Cluster farming is increasingly recognized as a viable means of improving smallholder economic in... more Cluster farming is increasingly recognized as a viable means of improving smallholder economic integration and commercialization in many developing countries. However, little is known about its impact on smallholder welfare and livelihoods. We examine the relationship between cluster farming and smallholder commercialization using a large‐scale survey of 3969 farm households in Ethiopia cultivating high‐acreage crops such as teff, wheat, maize, barley, and sesame. Using switching regressions and instrumental variable estimators, we show that cluster farming is associated with commercialization measured as commercialization index, market surplus value, and market price. To further deal with endogeneity concerns, we also employ some pseudo‐panel models where we observe similar insights. Beyond this, we account for heterogeneities by disaggregating households based on farm scales and crops cultivated. Our findings show that cluster farming is positively associated with commercializatio...
A thesis submitted to the Department of Agricultural Economics, Agribusiness and Extension, Kwame... more A thesis submitted to the Department of Agricultural Economics, Agribusiness and Extension, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Agricultural Economics, 2015
PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to assess the economic impact of investment in different ani... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to assess the economic impact of investment in different animal welfare–enhancing flooring solutions in Swedish dairy farming.Design/methodology/approachThe authors developed a bio-economic model and used stochastic partial budgeting approach to simulate the economic consequences of enhancing solid and slatted concrete floors with soft rubber covering.FindingsThe findings highlight that keeping herds on solid and slatted concrete floor surfaces with soft rubber coverings is a profitable solution, compared with keeping herds on solid and slatted concrete floors without a soft covering. The profit per cow when kept on a solid concrete floor with soft rubber covering increased by 13%–16% depending on the breed. Practical implicationsPromoting farm investments such as improvement in flooring solution, which have both economic and animal welfare incentives, is a potential way of promoting sustainable dairy production. Farmers may make investments in i...
The present paper has examined the welfare implications of safety and quality policy changes amon... more The present paper has examined the welfare implications of safety and quality policy changes among beef consumers in Southern Ghana. The empirical results revealed profound heterogeneity in preferences for food safety and quality attributes at individual and segment levels. Four distinct consumer segments were revealed using a latent class model. We show that besides traditional socioeconomic factors; trust, competence and confidence in actors along food safety chain significantly impact on preferences for different food safety and quality policy attributes. Compensating surplus estimates reveal that welfare improvement arising from food safety and quality policy changes varies from one class to another. The findings show evidence of imperative segmental equity issues in food safety and quality policies. The welfare estimates indicate that evaluating willingness to pay values alone is not enough. The paper suggests that future research and policy decisions on food safety and quality...
Food safety and quality issues in sub-Sahara Africa are receiving increasing attention from gover... more Food safety and quality issues in sub-Sahara Africa are receiving increasing attention from governmental and non-governmental organisations by raising awareness of food safety and quality incidents. This paper has examined the economic welfare implications of policy changes in relation to safety and quality among 400 beef consumers in Southern Ghana. We conclude that most respondents are willing to pay premiums to assure food safety and quality. The willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates vary significantly as a function of respondents' underlying attitudes towards food safety and quality issues. There are considerable variations in preferences, willingness to pay and welfare effects across the different consumer classes. There is evidence of crucial segmental equity issues in food safety and quality policies. The paper suggests that future research and policy decisions on food safety and quality changes should consider those segments of consumers whose welfare can potentially be imp...
The purpose of this paper was to estimate consumers' preferences for environmentally sustaina... more The purpose of this paper was to estimate consumers' preferences for environmentally sustainable beef products, with the aim of developing and promoting environmentally sustainable products in South Africa. The findings reveal that there is profound preference heterogeneity at segment level for environmentally sustainable beef products. Three distinct consumer segments were identified. We demonstrate that socioeconomic factors, public awareness creation and campaigns on threats posed by climate changes, subjective and objective knowledge on environmental sustainability significantly explain consumers' choice of environmentally sustainable beef products. Furthermore, it is concluded that there are relevant segmental equity issues that need to be addressed when designing environmental sustainability policies to promote environmentally sustainable products. Finally, we demonstrate that there is a potential market for environmentally sustainable products in South Africa.
