Comparative Analysis of Beef Cattle Farms Performance Before and After the Existence of Microfinance Institutions

Abstract

The existence of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in rural areas is one solution for farmers in general, including beef cattle farmers. The limitation of capital ownership in farmers is one of the factors that cause the number of livestock ownership is also relatively small and low feed quality. The existence of MFIs expected can encourage the motivation of farmers in running their livestock business, increase income-generating and cattle ownership. This study aimed to examine the differences in revenue and cattle owned between before and after the farmer joined in the MFIs. Data collection using a questionnaire. This research was explanatory research and uses comparative test analysis. The results of the study showed that there were differences in farmers’ revenue and the number of cattle ownerships before and after joining the MFIs. This was due to the presence of capital or funds that can be accessed from informal funding institutions, generally, farmers used these funds to buy better breed, improve feed quality hence, it affected the performance of cattle production. This condition can affect the amount of cattle ownership and revenue obtained by farmers. Therefore, the role of MFIs was very large for the development of livestock businesses in rural areas.