2017 Volume 53 Issue 3 Pages 148-155
The purpose of this study was to clarify the current and future status of farmland consolidation for rice paddy field farms, using the case of “canyon-type hilly and mountainous areas.” In the study area, small-sized paddy fields expand across long and narrow areas along mountain streams and straddle many water systems, given the expanded scale of farming. Because of the farmers’ increasing burdens for water management and weeding on the ridges between paddy fields, there is a limit to the scale expansion by debt. On the other hand, if the farmers specialize in the consignment of machine operation, an operation on a scale of 20–30 ha is possible, and high income can be expected. It is desired to organize residents who can weed on the ridge and manage water by utilizing subsidies so that core farmers can specialize in machine operation.
