75 research outputs found
Dietary inadequacy in Tanzania is linked to the rising cost of nutritious foods and consumption of food-away-from-home
No full textThis study contributes to the growing literature on dietary quality and accessibility in the Global South. We analyze the nutrition implications of changing dietary patterns between 2008 and 2019 in one of Africa's largest and fastest growing economies, Tanzania, and compare patterns at national and sub-national scales. We find that: (1) Rising incomes have not been associated with marked increases in the diversity of food consumed at home; (2) Consumption of food away from home has increased dramatically; (3) Most food consumed in Tanzanian homes is purchased instead of self-produced; (4) There have not been clear improvements in the adequacy of micronutrient consumption obtained from food eaten at home; (5) The most affordable sources of key micronutrients, including nutrient dense foods such as dried fish, have become more expensive. Our findings indicate that in Tanzania the amount and diversity of nutritious foods eaten at home have not improved with rising incomes, but consumption of energy-dense processed foods eaten away from home has increased rapidly, likely reflecting differences in convenience and relative prices. To improve Tanzanian diets in coming years, coordinated nutrition-sensitive policy actions will be required on both the supply- and demand-sides.PRIFPRI3; ISI; 2 Promoting Healthy Diets and Nutrition for all; 4 Transforming Agricultural and Rural Economies; CRP3.7Development Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation StrategiesCGIAR Research Program on Livestoc
Small fish consumption in rural Myanmar
No full textPRIFPRI3; ISI; 2 Promoting Healthy Diets and Nutrition for allDevelopment Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation Strategie
Transformation of the feed supply segment of the aquaculture value chain in Bangladesh
No full textThe rapid growth of aquaculture in Bangladesh over the past three decades has been facilitated by increasing supplementary feed use and increasing numbers of feed suppliers, but little is known about the organization and behavior of the feed supply segment of aquaculture value chain. We conducted a comprehensive survey with 79 feed suppliers of two types: ‘dealers’ linked to feed companies (n = 34) and independent retailers (n = 45), in the seven main aquaculture producing districts of southern Bangladesh in 2021 to address this knowledge gap. We found the following. (1) Over the past 10 years, the number of traders increased 70% and the volume of feed traded almost doubled. (2) Feed supply is shifting from traditional agricultural byproducts to formulated feeds (47% of total feed), and floating feeds as a subset of those (54% of formulated feed), contributing to increasing farm productivity. (3) The formulated fish feed market in Bangladesh is diverse, but quite concentrated. Feed suppliers sold formulated feed produced by 35 companies, with eight companies accounting for 74% of sales. (4) Feed handling practices are efficient. Traders sell feeds quickly (average turnover time 10 days) and storage practices are adequate to maintain quality. (5) No traders reported experiencing any waste or loss of feed during their most recent completed transaction, and only 5% of traders reported losing a small portion of feed (1.7%) during transport. (6) The average profit margin earned by feed suppliers is a modest 6.2%. (7) Feed trading creates substantial employment: 43,937 full time equivalent (FTE) jobs in the seven surveyed districts. In sum, the feed supply segment of the aquaculture value chain in southern Bangladesh is dynamic, well-developed, and relatively competitive and efficient. This finding is contrary to the conventional wisdom, which often portrays the sector as inefficient and beset by problems.PRIFPRI3; ISI; DCA; 3 Building Inclusive and Efficient Markets, Trade Systems, and Food Industry; Feed the Future InitiativeDevelopment Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation Strategie
Integrated aquatic and terrestrial food production enhances micronutrient and economic productivity for nutrition-sensitive food systems
No full textIntegrated aquaculture–agriculture (IAA) is a form of crop diversification where aquatic and terrestrial foods are grown together on a single parcel of land. We compare economic and nutrient productivity per hectare for 12 distinct IAA combinations, identified from a representative survey of 721 farms in southern Bangladesh. Just under half of households integrate agriculture into their aquaculture production. Regression analyses show positive associations between the integration of terrestrial foods into aquatic farming systems and nutrient productivity, but that nutrient productivity is partly disconnected from economic productivity. However, we find that production of specific combinations of aquatic foods and vegetables can simultaneously improve nutrient productivity and economic productivity, thereby promoting nutrition-sensitive agriculture (NSA). The approach demonstrated here can be applied to the design of NSA programmes that are important for realizing nutrition-sensitive food systems.PRIFPRI3; ISI; 3 Building Inclusive and Efficient Markets, Trade Systems, and Food Industry; Feed the Future Fish Innovation LabDevelopment Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation Strategie
Agrifood value chains: Building resilient food systems
No full textAgrifood value chains in the world’s low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have expanded rapidly over the past decade, supplying an increasing volume and diversity of food products. This transformation has been driven by the fast growth of urban and peri-urban areas as well as increasing demand from richer and more urban consumers for different, higher-quality, and often more expensive food. More farmers than ever are now connected to agrifood value chains through markets for both agricultural inputs and outputs. These connections are not only ncreasingly numerous but also increasingly complex, reflecting the greater diversity of products, inputs, and services that farmers buy and sell. Midstream and downstream in agrifood value chains, a “quiet” revolution has occurred in logistics, storage, transport, wholesale, retail, and food services, with fundamental and rapid changes in the structure, conduct, and performance of these value chain segments and the enterprises involved.PRIFPRI4; MyanmarSSPDevelopment Strategies and Governance (DSG); Markets, Trade, and Institutions (MTI); Food and Nutrition Policy; Transformation Strategie
