While many studies analyzed effects of sustainability standards - such as Fairtrade or Rainforest Alliance - on smallholder farmers in developing countries, most did not sufficiently account for systematic differences between certified and non-certified farmers. Certified farmers are typically...

Fairtrade standards differentiate themselves from other sustainability standards such as Rainforest Alliance and UTZ by demanding that buyers pay to farmers at least a minimum price and a Fairtrade social premium - a sum that is paid to cooperatives in addition to the agreed price to be used in...

It is often assumed that voluntary sustainability standards - such as Fairtrade - could not only improve the socioeconomic wellbeing of smallholder farmers in developing countries but could also help to reduce negative health and environmental impacts of agricultural production. The empirical...

We look at the trade-off between smallholder cocoa intensification and the ecosystem in Indonesia and investigate the determinants of environmental efficiency in cocoa production. In our analysis, we apply a distance output function that includes cocoa production and the abundance of native...

This study investigates the Indonesian cocoa production to reveal the possibilities for poverty alleviation while considering the threats to environmental sustainability. We estimate, based on a large household panel data set and stochastic frontier analysis, the technical efficiency of cocoa...

In many developing countries, supermarkets are expanding rapidly. This also affects farmers’ marketing options. Previous studies have analyzed welfare effects for smallholders with crosssection data. Here, we use panel data and a differencing approach to study supply chain dynamics and better...

Smallholder farmers in developing countries often suffer from high risk and limited market access. Contract farming may improve the situation under certain conditions. Several studies analyzed effects of contracts on smallholder productivity and income with mixed results. Most existing studies...

In many developing countries, supermarkets are increasingly replacing traditional markets as preferred points of food purchases in urban areas. This has welfare implications on smallholder farmers that supply supermarkets. While previous studies have analyzed the welfare effects of smallholder...

With the rise and consolidation of modern supply chains, literature has put emphasis on the welfare effects for participating small producers but has often considered these effects through the comparison of participating producers with those not participating at all. Using an endogenous...

In Sub-Sahara Africa, adoption rates of improved crop varieties remain relatively low, which is partly due to farmers' limited access to information. In smallholder settings, information often spreads through informal networks. Better understanding of such networks could potentially help to spur...