Local Value Chains Research Articles

What do urban consumers want? Findings from a discrete choice experiment on the preference for locally produced staple food in Central Africa: Evidence from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

ABSTRACT A discrete choice experiment in Kinshasa (DRC) investigated urban consumers' preferences between imports and local options for five staple foods – cassava, rice, maize, sugar and cooking oil – under a random utility model. We also examined how distance, packaging and price influenced consumer choice. To assess whether preferences could be manipulated, we introduced two treatment groups – local, import – and a control group. We did not find support for a preference for imports. Instead, there is a statistically significant preference for local products, with the exception of sugar. Respondents are willing to pay 28% more for local food, a premium quantified at 1540 CF (.93 USD) per kg for maize and 1091CF (.66 USD) per litre for oil. Packaging is an attribute of influence as the willingness to pay (WTP) in full remains positive when products interact with packaging and with price. There is demand for local products for which consumers are willing to pay a premium. Yet, DRC imports 1.5 billion dollars of food yearly with only 10% of its arable land exploited. The increased urban consumption of imports does not signify a bias against local products, but rather points to structural issues undermining local supply. DRC needs to develop local value chains linking rural farmers to urban markets through the transformation of local foods to meet urban needs and to convert the WTP into a producer surplus benefiting rural livelihoods.

A mixed methods qualitative approach outlining a strategic and operational agenda for the pawpaw value chain in the eastern US

Abstract The latest global scale occurrences — COVID-19 pandemic and bellicose conflicts — have weakened stable value chain relationships and forced international leaders to reassess commitments to sustainability. From these experiences, it became evident that the success of sustainability initiatives encompasses strengthening local and short value chains while creating means for engaging smallholders in formal food channels. Taking international and national policies as motivations, this article examines the emerging pawpaw value chain in the Eastern United States. We employ a mixed-mode approach with two aims. First, we demonstrate how complementing qualitative methods can be articulated to prepare a strategic agenda to foster the development and resilience of local ag-food chains. Second, through the application of the devised methodology, interview records and survey answers are evaluated to map value chain relationships and describe stakeholders’ perceived challenges and opportunities. On the empirical front, this article proposes four macro strategies and 22 actionable projects. We argue that the representative association of pawpaw growers may adopt a broader leadership role to coordinate the necessary changes for sustaining long-term growth and promoting economic gains in rural communities dedicated to pawpaw production. The mixed-mode approach presented in this study can be replicated to analyze local and short chains elsewhere.

Local Energy Community as a Small Hydrogen Valley – H2LEC

A Local energy community (LEC) is a vertically nested system in energy supply and an ecosystem with joint values and objectives. On-site integrated hydrogen-based systems connected to the grid, and consisting of electrolyser, hydrogen storage and fuel cell system - hydrogen prosumers - provide efficient balancing of local energy consumption and local production of renewable energy that can be extended over annual cycles. There is no transport of hydrogen needed. Thus, the H2LEC – Local energy community with integrated hydrogen systems - represents the carrier of dispersed energy and hydrogen production as a complement of concentrated energy and hydrogen production: on average, H2LEC will predictably achieve at least 75% self-supply. Additionally, with Combined Heat-and-Power systems, coupling to the thermal system adds to energy efficiency. H2LEC represents a virtual socio-economic system based on community values and thus engages initiative, innovation and capital of local actors, new technology start-ups and local industry; and represents opportunities for new disruptive business models. It brings into the energy supply system new players – prosumer who actively trade their flexibilities among themselves and on the external markets, and stimulates new enabling technologies - notably automated close-to-real time trading - thereby boosting end-to-end automated solutions. The H2LEC create the need and the market for smaller integrated hydrogen-based systems ranging from a few kWe for residential homes to a few MWe units for larger industrial companies or local districts with a complete range of capacities in between, for public or tertiary buildings and smaller enterprises. Thus, they provide an opening for participation of SMEs in local and international value chains and will create a strong complementary energy bottom-up pillar and hydrogen supply system locally and in Europe.

