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    How is organic farming performing agronomically and economically in sub-Saharan Africa?

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    Journal Article (785.9Kb)
    Date
    2021-09
    Author
    Schader, C.
    Heidenreich, A.
    Kadzere, I.
    Egyir, I.
    Muriuki, A.
    Bandanaa, H.
    Clottey, J.
    Ndungu, J.
    Grovermann, C.
    Lazzarini, G.
    Blockeel, J.
    Borgemeister, C.
    Muller, A.
    Kabi, F.
    Fiaboe, K.
    Adamtey, N.
    Huber, B.
    Niggli, U.
    Stolze, M.
    Type
    Journal Article
    Review Status
    Peer Review
    Target Audience
    Scientists
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Abstract/Description
    The potential of organic agriculture and agroecological approaches for improving food security in Africa is a controversial topic in global discussions. While there is a number of meta-analyses on the environmental, agronomic and financial performance of organic farming, most of the underlying data stems from on-station field trials from temperate regions. Data from sub-Sahara Africa in particular, as well as detailed real-farm data is scarce. How organic farming is implemented in sub-Saharan Africa and how it performs in a smallholder context remains poorly understood. We applied a novel observational two-factorial research design, which allowed to evaluate the impacts of i) interventions for introducing organic agriculture and ii) specific organic management practices on 1,645 farms from five case studies in Ghana and Kenya, which we closely monitored for 24 months. Among the farmers who have been exposed to the interventions, we found heterogeneous adoption of organic agriculture principles, depending on the intervention. Furthermore, we found rather passive than active organic management among farmers. Most yields and gross margins under organic management remained at similar levels as the conventional values in four of the case studies. In one case study, however, coffee, maize and macadamia nut yields increased by 127–308% and farm-level gross margins over all analysed crops by 292%. Pooling our data across all case studies, we found significantly higher (+144%) farm-level gross margins on organically managed farms than on conventional farms. This indicates the potential of organic and agroecological approaches if implemented well. Based on our observations, we argue for improving the implementation of organic agriculture projects in settings with smallholder farmers. Limited capacities, lack of appropriate inputs and market access are major agronomic and institutional challenges to be addressed. Furthermore, we argue for supporting a differentiated debate about which types of organic farming are really desirable by classifying approaches to organic farming according to i) their intention to work organically and ii) the degree of following the organic principles. This will support the design and implementation of targeted policy interventions for stimulating sustainability of farming systems and rural development.
    https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102325
    Multi standard citation
    Permanent link to this item
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12478/7267
    IITA Authors ORCID
    Komi Fiaboehttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5113-2159
    Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
    https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102325
    Research Themes
    Natural Resource Management
    IITA Subjects
    Agronomy; Farming Systems; Impact Assessment; Plant Breeding; Plant Ecology; Plant Production; Smallholder Farmers
    Agrovoc Terms
    Productivity; Profitability; Smallholders; Farmers; Impact Assessment; Agroecology; Subsaharan Africa; Organic Agriculture
    Regions
    Africa; Africa South of Sahara
    Countries
    Ghana; Kenya
    Hubs
    Central Africa Hub
    Journals
    Global Environmental Change
    Collections
    • Journal and Journal Articles4842
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