get a higher price if they have
a large amount of paddy for selling.
- The farmers lack knowledge and capacity in relation to agricultural innovations,
especially techniques for improving paddy cultivation and other agricultural innovations.
Furthermore, the farmers lack good communication and networking with other farmers in
the communities for sharing and learning the agricultural innovations altogether.
- There is inadequate capacity of farmers for supplying paddy to markets. Most of the rice-based
farming families are considered subsistence farmers who mainly produce for
domestic consumption, but not for commercial purposes.
The management committees of community-based rice mills were established in order to
conduct daily operations. The management committee members of community-based rice
mills are comprised of a president, vice president, treasurer, secretary and the others are the
members of the management board. The management committee members of the community-based
rice mill are selected by the members through a general election.
b) Activities of the community-based rice mill are mainly focused on:
Main activities of the community-based rice mills consist of the following:
- Conducting business activities crucial to buying and selling paddy collectively.
- Providing training in relation to agricultural training to farmers in their communities.
- Providing saving and credit service to members and other farmers.
- Promoting ecological agriculture through farmer-to-farmer extension approaches.
c) Advantages of setting up community-based rice mills are as follows:
- Farmers can gain more negotiating power with middlemen and other traders in selling
paddy.
- Improved knowledge and understanding about intensive paddy cultivation because the
members of community-based rice mills have formed into groups and received regular
training from supporting NGOs.
- As the techniques and skills have improved, paddy productivity has increased and the
volume of paddy produced has also been gradually increased, which means more paddy
for family consumption and market supplies.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 30

31. - The farmers have learned more about market information related to the selling price of
paddy.
- The farmers know how to sell their paddy with a better price through collective selling.
Based on the farmers' experience, they could get higher price about 20 to 50 riels per
kilogram of paddy.
- Solidarity and cooperation among the farmers have improved when they participate as
members of community based rice mill. Particularly, the farmers who are members of
community-based rice mills deposited their money for collective business and saving.
However, the majority of the farmer families in the village do not yet understand the
advantages of setting up a community-based rice mill so that they don't intend to participate
as members of the community-based rice mill.
d) Swot analysis of the community-based rice mill
Strength Weakness
The management committee members of
community based rice mill have good
commitment
Majority of the members as well as the
villagers have not yet understood the
advantages of a community-based rice mill.
The community-based rice mill can raise
capital from their members. The mill can use
that capital for business investment and
providing credit to members.
Lack of adequate capital for business
investment.
The community-based rice mills now can
communicate directly with the middlemen for
selling their paddy.
Lack of marketing information in order to
determine the selling price of paddy with the
middlemen.
The community-based rice mill has its own
warehouse so that they can buy and stock the
paddy for a period of time before selling it to
the middlemen.
Lack of coordination among the members and
villagers in order to sell the paddy
collectively. Some members sell their paddy
to middlemen while the community-based
rice mill has not sufficient money to pay for
them.
The members of community-based rice mill
are the members of paddy farmer producer
groups.
Still low in terms of doing the collective
action for the collective benefits.
Ability to be flexible to read the
situation/condition of market.
Opportunity Threat
The government department specifically the
Provincial Department of Agriculture (PDA)
recognize their community-based rice mill.
There is a strong competition with the
middlemen. The middlemen can buy paddy
from farmers at a higher price or even lower
quality of paddy, such as they can buy wet
paddy while the community-based rice mill
buys dry paddy (approximately 14 %
moisture).
CEDAC provides technical support as well as
financial support to the community-based rice
mill.
There is a good market demand for paddy
product so that the community-based rice mill
can try to produce more paddy for market
supplies.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 31

32. MFIs provide soft loan to the community-based
rice mill.
2.12 SWOT analysis
During the group discussion with key informants and individual interview with the
respondents in each studied village, the research team conducted a SWOT analysis of each
actor as follows:
2.12.1. SWOT analysis of farmer producers
Strength Weakness
· 8% of farmers interviewed by the
research team mentioned that they are
able to negotiate to use own scale for
weighing their paddy.
· 29.4% of farmers mentioned that they
have appropriate paddy field for paddy
production,
· 17.5% of farmers said that they have
improved their knowledge and skills of
agricultural techniques such as system of
rice intensification, compost making
technique, seed selection, soil nutrient
improvement, etc.
· 1.6% of rice farmers interviewed by the
research team produce organic paddy.
· 30.1% of farmers mentioned that they
have paddy farmer producer groups in
their villages and that is a good factor to
improve production and to negotiate the
price.
· 10.3% of farmers stock paddy for a
period of time in order to sell it at a
higher price.
· 3.17% of farmers mentioned that they
don't have enough agricultural materials
and equipment.
· 15.2% of farmers interviewed by the
research team mentioned that they lack
money to repay money lenders, MFIs,
after harvesting.
· 39.1% merchants determine the price,
they change the price.
· 8% merchants don't use appropriate
scales as well as don't do fair trade.
· 21.7% of farmers sell paddy individually
so that they are not able to negotiate the
price with paddy collectors as well as
they lack market information.
· 13% of farmers pointed out that they are
unskilled in terms of improving soil
fertility.
· 1.5% of have decreased paddy
productivity.
· 1.5% of farmers always buy seed from
others.
Opportunity Threat
· 72.6% of farmers stated that it is easy to
sell paddy because there is high market
demand.
· 15.5% of farmers can access irrigation
schemes.
· 2.4% of farmers said their paddy field's
fertility is still good.
· 9.5% of farmers pointed out that there
are some government institutions and
NGOs promoting agriculture within their
communities.
· 29% farmers interviewed increased their
expense on chemical fertilizer, pesticide,
and gasoline.
· 50% of farmers mentioned they face
natural disaster, drought, flood, pest
insects.
· 14% of farmers said that price of paddy
often fluctuates.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 32