The development of aquaculture in Central Thailand: Domestic demand versus export-led production
No full textExpansion of aquaculture in Central Thailand since the 1970s is intimately linked to growth in other sectors of the local and national economy, and to participation in global trade. Thailand's agro-industrialization has led to the diversification of agriculture in the Central Region and the co-development of aquaculture. Production of domestic aqua-products is largely positive for consumers, farmers and the environment. By contrast, intensive production of shrimp for export has been characterized by periods of boom and bust resulting from disease outbreaks and international competition. At the farm level this has translated into surges of profit followed by overcapitalization, debt and environmental degradation
Immanent and Interventionist Inland Asian Aquaculture Development and its Outcomes
No full textAquaculture is equated with the reduction of poverty by intergovernmental agencies such as the FAO, which advocate the promotion of small-scale aquaculture through project-based interventions. There is a lack of convincing empirical evidence to support the efficacy of this type of intervention, however. Meanwhile, commercial cultured freshwater fish production has increased hugely throughout Asia, despite limited direct donor or government support. Its impact with respect to poverty also remains ambiguous, however. This article critically evaluates the developmental impacts of both immanent and interventionist forms of aquaculture and advances finely nuanced interpretations of both
The social relations of catfish production in Vietnam
No full textThe growth of intensive export-oriented Pangasius catfish production in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta is unparalleled in terms of rapidity and scale by any other agricultural sector, with production climbing from a low base to more than 1 million tons in a single decade. This paper examines the effects of this remarkable change on the rural class structure in locations where catfish farming has boomed, and analyses the role of local state-society relations in mediating outcomes resulting from the integration of local actors into the global value chain. We conclude that private economic activity is deeply embedded in informal relations with the state bureaucracy in Vietnam, with the result that the expansion of catfish aquaculture has generally acted to reproduce and entrench existing class relations rather leading to a radical reconfiguration of the rural class structure
COVID-19 disruptions and pivoting in SMEs in the hidden middle of Kenya’s potato and fish value chains
No full textSmall and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya were severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions put in place to contain it. This study assesses the impact of these restrictions on the midstream of the potato and fish value chains, with a focus on traders and processors, and investigates the short- and longer-term responses and ‘pivoting’ strategies deployed by these firms. Longitudinal data were collected from 937 respondents with three recall periods: (1) the pre-pandemic situation (2019); (2) the period of strictest restrictions, necessitating immediate adaptations by firms (2020); and (3) a period of anticipated recovery with longer-term business adaptation strategies (2021). Firms in both value chains reported a dramatic drop in turnover in 2020. Potato SMEs partially recovered in 2021, but fish SMEs reported further declines in turnover. In the face of restrictions, SMEs shifted toward more localized procurement and sales, shorter supply chains (often by-passing intermediaries and increasing use of contracts), use of smaller vehicles, and toward the adoption of information and communication technology (ICT) to search for and engage with business partners. Smaller firms and the biggest of businesses were more resilient and less subject to large fluctuations in business turnover, suggesting an inverted U-shape relationship between firm size and impact. Firms located close to production areas and selling primarily within their own county were also less affected. We provide recommendations for increasing business resilience to shocks based on these findings.PRIFPRI3; CRP2; ISI; 3 Building Inclusive and Efficient Markets, Trade Systems, and Food Industry; DCAPIM; Development Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation Strategies; Markets, Trade, and Institutions (MTI); Food and Nutrition PolicyCGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM
Shrimp value chains in Bangladesh: A scoping study of possible research interventions
No full textShrimp is Bangladesh’s main agricultural export and makes a substantial contribution to the economy of southern Bangladesh, but the sector has a checkered history. Bangladesh’s shrimp production and exports have been in steady decline, since peaking in the early 2010’s. Most shrimp exports from Bangladesh are used by the food service and niche ethnic markets in Europe.
The complex nature of shrimp supply chains in Bangladesh, comprised of hundreds of thousands of small polyculture farms and tens of thousands of small traders, make it difficult to implement tracea bility and certification initiatives – now a prerequisite for entry into most supermarket supply chains.
This report provides an overview of the sector and the challenges it faces, drawing on secondary and survey data, reviews of government reports and academic literature. We also report the findings of an expert consultation conducted to identify key constraints and potential solutions.
The consensus among industry stakeholders who were part of the expert consultations is that issues related to the supply and quality of shrimp seed and pond management practices represent some of the most pressing, yet relatively simple-to-solve challenges currently faced by the sector. This would serve as the foundation for establishing traceability and certification processes. Previous interventions aimed at upgrading production practices (such as promoting stocking of disease-free shrimp seed) and facilitating disintermediation and transparency in the supply chain (such as by establishing producer groups, shrimp collection centers, and contracts with processors), have met with limited success. We outline potential interventions and partners that might offer scalable solutions enabling small shrimp farmers to access global markets.Non-PRIFPRI1; 3 Building Inclusive and Efficient Markets, Trade Systems, and Food IndustryDevelopment Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation Strategie
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