This paper explores social arrangements associated with seed transactions among small-scale maize farmers in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, Mexico, a centre of crop genetic diversity. A formal seed distribution system has yet to develop in the region and when seed loss occurs, farmers are faced...

In the last decade, the "fair trade" of agricultural products and food has emerged as an important tool for creating markets for poor and small-scale farmers and simultaneously promoting pro-poor development. At its most basic, fair trade supports two processes: (1) explicit on-the-ground...