Strategic alliances in Kenyan smallholder farming

• Implementing and complying with standards and certifi cation oft en increases costs for supply chain actors. Th ese increased costs are caused by upgrading production, logistics and marketing needed to achieve compliance, and can lead to the exclusion of actors from the supply chain. In particular, the exclusion of small-scale growers in developing countries as the result of the expansion and proliferation of private voluntary standards (PVS) used by large procurers has been extensively reported. Costs of PVS are per certifi cation and the unit is usually the individual farm, regardless of its size. In much of the developing world smallholder production dominates domestic food production, and these small farms face proportionately higher costs per unit area for certifi cation and compliance. Benefi ts of PVS are per production unit, giving benefi ts to larger farms. Developing world smallholder production tends to be on less than one hectare, giving relatively small production. Compared with the costs per farm, there is an inherent bias in many standards and certifi cation towards larger farms. Standards in export horticulture can, potentially, incentivize a more active role for the private sector in investing in small-scale growers in ways that are mutually benefi cial for growers and exporters. Such co-investment is a feature of trading relationships and business models that are inclusive of small-scale growers. In Kenyan horticulture, donors, exporters and smallholders have in some cases managed to leverage PVS requirements into profi table local agricultural developments. In this paper, we use resource-based strategic alliance theory to explain the patterns that have evolved. We propose greater use of cooperation theory to help make more effi cient economic development interventions which are complementary with private-sector investments. We explore how standards might be used to accelerate development initiatives.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Nationalekonomi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Economics (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Företagsekonomi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Business Administration (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

strategic alliances

small scale agriculture

Kenya

private voluntary standards

GlobalGAP.

strategic alliances; small scale agriculture; Kenya; private voluntary standards; GlobalGAP

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