Adoption of direct seeded rice, land use and enterprise income: Evidence from Chinese rice producers

China is the world largest producer and consumer of rice. With stagnant yields, resource depletion, labor shortages direct-seed rice (DSR) is gaining the interest of rice producers in southern China. This study investigates the impact of the adoption of DSR on rice yield and net rice income of Chinese farmers. We use plot-level data from four provinces in southern China. Results indicate that rice yield increase by 3.1% for DSR adopters and by 0.7% if puddled transplanted rice (PTR) producers adopted DSR method. Finally, we find that net rice income increased by 66% if PTR method plots switched to DSR method. Adoption of DSR should be encouraged by policymakers.