The fixed cost for main crop rice in the period 1997/98-2011/12 increased slightly but the variable cost increased
from USD 196.38 hectare-1
in 1997/98 to USD 689.91 hectare-1
in 2011/12. The growth rate in the total cost was
fairly steady at about 19% since 2001/2002 until it climbed to 54% in 2008/09 before returning to the former level
of 19% in 2011/12. This corresponded to the fact that Thai farmers depended more on machinery, herbicides and
hired labor than in the past (Table 5). For the second rice crop rice period of 1997/98-2011/12, the fixed cost
hectare-1
increased slightly but the variable cost hectare-1
increased from USD 42.64 in 1998 to USD 125.25 in
2011. The second crop growth rate in total cost increased from 16% in 2001 and reached 54% in 2007 and then
declined to 13% in 2011. Tables 5 and 6 show the growth rate in the total cost increased for both the main crop