A strategic approach to value chain upgrading—adopting innovations and their impacts on farm households in tanzania

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

  • Jesse Steffens
  • Kathleen Brüssow
  • Ulrike Grote
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Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number32
Pages (from-to)1-22
Number of pages22
JournalHorticulturae
Volume6
Issue number2
Publication statusPublished - 2 Jun 2020

Abstract

The level of agricultural productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa remains far below the global average. This is partly due to the scarce use of production-and process-enhancing technologies. This study aims to explore the driving forces and effects of adopting innovative agricultural technologies in food value chains (FVC). These enhancing FVC technologies are referred to as upgrading strategies (UPS) and are designed to improve specific aspects of crop production, postharvest processing, market interaction, and consumption. Based on cross-sectional data collected from 820 Tanzanian farm households, this study utilized the adaptive lasso to analyse the determinants of UPS. To measure the impact of their adoption on well-being, this study applied the propensity score matching approach (PSM). Results from the adaptive lasso suggested that access to credit, experience of environmental shocks and social capital were the main drivers of UPS adoption. In contrast, the engagement in off-farm wage employment impeded adoption. The results from the PSM suggested that UPS adoption has a positive and significant impact on well-being among sampled households, especially with respect to their total value of durable goods and commercialization. The paper suggests that the promotion of social capital and access to financial capital is pivotal in enhancing the adoption of innovative UPS in the farming sector.

Keywords

    Adaptive lasso, Innovations, Propensity score matching, Tanzania, Value chain analysis

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Sustainable Development Goals

Cite this

A strategic approach to value chain upgrading—adopting innovations and their impacts on farm households in tanzania. / Steffens, Jesse; Brüssow, Kathleen; Grote, Ulrike.
In: Horticulturae, Vol. 6, No. 2, 32, 02.06.2020, p. 1-22.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Steffens J, Brüssow K, Grote U. A strategic approach to value chain upgrading—adopting innovations and their impacts on farm households in tanzania. Horticulturae. 2020 Jun 2;6(2):1-22. 32. doi: 10.3390/horticulturae6020032
Steffens, Jesse ; Brüssow, Kathleen ; Grote, Ulrike. / A strategic approach to value chain upgrading—adopting innovations and their impacts on farm households in tanzania. In: Horticulturae. 2020 ; Vol. 6, No. 2. pp. 1-22.
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