Recurring agricultural droughts are of concern to smallholder livestock farmers in Sub-Saharan Af... more Recurring agricultural droughts are of concern to smallholder livestock farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study determined the impact of agricultural drought resilience on smallholder livestock farming households’ welfare in the Frances Baard District Municipality (FBDM), in Northern Cape Province of South Africa. Interviews, more specifically survey interviews, were conducted with 207 smallholder livestock farmers. We used compensation variation, resilience index and linear regression models to analyse the data. The findings indicate that smallholder farmers who received drought relief support saw an improvement in their welfare. However, the welfare improvements varied across respondents and different gender categories, with males having higher welfare improvements relative to females. The study also found that economic capital, social capital, human capital and natural capital substantially affected the welfare of smallholder farmers. Furthermore, the study revealed that the sm...
One of the biggest challenges for South African food security is recurring drought. It is a major... more One of the biggest challenges for South African food security is recurring drought. It is a major concern due to insufficient knowledge and the low levels of resources or livelihood assets available to farmers in vulnerable situations, thereby limiting coping and adaptation choices. The objective of this paper was to identify the current adaptation and coping measures used by smallholder farmers, with a particular emphasis on farmers’ vulnerability to drought and the adaptive measures or strategies that are effective in the study area. In addition, we determined factors influencing their choice of adaptation strategies. In this way, the extent of farmers’ vulnerability and how this affects the choice of coping or adaptation strategies during drought were determined. The multinomial probit model (MPM) was used to examine the factors that influence farmers’ choice of coping/adaptation strategies in the study area. The results show that the respondents’ human capital vulnerability to d...
This paper examines how differences in motivation in terms of use and non-use values affect the c... more This paper examines how differences in motivation in terms of use and non-use values affect the choice of animal welfare improvement practices. The application is focused on Swedish dairy farmers’ preferences for different flooring systems’ attributes. Using multiple indicators and multiple causes and hybrid latent class models, the findings demonstrate that dairy farmers who favour flooring solutions that enhance farm animal welfare are motivated by a complex set of both use values relating to internal and external pressures and non-use values linked to animal freedom, ethical codes of farmers and building business-to-customer relationships. The findings imply that measures to stimulate more uptake of animal welfare improvement practices can be better targeted by using insights into motivational constructs of farmers and by adopting policy communication that captures the whole breadth of use and non-use motivational constructs held by farmers.
Rift Valley fever and lumpy skin disease are infectious ruminant diseases that are endemic in mos... more Rift Valley fever and lumpy skin disease are infectious ruminant diseases that are endemic in most African countries. The most cost-effective method of prevention and control is through annual vaccination. However, unlike lumpy skin disease, annual vaccination against Rift Valley fever is not practiced by many farmers due to its sporadic occurrences and shortcoming of the existing vaccines. This necessitates development of novel vaccines that would provide dual protection against a Rift Valley fever and a more prevalent disease. In this study, a discrete choice experiment was undertaken to guide vaccine development by examining the value smallholder livestock farmers place on different vaccine attributes and related attribute levels. The attributes considered are target-species, thermotolerance, nature of the vaccine, efficacy and price. The study was carried out with 164 smallholder livestock farmers in the Free State province. Results indicate that thermostaility is not a major deciding attribute to smallholder farmer's choice of vaccine. Farmers prefer multivalent vaccines, which are highly efficacious with about 90-100 % efficacy levels. Farmers were found to be heterogeneous in preference. The heterogeneity is explained by socio-economic factors such as type of livestock owned, income level, gender and perceived disease risk. Farmers were also willing to pay for preferred attribute levels. However, for less favourable levels such as multispecies, female farmers were willing to accept a lower compensation than males. These findings present a favourable potential for development of a novel multivalent vaccine and also provide vaccine research and development scientists with evidence based knowledge for development of vaccines that cater for the needs of smallholder farmers.
