EFFECT OF INDUSTRIAL FIRMS IN RICE PRODUCTION IN THE FIRST DISTRICT OF ZAMBALES

Abstract

The study was conducted to determine the effect of industrial firms in rice production in the Municipalities of Subic, Castillejos, and San Marcelino. The descriptive method was used in this study to evaluate the effect of industrial firms on rice production.There were 88 respondents in the First District of Zambales, 34 of which were from Subic, 24 were from Castillejos, while 30 were from San Marcelino. Results show that most of the respondents were aged 55-64 years old, mainly were males who have finished their secondary education. On the other hand, based on the number of households, most of the respondents from Subic and Castillejos have 3-4 members, while in San Marcelino, they have 5-6 members. The majority of farmers have long been engaged in farming (31-40 years), but some stated that they do not have any monthly income. The majority of the respondents stated that they were slightly affected by the rise of industrial firms, primarily in the sourcing labor force. As a result, many of them decided to engage in machinery and use herbicides. However, the overall yield per hectare of the First District of Zambales from 2013-2017 did not almost increase. Besides industrial firms, other factors were lack of water, the variety used, climate, and pests and diseases.The study results showed that industrial firms do not nearly affect rice production because of the continuous research and new technologies disseminated nowadays, especially machinery and chemicals. Furthermore, additional study about land conversion is highly recommended by the author.