33. 2.12.2. SWOT analysis of paddy collectors
Strength Weakness
· 19.5% of total paddy collectors
mentioned that they have adequate
capital to buy paddy.
· 30.5% of total paddy collectors have
good market linkages with other market
actors so that they are able to sell their
paddies.
· 8.3% of total paddy collectors said they
have sufficient means of transportation.
· 8.3% of paddy collectors have good
relations with villagers so it is easy to
collect paddy from farmers.
· 11.1% of total paddy collectors are
flexible in terms of determining the
purchase price of paddy based on the
fluctuation of market price.
· 5.5% of paddy farmer producer bring
and sell their paddies directly at the
paddy collector’s house.
· 2.8% examine the paddy rice before
purchasing it.
· 2.8% of paddy collectors mentioned that
they are able to pay money immediately
to farmers when they buy paddy from
farmers.
· 2.8% of paddy collectors stated they
come to buy paddy at farmers’ houses so
it is able them to collect more paddies,
· 8.3% of paddy collectors mentioned that
they have more ideas for operating their
business successfully
· 21% of total paddy collectors who were
interviewed mentioned that they lack
capital to buy paddy.
· 33.33% stated that they lack
transportation for carrying paddy from
farmers' houses.
· 16.6% mentioned difficulty in being
flexible in terms of the fluctuation of
paddy price.
· 12.5% of paddy collectors mentioned
that they need to buy paddy from
farmers’ houses so they spend a lot of
time on collecting.
· 4% of paddy collectors mentioned they
get very low profit from their business.
Opportunity Threat
· 18.2% of total interviewed paddy
collectors mentioned that majority of
farmer sell their paddies immediately
after harvesting because they need
money for family's purposes,
· 72.8% of paddy collectors mentioned
that they have good market networks of
farmer producers, wholesalers, and other
traders.
· 18.2% of paddy collectors have known
many families in the villages who raise
ducks so those families need to buy
paddy from them.
· 6.2% have many competition from
merchants and they change price
immediately.
· 15.4% of paddy collectors mentioned
about the road is difficult so that they are
difficult to travel for buying paddies,
· 15.4% of paddy collectors said that they
have problems with fluctuating paddy
prices because the price strongly
depends on Vietnamese traders.
· 7.7% of paddy collectors mentioned low
quality of paddies, which makes it
difficult for them to sell.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 33

34. · 9% of paddy collectors are able to access
more capital for buying paddy in case
that is needed.
2.12.3. SWOT analysis of rice millers
Strength Weakness
· 13% of rice millers mentioned that they
are honest with suppliers and customers,
which increases confidence in them as
market actors.
· 32% of rice millers mentioned that they
have good relationships with producers
and traders.
· 13% of rice millers interviewed
mentioned that are friendly
communicators.
· 13% attest to good health and have
enough labour.
· 13% of rice millers said that they have
enough material, equipment, and means
of transportation
· 16% of rice millers mentioned that they
make every effort to buy paddy of high
quality.
· 70% of rice millers interviewed lack of
capital for their investment.
· 16.7% of rice millers lack access to
market information.
Opportunity Threat
· 31% of rice millers mentioned that they
have a good network of customers.
· 31% of rice millers mentioned that there
is good market demand from customers.
· 11.5% of rice millers mentioned that
they are located in convenient locations
that enable farmer producers access them
easily.
· 3.8% of rice millers interviewed
mentioned that if farmers are able to
produce more paddies they are able to
buy from them as much as possible.
· 28.5% of rice millers mentioned that
roads to communities are difficult for
transportation and cost in time and
labour.
· 57.5% of rice millers said that they
encounter stiff competition from other
rice millers and traders.
· 7% of rice millers mentioned difficulty
in being flexible in dealing with
fluctuating prices.
2.12.4. SWOT analysis of wholesalers
Strength Weakness
· 11% of wholesalers mentioned that they
use appropriate scales for weighting
paddy.
· 25% of wholesalers said that they have
good communication and network with
paddy collectors and their customers,
· 8% of wholesalers mentioned that they
get low profit from their business.
· 19.4% of rice millers mentioned that
· 23.5% of wholesalers mentioned that
they don't have enough materials or
means of transportation.
· 35.3% lack of labour and capital.
· 29.4% lack of communication skills.
· 11.8% cannot study well the paddy
market.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 34