Cluster farming is increasingly recognized as a viable means of improving smallholder economic in... more Cluster farming is increasingly recognized as a viable means of improving smallholder economic integration and commercialization in many developing countries. However, little is known about its impact on smallholder welfare and livelihoods. We examine the relationship between cluster farming and smallholder commercialization using a large‐scale survey of 3969 farm households in Ethiopia cultivating high‐acreage crops such as teff, wheat, maize, barley, and sesame. Using switching regressions and instrumental variable estimators, we show that cluster farming is associated with commercialization measured as commercialization index, market surplus value, and market price. To further deal with endogeneity concerns, we also employ some pseudo‐panel models where we observe similar insights. Beyond this, we account for heterogeneities by disaggregating households based on farm scales and crops cultivated. Our findings show that cluster farming is positively associated with commercializatio...
A thesis submitted to the Department of Agricultural Economics, Agribusiness and Extension, Kwame... more A thesis submitted to the Department of Agricultural Economics, Agribusiness and Extension, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Agricultural Economics, 2015
PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to assess the economic impact of investment in different ani... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to assess the economic impact of investment in different animal welfare–enhancing flooring solutions in Swedish dairy farming.Design/methodology/approachThe authors developed a bio-economic model and used stochastic partial budgeting approach to simulate the economic consequences of enhancing solid and slatted concrete floors with soft rubber covering.FindingsThe findings highlight that keeping herds on solid and slatted concrete floor surfaces with soft rubber coverings is a profitable solution, compared with keeping herds on solid and slatted concrete floors without a soft covering. The profit per cow when kept on a solid concrete floor with soft rubber covering increased by 13%–16% depending on the breed. Practical implicationsPromoting farm investments such as improvement in flooring solution, which have both economic and animal welfare incentives, is a potential way of promoting sustainable dairy production. Farmers may make investments in i...
The present paper has examined the welfare implications of safety and quality policy changes amon... more The present paper has examined the welfare implications of safety and quality policy changes among beef consumers in Southern Ghana. The empirical results revealed profound heterogeneity in preferences for food safety and quality attributes at individual and segment levels. Four distinct consumer segments were revealed using a latent class model. We show that besides traditional socioeconomic factors; trust, competence and confidence in actors along food safety chain significantly impact on preferences for different food safety and quality policy attributes. Compensating surplus estimates reveal that welfare improvement arising from food safety and quality policy changes varies from one class to another. The findings show evidence of imperative segmental equity issues in food safety and quality policies. The welfare estimates indicate that evaluating willingness to pay values alone is not enough. The paper suggests that future research and policy decisions on food safety and quality...
Food safety and quality issues in sub-Sahara Africa are receiving increasing attention from gover... more Food safety and quality issues in sub-Sahara Africa are receiving increasing attention from governmental and non-governmental organisations by raising awareness of food safety and quality incidents. This paper has examined the economic welfare implications of policy changes in relation to safety and quality among 400 beef consumers in Southern Ghana. We conclude that most respondents are willing to pay premiums to assure food safety and quality. The willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates vary significantly as a function of respondents' underlying attitudes towards food safety and quality issues. There are considerable variations in preferences, willingness to pay and welfare effects across the different consumer classes. There is evidence of crucial segmental equity issues in food safety and quality policies. The paper suggests that future research and policy decisions on food safety and quality changes should consider those segments of consumers whose welfare can potentially be imp...
The purpose of this paper was to estimate consumers' preferences for environmentally sustaina... more The purpose of this paper was to estimate consumers' preferences for environmentally sustainable beef products, with the aim of developing and promoting environmentally sustainable products in South Africa. The findings reveal that there is profound preference heterogeneity at segment level for environmentally sustainable beef products. Three distinct consumer segments were identified. We demonstrate that socioeconomic factors, public awareness creation and campaigns on threats posed by climate changes, subjective and objective knowledge on environmental sustainability significantly explain consumers' choice of environmentally sustainable beef products. Furthermore, it is concluded that there are relevant segmental equity issues that need to be addressed when designing environmental sustainability policies to promote environmentally sustainable products. Finally, we demonstrate that there is a potential market for environmentally sustainable products in South Africa.
