Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia

South and Southeast Asia host almost half of the world's undernourished people. Food and agricultural systems in these regions are highly dependent on the production and consumption of staple cereals such as rice, maize and wheat. More diverse farming systems can potentially improve rural people's n...

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Main Authors: Tacconi, Francesco, Waha, Katharina, Ojeda, Jonathan Jesus, Leith, Peat, Mohammed, Caroline, Venables, William N., Rana, Jai C., Bhardwaj, Rakesh, Yadav, Rashmi, Ahlawat, Sudhir Pal, Hammond, James, Wijk, Mark T. van
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Elsevier 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/132579
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author Tacconi, Francesco
Waha, Katharina
Ojeda, Jonathan Jesus
Leith, Peat
Mohammed, Caroline
Venables, William N.
Rana, Jai C.
Bhardwaj, Rakesh
Yadav, Rashmi
Ahlawat, Sudhir Pal
Hammond, James
Wijk, Mark T. van
author_browse Ahlawat, Sudhir Pal
Bhardwaj, Rakesh
Hammond, James
Leith, Peat
Mohammed, Caroline
Ojeda, Jonathan Jesus
Rana, Jai C.
Tacconi, Francesco
Venables, William N.
Waha, Katharina
Wijk, Mark T. van
Yadav, Rashmi
author_facet Tacconi, Francesco
Waha, Katharina
Ojeda, Jonathan Jesus
Leith, Peat
Mohammed, Caroline
Venables, William N.
Rana, Jai C.
Bhardwaj, Rakesh
Yadav, Rashmi
Ahlawat, Sudhir Pal
Hammond, James
Wijk, Mark T. van
author_sort Tacconi, Francesco
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description South and Southeast Asia host almost half of the world's undernourished people. Food and agricultural systems in these regions are highly dependent on the production and consumption of staple cereals such as rice, maize and wheat. More diverse farming systems can potentially improve rural people's nutrition, while reducing the environmental impact of agriculture. Yet, it remains uncertain whether farm diversification is always the most suitable and viable strategy for all types of smallholder farms. We use generalised linear regression models to analyse the farm diversification strategies of 4772 rural households in Cambodia, India, Lao PDR and Vietnam. Our analysis is twofold and focuses first on drivers of farm diversification, and second, on the impacts of farm diversification and other livelihood strategies on dietary diversity. We find that (1) farm diversification is significantly influenced by environmental and climate variables, including rainfall patterns, as well as household and farm characteristics such as farm size and education level; and (2) farm diversification, market orientation and off-farm income generation are all strategies that can improve household and individual dietary diversity. However, their relative effects resulted influenced by farm size. Specifically, the positive effect of farm diversification on dietary diversity was larger for smaller farms, while it decreased for farms of larger size that may improve their diet more by increasing their engagement in off-farm activities and markets. These findings highlight that characteristics such as farm size can represent substantial determinants in production and consumption decisions, suggesting the importance of understanding and considering the type of farm and the situational context of analysis when targeting interventions for improving smallholder farm livelihoods.
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spelling CGSpace1325792025-12-08T10:11:39Z Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia Tacconi, Francesco Waha, Katharina Ojeda, Jonathan Jesus Leith, Peat Mohammed, Caroline Venables, William N. Rana, Jai C. Bhardwaj, Rakesh Yadav, Rashmi Ahlawat, Sudhir Pal Hammond, James Wijk, Mark T. van agriculture analysis cereals climate consumption diet diversification ecology education environmental impact farm income farm size farming farming systems farms households income income generation livelihoods maize markets models nutrition production quality research rice risk strategies systems wheat South and Southeast Asia host almost half of the world's undernourished people. Food and agricultural systems in these regions are highly dependent on the production and consumption of staple cereals such as rice, maize and wheat. More diverse farming systems can potentially improve rural people's nutrition, while reducing the environmental impact of agriculture. Yet, it remains uncertain whether farm diversification is always the most suitable and viable strategy for all types of smallholder farms. We use generalised linear regression models to analyse the farm diversification strategies of 4772 rural households in Cambodia, India, Lao PDR and Vietnam. Our analysis is twofold and focuses first on drivers of farm diversification, and second, on the impacts of farm diversification and other livelihood strategies on dietary diversity. We find that (1) farm diversification is significantly influenced by environmental and climate variables, including rainfall patterns, as well as household and farm characteristics such as farm size and education level; and (2) farm diversification, market orientation and off-farm income generation are all strategies that can improve household and individual dietary diversity. However, their relative effects resulted influenced by farm size. Specifically, the positive effect of farm diversification on dietary diversity was larger for smaller farms, while it decreased for farms of larger size that may improve their diet more by increasing their engagement in off-farm activities and markets. These findings highlight that characteristics such as farm size can represent substantial determinants in production and consumption decisions, suggesting the importance of understanding and considering the type of farm and the situational context of analysis when targeting interventions for improving smallholder farm livelihoods. 2023-09 2023-10-31T12:27:33Z 2023-10-31T12:27:33Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/132579 en Open Access Elsevier Tacconi, F. et al. 2023. Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia. Global Food Security 38: 100706
spellingShingle agriculture
analysis
cereals
climate
consumption
diet
diversification
ecology
education
environmental impact
farm income
farm size
farming
farming systems
farms
households
income
income generation
livelihoods
maize
markets
models
nutrition
production
quality
research
rice
risk
strategies
systems
wheat
Tacconi, Francesco
Waha, Katharina
Ojeda, Jonathan Jesus
Leith, Peat
Mohammed, Caroline
Venables, William N.
Rana, Jai C.
Bhardwaj, Rakesh
Yadav, Rashmi
Ahlawat, Sudhir Pal
Hammond, James
Wijk, Mark T. van
Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia
title Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia
title_full Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia
title_fullStr Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia
title_full_unstemmed Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia
title_short Farm diversification strategies, dietary diversity and farm size: Results from a cross-country sample in South and Southeast Asia
title_sort farm diversification strategies dietary diversity and farm size results from a cross country sample in south and southeast asia
topic agriculture
analysis
cereals
climate
consumption
diet
diversification
ecology
education
environmental impact
farm income
farm size
farming
farming systems
farms
households
income
income generation
livelihoods
maize
markets
models
nutrition
production
quality
research
rice
risk
strategies
systems
wheat
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/132579
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