The development of conservation agriculture leads to a reduction in costs and an increase in the yield of the wheat crop. Wheat plays the main role in food security and constitutes approximately 20 percent of calories and protein in the world’s diet.
Iran, as a prominent agricultural country in the Middle East region, has been pursuing a high-flying program for achieving wheat self-sufficiency for a long time.
Iran’s wheat self-sufficiency began in 1990, but the low production rate and population growth did not permanently reduce the need for imports.
In Iran, the increase of the cultivated area does not add a significant amount to the capacity of food production, and the increase in production should be achieved by adopting modern agriculture.
More than 70 percent of Iran is in arid and semi-arid region with an average annual rainfall of 241 mm. In the last two decades, Iran has been in a situation of severe water and environmental management crisis in which the human factor and climate change are involved.
Conventional tillage is generally referred to as plowing and soil inversion, which is a method for preparing the seed bed and controlling weeds and has a negative impact on the quality of soil, water and ecosystem services.
Traditional tillage methods have led to the release of organic carbon and nutrients from the soil, destruction of the soil with disturbances in the cycles of water and nutrients, and soil erosion.
Farmers need technologies that have the advantages of reducing production costs and at the same time increasing production based on sustainable agriculture. Evidence shows that conservation agriculture can address both needs.
This subject has three interrelated principles, no tillage or at least soil erosion, preservation of plant remains on the soil surface and crop rotation.
Researches
In this research, the results showed that in conservation farming, the average yield of wheat and gross profit was 8.45 and 30% more than traditional farming, and the cost of producing one kilogram of wheat was reduced by 20%.
In general, the results showed that conservation agriculture, even if it is in the initial phase, leads to an increase in net income by reducing production costs and increasing efficiency. Due to the fact that the study was done only for the wheat product.
In another study, the researchers concluded that each hectare of conservation agriculture has 21.76 percent more income compared to conventional farming.
By comparing the energy and economic index of conservation and traditional agriculture in the north-west of Iran, a researcher stated that the highest net profit of energy and energy productivity is related to conservation agriculture.
The researchers found economic indicators and soil productivity in traditional conservation agriculture through field trials and modeling for a region in Morocco and showed that conservation agriculture increases wheat yield by 20 percent and It reduced the total cost by 13 percent.
In another research, they compared soil characteristics, wheat performance and production costs in two conservation and conventional systems in Mississippi and announced that the average cost of production in conservation agriculture was 43 percent lower and soil organic matter and total Record the product in the security system during the period It did not change for three years.
One of the factors for the acceptance of conservation agriculture is the financial benefits, which is controversial in the first years, therefore, in this research, the financial benefits of the initial phase of conservation agriculture were examined.
The initial phase of conservation agriculture has led to a decrease in the consumption of inputs other than poison, the largest decrease with 45.48 percent is related to labor and the smallest decrease with 15.62 percent is the amount of consumed seeds.
Reducing the labor force in conservation agriculture may lead to the creation of new business, non-agricultural income and finally social benefits for farmers. Conservation agriculture led to a reduction of 26.04 percent of water consumption compared to conventional farming, and considering the severe limitation of the country’s water resources, conservation agriculture can lead to sustainable development.
Reducing evaporation from the soil surface, preserving more soil moisture after rain and finally reducing water consumption can be a great help to fight drought and water scarcity in Golestan province.
The cost of production is higher in conventional tillage, due to the need for more manpower, the use of machinery and the cost of water. The gross profit of conservation farming is about 30 percent more than that of conventional tillage, and the production cost of each kilogram of wheat is 20. 78 percent decrease due to the rank High poverty index in Golestan province, this cost reduction in wheat production can help farmers’ livelihood.
In addition, the reduction of costs in the initial years of conservation tillage is not tangible by farmers, and farmers and promoters often imagine that perhaps due to the use of more pesticides in the initial years of implementation of conservation agriculture, the costs increases, while the research results showed that conservation agriculture even in the phases First of all, it can lead to cost reduction and performance increase.
Resource
Mahzari, samaneh and others; Estimating the Economic Benefits of Conservation Agriculture in Wheat Fields (Case study: Golestan province).Water and Soil Science.