Recurring agricultural droughts are of concern to smallholder livestock farmers in Sub-Saharan Af... more Recurring agricultural droughts are of concern to smallholder livestock farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study determined the impact of agricultural drought resilience on smallholder livestock farming households’ welfare in the Frances Baard District Municipality (FBDM), in Northern Cape Province of South Africa. Interviews, more specifically survey interviews, were conducted with 207 smallholder livestock farmers. We used compensation variation, resilience index and linear regression models to analyse the data. The findings indicate that smallholder farmers who received drought relief support saw an improvement in their welfare. However, the welfare improvements varied across respondents and different gender categories, with males having higher welfare improvements relative to females. The study also found that economic capital, social capital, human capital and natural capital substantially affected the welfare of smallholder farmers. Furthermore, the study revealed that the sm...
One of the biggest challenges for South African food security is recurring drought. It is a major... more One of the biggest challenges for South African food security is recurring drought. It is a major concern due to insufficient knowledge and the low levels of resources or livelihood assets available to farmers in vulnerable situations, thereby limiting coping and adaptation choices. The objective of this paper was to identify the current adaptation and coping measures used by smallholder farmers, with a particular emphasis on farmers’ vulnerability to drought and the adaptive measures or strategies that are effective in the study area. In addition, we determined factors influencing their choice of adaptation strategies. In this way, the extent of farmers’ vulnerability and how this affects the choice of coping or adaptation strategies during drought were determined. The multinomial probit model (MPM) was used to examine the factors that influence farmers’ choice of coping/adaptation strategies in the study area. The results show that the respondents’ human capital vulnerability to d...
This paper examines how differences in motivation in terms of use and non-use values affect the c... more This paper examines how differences in motivation in terms of use and non-use values affect the choice of animal welfare improvement practices. The application is focused on Swedish dairy farmers’ preferences for different flooring systems’ attributes. Using multiple indicators and multiple causes and hybrid latent class models, the findings demonstrate that dairy farmers who favour flooring solutions that enhance farm animal welfare are motivated by a complex set of both use values relating to internal and external pressures and non-use values linked to animal freedom, ethical codes of farmers and building business-to-customer relationships. The findings imply that measures to stimulate more uptake of animal welfare improvement practices can be better targeted by using insights into motivational constructs of farmers and by adopting policy communication that captures the whole breadth of use and non-use motivational constructs held by farmers.
Rift Valley fever and lumpy skin disease are infectious ruminant diseases that are endemic in mos... more Rift Valley fever and lumpy skin disease are infectious ruminant diseases that are endemic in most African countries. The most cost-effective method of prevention and control is through annual vaccination. However, unlike lumpy skin disease, annual vaccination against Rift Valley fever is not practiced by many farmers due to its sporadic occurrences and shortcoming of the existing vaccines. This necessitates development of novel vaccines that would provide dual protection against a Rift Valley fever and a more prevalent disease. In this study, a discrete choice experiment was undertaken to guide vaccine development by examining the value smallholder livestock farmers place on different vaccine attributes and related attribute levels. The attributes considered are target-species, thermotolerance, nature of the vaccine, efficacy and price. The study was carried out with 164 smallholder livestock farmers in the Free State province. Results indicate that thermostaility is not a major deciding attribute to smallholder farmer's choice of vaccine. Farmers prefer multivalent vaccines, which are highly efficacious with about 90-100 % efficacy levels. Farmers were found to be heterogeneous in preference. The heterogeneity is explained by socio-economic factors such as type of livestock owned, income level, gender and perceived disease risk. Farmers were also willing to pay for preferred attribute levels. However, for less favourable levels such as multispecies, female farmers were willing to accept a lower compensation than males. These findings present a favourable potential for development of a novel multivalent vaccine and also provide vaccine research and development scientists with evidence based knowledge for development of vaccines that cater for the needs of smallholder farmers.
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Papers by Enoch Owusu-Sekyere