Rice is vital to Cambodia's economy and food security, accounting for 16.7% of the country's GDP in 2024. However, the increasing reliance on
chemical pesticides to meet export demands and boost yields has raised concerns about environmental, health, and sustainability issues. To shift
toward sustainable agriculture, this policy brief advocates scaling up agricultural bio-inputs—such as biofertilizers and biopesticides. These
inputs, once common in Cambodian farming, are now underutilized due to limited research and development (R&D) capacity, high costs, market
fragmentation, and doubts about their effectiveness.
