Economic Feasibility of Rice Husk Biochar Application in Paddy Production
Fredrick L. Mesiack *
School of Engineering and Technology (SoET), Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), P.O. Box-3003, Chuo Kikuu, Morogoro, Tanzania.
Andrew K. Tarimo
School of Engineering and Technology (SoET), Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), P.O. Box-3003, Chuo Kikuu, Morogoro, Tanzania.
Nelson R. Makange
School of Engineering and Technology (SoET), Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), P.O. Box-3003, Chuo Kikuu, Morogoro, Tanzania.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The study examined the effects of incorporating rice husk biochar into the soil as a natural fertilizer for paddy production. It was applied in four different treatment levels (T1, T2, T3, T4). The analysis focused on production costs, yield, gross income, and benefit-cost ratio (BCR) during dry and wet conditions. During dry season, the results indicated that T3 achieved the highest yield (9.20 ± 0.557 tons/ha), gross returns (6,440,000 ± 389,743 Tsh/ha), and benefit-cost ratio (BCR) (2.13 ± 0.129) and significantly outperformed T4, which had the lowest production cost (2,985,170 Tsh/ha). Both T1 and T2 produced intermediate results without any significant differences. In the wet season, T3 similarly performed better than the other treatments with a yield of 9.07 ± 0.351 tons/ha, gross returns of 6,346,667 ± 245,832 Tsh/ha and BCR of 2.10 ± 0.081, while T4 continued to show the lowest production cost. Combined seasonal results confirmed T3 as the most productive and profitable with the highest yield (9.13 tons/ha), gross returns (6393333.33 Tsh/ha), and BCR (2.11). Although T4 had the lowest production cost, it also resulted in less favorable economic returns. Overall, the findings show that T3 is the optimal approach for maximizing productivity in paddy production and economic efficiency.
Keywords: Benefit-cost ratio, biochar, gross income, paddy, production