Abstract
Production of whole crop rice silage as feed (forage rice) and application of cattle manure to the forage rice fields are considered to be a better strategy to maintain rice fields and solve environmental problems resulted from animal production. In this study, the characterization of dairy farms in Takashi area of Tokushima Prefecture was achieved based on interviews with farmers of 15 dairy farms producing and utilizing forage rice as feed. The typology of the farms was established on the basis of 4 variables ((1) application rate represented as the ratio of actual manure application into crop fields to predicted total feces excretion in a farm, (2) proportion of forage rice to total rice, (3) application rate represented as the ratio of actual manure into forage rice fields to predicted total feces excretion in a farm and (4) the ratio of leased land for forage rice fields) using cluster analysis. Two groups of dairy farms were categorized from the analysis: the first group consisted of farms which aim at increasing income from dairy production and the second group consisted of smaller farms which aim at enhancing resource recycling within a farm. The comparisons between the two groups indicated that the farmers in the first group tended to evaluate forage rice as cheaper feed than hey, expect to be subsidized for cultivation of forage rice by governments and to reduce labor loads through help of contractors.
