Contract farming in hybrid seed production in Central Dry Zone of Karnataka- An evaluation of farmers’ preference and profitability

This paper provides the profitability of contract farming in hybrid seed production of watermelon, muskmelon and ridge gourd crops in Sira taluk of Tumakuru district. The results of Best-Worst scale indicated that provision of input by company was the major reason for participation in contract farming by farmers. The company considered a number of factors while fixing the procurement price of hybrid seeds, viz., number of seeds/100 gm, productivity and cost of production and sale price of the hybrid seeds. The benefit per rupee of expenditure was Rs2.11, Rs 2.09 and Rs 1.81 for watermelon, muskmelon and ridge gourd respectively.