The EU De‐Risking of Energy Dependencies: Towards a New Clean Energy Geopolitical Order?

The mounting geopolitical tensions and rivalries between the world’s major economies transform the goals and instruments of domestic and external policies. Industrial strategies of leading global powers call for technological decoupling, strategic autonomy, and the de-risking of dependencies in critical value chains. Economic interdependencies become a liability and de-globalisation tendencies come to the fore. The energy sector is not exempted from these trends, leading even to the weaponisation of energy in some cases. In that vein, this article explores the character and directions of EU international energy engagement through the geoeconomic lens. Taking inspiration from literature on energy security and the geopolitics of energy transition, the article theorises the concept of de-risking in energy to investigate how the EU is positioning itself as a power while ensuring security and competitiveness. Looking at three illustrative examples of the energy transition—supply of natural gas, access to energy-critical minerals, and international hydrogen markets—the article shows that EU de-risking means not only diversifying suppliers but, most notably, constructing new economic, sustainable, and potentially long-lasting international relations. As a result, despite the deep geopoliticisation of energy and the new global “disorder,” the EU’s de-risking has the potential to reshape international relations by forging new partnerships or reconfiguring existing ones, thus establishing a new economic order driven by clean energy while offering new economic opportunities to create local value chains and decarbonise economies in third countries.

The dual role of low-carbon ammonia in climate-smart farming and energy transition

The changing climate poses unprecedented risks and challenges to agricultural production and energy systems worldwide, necessitating innovative technology and policy solutions that transcend traditional boundaries. This paper highlights the critical intersection of energy and agricultural systems and identifies low-carbon intensity ammonia (LCIA) as a pivotal element in reducing the carbon footprint of US agricultural production, particularly in fertilizer use. It presents a comprehensive analysis of the ammonia market and value chain, emphasizing its potential to decarbonize agricultural fertilizers and serve as an alternative clean energy source. The technical review covers various ammonia production methods, from natural gas-based processes with carbon capture and storage to electrolysis using renewable energy. These methods’ economic and environmental implications are examined to provide insights into the levelized costs and emissions of LCIA applications across various scenarios. A case study focusing on the Permian Basin and Southern High Plains regions is conducted to illustrate the regional synergy between the agriculture and energy sectors, proposing a framework for integrating LCIA into the US agricultural sector. The proposed framework, Sustainable Ammonia for Resilient Agriculture, outlines policy recommendations and strategic investments to overcome market and infrastructure barriers, aiming to develop a resillient and sustainable LCIA value chain. Future research direction should emphasize the need for local value chain development plans encompassing agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and workforce development under a unified policy framework.

Matchmaking in Off-Grid Energy System Planning: A Novel Approach for Integrating Residential Electricity Demands and Productive Use of Electricity

Off-grid electrification planning increasingly recognizes the importance of productive use of electricity (PUE) to promote community value creation and (financial) project sustainability. To ensure a sustainable and efficient integration in the community and energy system, PUE assets must be carefully evaluated to match both the community needs and the residential electricity demand patterns. We propose a novel methodology interlinking qualitative interviews, statistical analysis and energy system modeling to optimize decision making for PUE integration in off-grid energy systems in rural Madagascar by aligning relevant PUE effectively with anticipated residential electricity demand patterns based on socio-economic determinants of the community. We find that a possible contribution of the PUE to reducing the electricity costs depends significantly on three factors: (1) The residential electricity consumption patterns, which are influenced by the socio-economic composition of the community; (2) The degree of flexibility of (i) PUE assets and (ii) operational preferences of the PUE user; and (3) The capacity of community members to finance and operate PUE assets. Our study demonstrates that significant cost reductions for PUE-integrated off-grid energy systems can be achieved by applying our proposed methodology. When matching PUE and residential consumption patterns, the integration of PUE assets in residential community energy systems can reduce the financial risk for operators, provided the PUE enterprise operates reliably and sustainably. We highlight that the consideration of local value chains and co-creation approaches are essential to ensure the energy system is addressing the community’s needs, creates value for the community, enhances the project’s financial sustainability and is achieving the overall objectives of decentralized energy system planning.

