Land optimization using two rice-fish planting patterns for environmental benefits and farmer welfare

One of the ways to optimize the potential of land to increase the income of lowland rice farmers is to engineer land from a monoculture system to a diversified rice-fish cultivation system. The study aimed to compare the feasibility of farming for three growing seasons using cropping pattern 1 with the Rice-Fish – Rice-Fish – Rice-Fish sequence and cropping pattern 2 with the Rice-Fish – Rice – Rice sequence and see which composition of the cropping pattern is the most profitable between the two. The research was conducted in Tasikmalaya Regency, West Java Province, Indonesia, using the survey method. The population consisted of 49 farmers; using the Slovin technique, a sample of 33 farmers was taken. The sample was taken using the simple random sampling technique. It was carried out during the 2020-2021 planting period. The results showed that farming using both cropping patterns is feasible because it has an R/C ratio > 1 (Revenue is higher than costs). Cropping pattern 1 shows greater farming profits compared to pattern 2. The difference in profits may be due to the income from fish planted in addition to rice yields. Planting with the Rice-Fish cropping system provides significant additional income for farmers, risk mitigations and improve environment.