University of Cebu-Banilad Library

Includes bibliographic references.

"Small-scale vegetable farmers are crucial for local food security and economic sustainability, but they often encounter significant difficulties with costing and budgeting. This research examined the costing methods used by vegetable farmers in the mountainous barangays of Cebu City, concentrating on five main stages of farming: pre-planting, tools and equipment, farm inputs, crop management, and harvesting. The goal was to understand how farmers estimate costs, manage their expenses, and deal with challenges such as limited resources, variable input prices, and environmental factors.
This qualitative study utilized a descriptive phenomenological approach, conducting semi-structured interviews with twelve selected vegetable farmers. Data were collected using custom interview guides and analyzed through thematic analysis. Ethical principles, including beneficence, non-maleficence, justice, and autonomy, were carefully followed to maintain the study's integrity.
The research revealed several important insights from a thematic analysis of the cost management practices of vegetable farmers in the mountainous barangays of Cebu City. Under the theme Pre-planting Cost Estimation: Learning from the Past, it was observed that farmers relied on their previous harvest experiences, current market prices, and basic recordkeeping methods, like receipts or notes on their phones, to plan their budgets. The theme Cost Optimization in Pre-planting: Herbicides and Manual Labor highlighted how farmers minimized expenses by performing labor-intensive tasks themeselves or opting for herbicides instead of hiring laborers. Regarding tools and equipment, themes such as Preserving Tradition: The Role of Durable Farming Tools in Sustainable Agriculture and Repair over Replacement indicated that farmers favored the long-term use of traditional tools, often repairing them with locally sourced or recycled materials rather than buting new ones.The themes startegic Use of Credit and Farm Size: Costing Basis of Farm Inputs showed that many farmers relied on store credit or loans for inputs and based their cost estimates on the size of their farms and the types of crops grown. In the theme Harvesting Process: Farmers Control and Labor Needs, it was noted that farmers either harvested their crops themeselves or hired daily laborers only when necessary. The challenges they faced, captured in themes like El Niño & La Niña: Climate Change Effects, Financial Struggles in a Volatile Market, and Limited Access to Modern Tools, included rising input costs, climate-related disruptions, a lack of mechanized equipment, and dependence on credit. Despite thee challenges, farmers demonstrated resilience through adaptive strategies, community collaboration, and effective use of available resources. These findings underscore the need to enhance financial literacy, bolster agricultural support services, and create interventions specifically designed for the unique circumstances of upland farming to improve economic sustainability and cost management." --Abstract

Adult

Biore, Christopher College of Business and Accountancy Accountancy

Text in English