DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1909501116
Title: Smallholder farmers and contract farming in developing countries
Author: Meemken E.-M. ; Bellemare M.F.
Source Publication: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
ISSN: 0027-8424
Publishing Year: 2020
Volume: 117, Issue: 1 pages begin: 259
pages end: 264
Language: 英语
Keyword: Contract farming
; External validity
; Outgrower schemes
; Smallholder farmers
Scopus Keyword: agricultural worker
; article
; developing country
; employment
; external validity
; household income
; human
; welfare
English Abstract: Poverty is prevalent in the small-farm sector of many developing countries. A large literature suggests that contract farming—a preharvest agreement between farmers and buyers—can facilitate smallholder market participation, improve household welfare, and promote rural development. These findings have influenced the development policy debate, but the external validity of the extant evidence is limited. Available studies typically focus on a single contract scheme or on a small geographical area in one country. We generate evidence that is generalizable beyond a particular contract scheme, crop, or country, using nationally representative survey data from 6 countries. We focus on the implications of contract farming for household income and labor demand, finding that contract farmers obtain higher incomes than their counterparts without contracts only in some countries. Contract farmers in most countries exhibit increased demand for hired labor, which suggests that contract farming stimulates employment, yet we do not find evidence of spillover effects at the community level. Our results challenge the notion that contract farming unambiguously improves welfare. We discuss why our results may diverge from previous findings and propose research designs that yield greater internal and external validity. Implications for policy and research are relevant beyond contract farming. © 2020 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Citation statistics:
Document Type: 期刊论文
Identifier: http://119.78.100.158/handle/2HF3EXSE/164376
Appears in Collections: 气候变化与战略
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Affiliation: Meemken, E.-M., CH Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850, United States, Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, United States; Bellemare, M.F., Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, United States
Recommended Citation:
Meemken E.-M.,Bellemare M.F.. Smallholder farmers and contract farming in developing countries[J]. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America,2020-01-01,117(1)