Contract Farming in India (Gujarat)

This pilot seeks to systematically identify the barriers that small and marginal farmers, often females, face in the production of high quality crops in India, and in turn understand what forms of contracts can best incentivize such high quality production. Knowing how to incorporate these farmers into the high value-added segments becomes increasingly relevant as organized retailers replace traditional food sellers. This is of special relevance presently in India as the country is rapidly opening up to massive retail supermarkets which interact primarily with large farmers, arguably pushing out many small and marginal farmers in the process. Understanding how to construct optimal contracts with these small farmers that streamline the production of high quality crops can thus facilitate their reintegration into the quickly changing landscape of Indian agricultural economy.

Researchers finished a baseline survey across the sample of 2,200 farmers in Gujarat and are currently in the process of cleaning and analyzing the data collected to share results.