Fig. 3: Cost-benefit analysis of staple grain crops versus potato cultivation.

The cost-return of maize (m), rice (r), wheat (w), and switching maize to potato (m–p), switching rice to potato (r–p), and switching wheat to potato (w–p) under potential (PY) and rainfed (RY) conditions. The cost (a) includes the sum of each agricultural input per hectare. Economic return (b) refers to the benefit generated from the sale of harvested crop yields minus all associated costs. The box whiskers show the maximum and minimum values; the upper and lower box edges of boxes show the 75th and 25th percentiles, respectively; the red point shows the average value.