How can agricultural productive services spatially contribute to sustainable rice production? Evidence from counties in Jiangxi Province, China

Introduction Against the backdrop of climate change and the fragmentation of farmland in developing countries, promoting sustainable rice production and facilitating the ecological transformation of agriculture have emerged as crucial concerns. As an integral part of modern agricultural systems, agricultural productive services (APS) play a pivotal role in improving rice eco-efficiency (REE). Investigating their spatial spillover effects has significant theoretical and practical implications for promoting agricultural ecological transformation and ensuring food security. Methods Using county-level panel data from Jiangxi Province, China (2012–2022), this study evaluates REE through a Super-SBM model that incorporates carbon sinks as desirable outputs. Employing a spatiotemporal doubly fixed Spatial Durbin Model, we examine the spatial spillover effects of APS on REE and their spatiotemporal heterogeneity. Results Results show that APS significantly improves local REE (direct effect) and generates substantial positive spatial spillovers (indirect effect), driven by cross-regional technology diffusion and demonstration-learning effects. These spillovers exhibit a W-shaped temporal evolution and a distance-decay pattern from positive to negative. Conclusion The findings underscore the role of APS in mitigating land fragmentation constraints, enhancing resource allocation, and supporting low-carbon agricultural transitions within evolving land governance systems. We propose policy recommendations including the establishment of low-carbon agricultural demonstration zones, the promotion of digital service platforms, and the optimization of regional collaborative governance mechanisms to strengthen land-use efficiency and food system resilience.