Paddy cultivation in Kampong Sunsuron Tambunan: a declining activity / Novelia Lapius

In worldwide markets, Fairhurst & Dobermann (2012) stated that less than five percent of total rice production is traded actively compared to maize or wheat, mainly within Asian regions and from Asia to Africa and Europe. Rice, wheat, and maize are the world's three leading food crops; together they directly supply more than 42% of all calories consumed by the entire human population. Human consumption in 2009 accounted for 78% of total production for rice, compared with 64% for wheat and 14% for maize. Of these three major crops, rice is by far the most important food crop for people in low- and lower-middle-income countries. More than 3.5 billion people depend on rice for more than 20% of their daily calories. Statistics done by Ricepedia (2009) showed that rice provided 19% of global human per capita energy and 13% of per capita protein in 2009. Generally, rice when it is still covered by the brown hull is known as paddy. For decades, rice has been supporting and sustaining a great number of people lives than any other crop since it was start being domesticated between 8,000 to 10,000 years ago (Fairhurst & Dobermann, 2012). At present, compared to wheat, rice is the staple food for more than half of the world's population where 90 percent of total production is cultivated and consumed in Asia. Besides, Asia accounts for 90% of global rice consumption, and total rice demand there continues to rise.