We use global value chain (GVC) theory to understand governance of Vietnam’s shrimp farming industry. We describe this GVC as buyer-driven with important food safety standards imposed by governments of importing countries and new certification systems promoted by nongovernmental organizations...

For many small producers in developing countries coffee is a major income source. However, the coffee market is characterized by high price volatility and increased power concentration among buyers in consuming countries. Due to the very low international coffee prices during the recent coffee...

This study examines the conflicts arising from the requirements of the food retail chains and their possible solutions, based on an analysis of the foreign and domestic trade literature and on a domestic assessment of 2008. Direct supplies from small-scale producers have future prospects only in...

In Cameroon, the 1980s were marked by the economic crisis (falling export revenues) with the direct consequences of unemployment. Thus many were retrenched from the public service, private companies and graduated students engaged in small- income generating activities which later became small...

Smallholder rural producers face many challenges in supplying their products to high-value markets. While these markets usually off er higher prices compared to the traditional market, they also set stricter requirements in terms of quality, volume, delivery, and packaging. For farmers to meet...

This paper utilizes the theory of compensating differentials for job risks from the labor economics literature to evaluate farmers’ differences in wage-risk tradeoffs. In the context of job risks, the theory predicts that farmers who place a lower value on health status are willing to work for...

This article assesses the relative importance of risk preferences and rainfall availability on households’ decision to engage in off-farm employment. Devoting time for off-farm activities, while it helps households earn additional incomes, involves a number of uncertainties. Unique panel data...

The slow diffusion of new technology in the agricultural sector of developing countries has long puzzled development economists. While most of the current empirical research on technology adoption focuses on credit constraints and learning spillovers, this paper examines the role of individual...

This study analyzes how risk attitudes change when individuals become parents using longitudinal data for a large and representative sample of individuals. The results show that men and women experience a considerable increase in risk aversion which already starts as early as two years before...

Who is most likely to change their risk preferences over the lifecourse? Using German nationally representative survey data and methods to separate age from cohort effects, we estimate the lifecycle patterns in the socioeconomic gradient of self-reported risk preferences. Tolerance to risk drops...