| Summary: | The aims of this study were to 1) examine general information about bamboo farmers, 2) analyze costs and returns of bamboo production, and 3) study the guidelines for development of bamboo plantations. Data was collected by means of a questionnaire answered by 46 bamboo farmers from the Sakaeo province of Thailand. The results of the study of general characteristics of bamboo farmers found that most of them were female, aged between 46-60, their educational levels were primary, and they also farmed sweet green bamboo. Use the land and investment capital to grow bamboo from the farmer’s land and private capital. The result of the cost and return analysis at a discount rate of 6.45 % demonstrated that the present value is 35,668.42 baht ; the capitalization rate is 1.26 ; and the rate of return is 18.67% with a payback period of 5 years and 4 months. A sensitivity analysis, on the condition that the cost increases by 15% and the income decreases by 15 %, returned a result indicating that bamboo plantations are still a potential investment. Recommended development areas for bamboo plantations cover myriad components.These include water source provision aid, bamboo-based biomass handling network building, and educating people about biomass energy with high demands. It is also helpful to improve bamboo shoots’ processing and packaging in order to reduce the volume of bamboo shoots entering the market, which can consequently ameliorate fluctuations in the price of bamboo shoots. The quality of bamboo shoots should be enhanced to meet organic agricultural standards.
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