Impact of participatory guarantee systems on sustainability outcomes: the case of vegetable farming in Vietnam

ABSTRACT Sustainable food systems require mechanisms that assure consumers about the sustainability of agricultural production. Building on the existing literature on the impact of sustainability standards, this study is the first to assess the effectiveness of participatory guarantee systems (PGS) for the certification of organic produce. The study uses representative farm-level data on local vegetable value chains in northern Vietnam and uses a broad set of sustainability outcomes as well as counterfactual analysis, including systematic robustness checks. The results show that PGS significantly improves farm profitability (+117%), agroecology performance (+40%), and gives farmers more choice of sales channels (+23%). However, PGS had no significant effect on returns to labour and reduced the average crop yield. Capacity development on nursery practices, transplanting of healthy seedlings rather than direct seeding, reduced tillage, and collective crop planning and management are some of the innovations that can counter adverse effects on crop yields, increase soil health as well as improve returns to labour, and thus attract more youth to farming. Overall, the study shows that organic PGS can make vegetable production more economically viable and more agroecologically sustainable.

Sustainability analysis of primary wastewater treatment by willow plantations in Québec

Wastewater treatment is a necessary step to avoid environmental impacts of water consumption and usage. Traditional approaches are expensive and are limited to developed countries. Phytofiltration using fast-growing trees and shrubs like willows potentially offer an alternative. This paper aims to determine if wastewater treatment using phytofiltration can provide complementary environmental and economic benefits for rural communities in a Nordic climate such as the province of Québec, Canada. It looks at different perspectives of the wastewater treatment solution in a local and rural context. Based on life cycle analysis (LCA) and life cycle cost analysis (LCC), we found that, for an exemplar Québec municipality, the conventional wastewater treatment scenario impacted more on climate change, ecosystem quality and human health than the two phytofiltration of wastewater scenarios studied, where impact is highly dependant on the biomass valorization. The net present cost of the phytofiltration scenarios were lower than typical conventional treatment in Québec. For a biomass producer, conventional biomass production had the highest environmental impact on ecosystem quality, while biomass production from phytofiltration had the highest environmental impact on climate change, human health, and resources. We demonstrate that the phytofiltration is a viable and multifunctional technology that could provide good incentives for a local biomass value chain. it allows to both alleviate wastewater treatment burden and provide affordable biomass for bioenergy development for rural communities. Mobilizing local stakeholders will be key to make phytofiltration an alternative solution for both environmental burden alleviation and rural economic development.

Socio-techno-ecological transition dynamics in the re-territorialization of food production: the case of wild berries in Sweden

AbstractRecent geopolitical and economic crises underline the need for a European transition towards a more sustainable food system. Scholars and policymakers have called for a re-territorialization of food production to strike a better balance between local, regional and global value chains. This paper explores the role of re-territorialization through an analysis of the emergence, development and current transformation of the Swedish wild berry value chain. The analysis combines the multi-level perspective on sustainability transitions with a socio-techno-ecological system approach and draws on interviews, informal conversations, participant observations and a range of secondary sources. The resulting case narrative shows how processes of de-territorialization may result in regimes that fail to address sustainability potential and problems. It also highlights that processes of re-territorialization challenge established regimes by promoting niches that represent different, albeit complementary, value chain configurations. Apart from a rich empirical narrative that brings useful knowledge to stakeholders to the Swedish wild berry value chain, the paper contributes to the theoretical understanding re-territorialization, shows how the ecological dimension can be accounted for with the multi-level perspective on sustainability transitions and presents a number of general policy implications.