35. they have enough capital to buy paddy.
· 16.7% of wholesalers answered that they
have enough material and means of
transportation.
· 11% of wholesalers mentioned that they
provide some money to paddy collectors
in advance for buying paddy from
farmers.
· 19.4% of wholesalers mentioned that
they provide good service to their
customers.
Opportunity Threat
· 11.5% of wholesalers mentioned that
the majority of villagers are indebted so
the farmers need to sell their paddy to
repay loans.
· 15.4% of wholesalers mentioned that the
farmers now able to producer more
paddies so they can buy more from
farmers,
· 11.5% of wholesalers have enough
capital and material.
· 16.7% of wholesalers mentioned that it
is easy to buy paddy because they don’t
need to pay tax.
· 36.8% of wholesalers mentioned the
competitiveness of other market actors.
· 10.5% of wholesalers mentioned
difficult roads.
· 31.6% of wholesalers mentioned that
they need to pay some money to police
while transporting their paddy.
· 10.5% of wholesalers mentioned that the
price of paddies fluctuates.
· 10.5% of wholesalers mentioned that
farmers want to sell their wet paddy with
a higher price event it is not so good
quality
2.12.5. SWOT analysis of retailers
Strength Weakness
· 45.2% of retailers said they are honest,
selling rice with a proper scale.
· 14.3% of retailers stated that they sell at
the appropriate price.
· 7.1% of retailers said that they have
enough capital for investment.
· 4.8% of retailers mentioned that they are
able to determine the selling price by
themselves in order to generate profit.
· 9.5% of retailers stated that they can sell
rice every month throughout the year.
· 9.5% of retailers pointed out that they
have their own paddy fields and can mill
their paddy rice to sell.
· 75.9% of retailers said that they lack of
capital, labour, transportation and other
material for operating their business,
· 6.9% of retailers show that they are not
good at keeping in touch with the market
information
Opportunity Threat
· 44.1% of retailers mentioned that they
have a lot of customers to buy their
product, especially villagers.
· 10.3% of retailers mentioned some
clients buy rice without paying money in
advance.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 35

36. · 11.8% of retailers said that they are able
to buy rice for selling because there are
many rice suppliers in districts.
· 8.8% of retailers claimed that it is easy
to sell rice.
· 67.7% of retailers said there are many
competitors.
· 16% of retailers mentioned difficult
roads.
· 9.8% of retailers mentioned that the
price of rice frequently fluctuates.
III. CONCLUSION
Based on the results of the paddy value chain research, the conclusions are as follows:
- The research reveals essential information about farmers' paddy production as well as the
capacity of farmers in producing paddy to supply for the markets. Based on the results of
the study, the majority of farmers in the studied villages are able to produce some surplus
for selling. However, some poor farmer families lack a sufficient amount of rice for
family consumption after they sell out their paddy. To fulfil the family's demand, they
need to buy in additional rice. However, the majority of farmers buy paddy from other
farmers in the villages.
- Generally, the production cost of dry season paddy is higher than the wet season paddy
production. In the case of dry season paddy production, farmers use a lot of chemical
fertilizer and pesticide, which is why their production cost is increased. The majority of
dry season paddy is produced for selling purposes.
- The majority of farmers in the studied villages in Takeo province cultivate dry season
paddy production for selling purposes. In contrast, the farmers in Kompot province rely
heavily on wet season paddy production. The rice yield of dry season paddy production in
Takeo is definitely higher than the wet season paddy production, but they use high
external agricultural inputs such as chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
- Farmers play an important role in producing paddy for market supply, but they receive
less benefit from their efforts. Particularly, paddy collectors are playing a critical role in
collecting paddy from farmers and selling it to wholesalers and other traders from
Vietnam. The paddy collectors can receive good benefit from their roles.
- The community-based rice mill is useful and important for farmers to conduct
community-led businesses because it serves to mobilize more farmers, more quantity of
paddy for market supply and enables them to negotiate a more competitive price with
middlemen.
Paddy value chain study in Kompot and Takeo provinces 36