The purpose of this research is to investigate the production costs and financial returns
of a plant that produces insects as natural enemies. Data collection was conducted at the Biological
Control Technology Learning Center – a pilot plant developed by Maejo University, Chiang Mai.
This study used an experimental design with the randomized complete block design (RCBD) and
the treatment of three kinds of insects: the stink bug, assassin bug, and trichogramma spp. The
production costs of insects as natural enemies and the financial returns of the investment were
analyzed using financial approaches comprising of net present value (NPV), internal rate of return
(IRR), payback period, benefit-cost ratio (B/C Ratio), and the sensitivity analysis approaches.
The results revealed that, based on production components and cost behavior, the
category with the lowest cost per unit was the stink bugs in the nymph stage, followed by the
assassin bugs in the nymph stage, and the assassin bugs in the adult stage, respectively. The results
of the cost-volume-profit analysis (CPV analysis) showed that the egg stage of the stink bug had
the lowest break-even point, followed by the egg stage of the trichogramma spp. In addition, it was
found that the cost structure of the product cost had the same proportion as the variable and fixedcosts. The financial analysis showed financial returns of 41,221.03 baht (at discount rate 10.08
percent) net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR) of 10.38 percent, a break-even time
of three years and four months, and benefit-cost ratio (B/C Ratio) of 1.0129. Therefore, the findings
of financial analysis suggest that the project is an economically optimal investment. Furthermore,
findings from sensitivity analysis demonstrated that changes in the level of benefit factors have
more impact on project returns than the level of cost factors. These findings are consistent with
results from the switching value test which showed that the level of benefit factors is risker than
the cost factor, and that they also have high impact on the net present value of the project. The
findings from this research suggest that the production of insects as natural enemies should first
focus on benefit-related factors which have a relative impact on returns and revenues, then on
concentrating on continuously reducing production costs.