The economic role of industrial equipment sector in the Korean national economy

ABSTRACT After Japan began to regulate the exportation of core semiconductor materials in July 2019, the Korean government initiated a policy to strengthen the competitiveness of the local industry value chain (LIVC), encompassing the materials, components, and equipment sectors. Specifically, the government began to nurture the equipment sector in earnest. Based on Korea’s three most recent benchmark input-output tables, we define the equipment sector, including nine subsectors. Then, we consider them exogenous and estimate their economic spillover effects on the Korean economy from the LIVC perspective. We find that the equipment sector is characterized by high production-inducing (dominated by the backward-linkage effect) and low supply-shortage effects. However, we observe a decrease in its production-inducing and supply-shortage effects on the economy in terms of low localization in intermediate goods and a reduction in the cost of supply shortages. At the same time, we find heterogeneity in the economic spillover effects across different subsectors. Lastly, we observe the dispute and policy effect from the time-series analysis of domestic production, import reliance on Japan, and total trade balance. They indicate that policy makers should support the sector in terms of LIVC development and global competitiveness, with subsector-specific policies that incorporate its economic spillover effects.

A Framework for Data Collection and Management to Support the Comprehensive Development of African Agriculture

Agriculture is a key source of food and health for humanity. However, the hazardous way this activity is still cared for in some developing countries like the Republic of Benin, with poor quality farming data collection mechanisms, can guarantee neither quality and sustainability of production, nor comprehensiveness and efficiency of agricultural interventions. Such shortcomings ineluctably contribute to the limited success of the Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) promoted by the African Union and its regional chapters, in most African countries. Based on these preliminary remarks, this paper suggests a systematic and automated monitoring, evaluation, learning, and adaptation (MEL) framework that will further be tested, consolidated, validated, and promoted, first in the Republic of Benin, and later in other African countries. This framework is made of local, regional, and national geographic information systems (GIS) which will further serve as databases for planning and interventions in the agricultural sector. The proposed GIS superposes lands’ details (sizes, soils’ characteristics, rainfall data, etc.), stakeholders’ details (demographics, crops, livestock, agricultural practices, etc.), and agricultural value chains’ details. Local, regional, and national agricultural value chains’ development platforms will bring stakeholders together, and serve as sources and co-users of the GIS data. Local, regional, and national MEL and GIS management skilled AEAS agents will facilitate systematic data collection and GIS database management. The data collection and treatment tools should allow the use of all kinds of data formats, including voice and image records, given the oral orientation of most agricultural stakeholders. This original idea emerged from observations during national and regional field experiences, and from the literature that revealed the efficiency of automated real-time and quality data for comprehensive and evidence-based decision-making in development interventions.

Re-Considering Market Development Approaches to Support Nunavut Inuit Priorities in the Seal Market

Seal hunting is a long-standing cultural practice for Inuit, who have also long participated in the commercial seal market. Inuit were negatively impacted by anti-sealing campaigns that resulted in international trade bans and subsequent market collapses for seal products. To improve market access for Inuit seal products, the Canadian government established the Certification and Market Access Program for Seals (CMAPS) to support export of Inuit seal products in European Union markets. In 2015, the Government of Nunavut became an Attestation Body under the EU Indigenous Communities Exemption, which enables the Government to certify Nunavut seal products for export into EU markets. To date, market development efforts have largely focused on supporting the export market for Nunavut sealskins, while less attention has focused on how such efforts impact the local value chain and meet the needs of Nunavut Inuit involved in the seal market. Focus group discussions with Inuit value chain actors in Iqaluit and Qikiqtarjuaq provide insight into the Nunavut seal value chain and explore perspectives of how government policies and programmes are meeting the needs of Nunavut Inuit. Findings revealed multiple gaps in the local value chain that have gone largely unaddressed due to a priority on export markets over the local value chain. These gaps limit export development opportunities and the ability for the seal market to adequately meet the needs of Nunavut Inuit and Nunavummiut alike. Collectively, this study demonstrates the importance of centralizing Inuit in economic development policies to support local economies and ensure Inuit priorities are met.

