Agriculture
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Agrifood Value Chains are Complex Transaction-Linked Networks What Does this Mean for Sampling Methodology?
Agrifood value chains are an integral part of food systems, moving food from farms where it is produced to retailers where it is sold to consumers. Agrifood value chains can be quite simple—consumers can buy directly from farms at farmers’ markets, for example—or they can be quite complex, involving processing steps on multiple continents before products reach retailers. Yet research often sets aside these distinctions and depicts agrifood value chains as highly stylized and simple—typically as a simplified series of steps involving traders, aggregators, processors, and/or wholesalers between farms and retailers. The most common method for studying multiple intermediary actors within agrifood value chains—“stacked surveys” that randomly sample respondents within each of these steps—follows this simplified approach.
Webinar insights: Impact of outsourcing agricultural services on smallholder farmers
One of the emerging developments in agrifood systems worldwide is the rise of enterprises which provide farmers with “outsource” agricultural services. These services are emerging in various agricultural operations traditionally carried out by farmers themselves. But what has driven this growth? And how might they impact the future of farms?
Creating better employment in agrifood systems: Where is more research needed?
Agrifood systems represent a substantial source of employment for a diverse range of supply chain actors. In recent years, we have learned a lot from the rapid rise in innovations on what is needed to build more inclusive and sustainable agrifood systems that can lift people out of poverty and provide better job opportunities. Yet there are still critical gaps in knowledge to address before we get there.
Webinar insights: Pathways to more jobs and better incomes in agrifood systems
Building inclusive and sustainable agrifood systems can play a key role in achieving sustainable development goals. Agrifood systems account for more than 70% of employment in low-income countries and employs more than 1 billion people worldwide. Yet achieving equitable and inclusive livelihoods and employment is at risk.
Webinar Insights: Challenges and opportunities of digital technologies for coffee value chains in Central America
Digital technologies are transforming the agricultural sector and the global food system in innovative ways. From farm machinery automation to digital traceability tools to remote satellite data, the range of digital solutions available for different parts of the agri-food value chain is diverse.