The exports of dehusked coconuts from southwestern Ghana: Implications for coconut farmers’ role in a rural virgin coconut oil value chain

The export of coconuts creates competition between local value chain activities and the export market. This article examined the impact of dehusked coconut exports on the role of coconut farmers in the local virgin coconut oil (VCO) value chain in the Jomoro Municipality, Ghana. The study answered the following question: What were the quantities of coconut farmers supplied to local VCO processors before and during the export periods? Simple random sampling was used to select 311 coconut farmers for the study. Both structured and unstructured interviews were conducted using an interview schedule and a semi-structured interview guide, respectively. Quantitative data were analysed using IBM SPSS (version 25), while direct quotes were used to support the quantitative data. The results show that the presence of coconut exporters and the rising price of coconuts were major opportunities for coconut farmers. Exporters bought 100 dry coconuts at GHȻ100 while the local VCO processors bought the same quantity at GHȻ60. The international market prices for dry (mature) coconuts ranged from €14 to €15 (GH₵98 to GH₵105) per bag of 50 units. The majority of the coconut farmers, therefore, supplied 70–100% of their coconuts to exporters and 10–30% to local VCO processors. Thus, the exports of coconuts, mainly to Nigeria, Europe and the United States of America, have impacted farmers’ roles in the local VCO value chain. The government should partner with local companies to build more processing plants that will offer attractive prices to farmers in order to keep coconuts in the Jomoro Municipality for processing.

From Idea to Market in the Local Medical Device Value Chain: A Conceptual Framework

From Idea to Market in the Local Medical Device Value Chain: A Conceptual Framework

Barriers to the uptake of solar-powered irrigation by smallholder farmers in sub-saharan Africa: A review

Irrigation expansion is critical for agricultural and rural development, food and nutrition security, and climate change adaptation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Lack of accessible energy for irrigation development due to limited off- and on-grid infrastructure and the resulting dependence on costly fuel-based irrigation have been key inhibiting factors for irrigation expansion in the region. Off-grid solar-powered irrigation pumps (SIPs) can overcome many of the energy access and other challenges in the region, but their uptake has been slow. Given the nascent development of the solar irrigation sector in SSA, this paper combines a review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature with key informant interviews to identify systemic barriers to the adoption and growth of solar-powered irrigation. We identify uncovered risks, lack of incentives, and lack of capacity as the key factors limiting the adoption of solar-powered irrigation. Moreover, despite significant global cost reductions, solar-powered irrigation systems remain costly in SSA due to limited market development and geographical constraints. Lack of regulation and low investment in building local institutions and value chains further affect uptake and inhibit leveraging the energy transition for ensuring food security and agriculture-led poverty alleviation in SSA. We propose a move away from thinking of SIPs as “silver bullets” and towards a systems approach and the design of context-specific solutions to address risks, incentives and capacity challenges.

Analysis of the coffee production chain in the Amazonas Region in 2023

Analyzing the local value chain in coffee-producing regions can help identify obstacles and opportunities for economic development and growth. Faced with this, the objective of the study was to analyze the value chain in the Amazon region. For which, the survey was used to collect information from producers and those involved in the value chain. To map the chain, the GIZ Value Links methodology was used; the study population was 34 producers and representatives of organizations and institutions. The coffee value chain in the Amazon region is made up of producers as the first link, after them the local collectors such as associations and cooperatives are present and in turn free trade who are the intermediary buyers. Government institutions. The main international export markets are Canada, the United States, and Germany. The main difficulty for producers is the constant coffee pests that prevent good production, along with the lack of irrigation in the plots.

Contribution of Micro-Enterprises in Nepalese Economy

Micro-enterprises in Nepal are vital, fueling employment, GDP growth, exports, and more. In this context, this paper aims to deal with investment, income and employment (IIE) analysis of Micro-enterprises in Nepal. Using descriptive statistics and multiple regression model, the study has employed cross-sectional data set collected from enterprises survey in the Ward No.14 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City. In the survey, the sample size was 30 small enterprises including tea stall, sweets, haircutting, meat shops, and vegetables. In the enterprises, high investment that is 80 percent have generated high income level that is multiple times of investment in retail enterprises, except hair cutting, meat shops, boutique, sweets and vegetables. In employment generation, all enterprises have positive implications. Besides, the model shows positive relationship between income, investment and employment. However, it is statistically insignificant because p value is greater than 0.05. However, in real life, this is significant because the main attractive investment fields are hair-cutting and meat shops. It is clear that investment output depends on the presence of such business units in their vicinity. The relationship between income and investment is statistically insignificant (p-value 0.416 > 0.05), and the same is true for income and employment (p-value 0.445 > 0.05). The number of employees and the type of business are closely related (p-value 0.000 to 0.01). Therefore, the micro-enterprises are a prominent economic activity to generate self-employment, income generation and promoting small scale investment. This study result significantly contributes on generic perception of the policy makers on enterprises development statistically to continue enterprises development programs and policy of the government of Nepal and Kathmandu Metropolitan city to boost up local economy as well as national economy. Furthermore, the study result provides a valuable lesson learnt to create doing business environment of micro-enterprises within Kathmandu for building a strong local supply and value chain system rather than prohibition policy.

Innovation systems, value chains and industrial clusters in developing economies: Case of Jalandhar’s sports goods industry

The paper explores the relationship between innovation systems (IS) and participation in value chains (VCs) to understand the challenges concerning upgrading of an industrial cluster in a developing country. It is argued that the inter-linkages of various actors, organizations and institutions at one or more levels (MLs), viz., micro level (local), meso level (national) and macro level (global) led the firms in the industrial cluster to participate in one or more VCs, i.e., local, regional and global VCs, upgrading the cluster over time, which we termed as ‘Cluster Upgrading System’ (CUS). In this context, a case of one of the oldest industrial cluster producing sports goods in Jalandhar, India is examined. The analysis is based upon the information gathered through a primary survey of 45 firms. It was found that the cluster is largely labour intensive in nature and is facing challenges of competing with both low-cost clusters and technological advanced clusters, raising fears of it slipping into a low value-added trap. We found a lack of inter-linkages amongst firms, and their relationship with training and financial institutes that hampers mutual learning for upgrading the whole cluster, indicating some necessary policy implications.

Coping Strategies of Households in Lao Cai Province in Dealing with Risks in Tea Cultivation

Tea farming households in Lung Vai commune, Muong Khuong district have been facing different types of risks. This study aimed to analyze their current risk-coping strategies, then to propose some solutions for the future. A total of 90 farmers in 3 villages with different production scales had been interviewed using semi-constructed questionare of how they identified and measured risks based on their observations and experience. The statistical descriptions and comparisons results pointed out that most of them were very proactive and flexibly applied different strategies and measures to prevent and minimize losses. However, the differences in the strategies chosen and the level of application among the households depended largely on the household’s resource capacity as well as the awareness of the household head. To promote the sustainable development of tea production in this area, the government and relevant actors in the local tea value chain should work together in order to develop solutions to intervene and support households to improve their capacity to apply risk-coping strategies more effectively in the future.

On increasing the contribution of locally produced fresh foods to school meals in the Caribbean

The rising prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity within the Caribbean is a major public health and policy concern because obese children are at risk of developing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) later in life. Throughout the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), children are consuming unhealthy diets, characterized by energy-dense, processed and ultra-processed foods, sugar sweetened beverages, and limited quantities of fruits and vegetables. Community-based school meal programmes (SMPs) have been identified as useful vehicles to address unhealthy eating among children, and “farm-to-school” approaches have the potential to increase the availability of locally grown nutritious produce, while supporting local agriculture and reducing the region’s reliance on food imports. This paper seeks to better understand the barriers to enhancing community-based school feeding value-chains in the CARICOM, by focusing on the Eastern Caribbean Island of Nevis where there is an interest in developing farm-to-school value chains. Using key informant interviews combined with focus groups with actors along the local food value chain, we identify the following barriers to an effective community-based SMP: a lack of communication and an absence of contractual agreements between local farmers and the SMP administration; generally low levels of child acceptance of school meals containing fresh vegetables; and limited intersectoral coordination and collaboration among SMP stakeholders and local farmers. Using social network analysis, we further discuss limitations in group organization and coordination among local farmers and opportunities for SMP improvement. The results point to the need for more integrative public policy development and greater community engagement to coordinate and strengthen the farm-to school approach to school feeding.