The cocoa industry is made up of small scale family farms with low economic standings and a few large scale plantations which control the cocoa market. Due to large scale cocoa plantations small scale farms are struggling economically which has resulted in a fragile unsustainable society. The use of hybrid cocoa crops has made it easy for large scale plantation to control the market and remove negotiating leverage from small family farms. Family farms have grown accustomed to the use of child labor, and as a result have negatively influenced the education of many children in major cocoa producing countries. Family small scale farms have had to compete with better yielding crops and little wealth, in response they have grown accustomed to child …show more content…
The Amazon and Amelonado cocoa hybrid crop produces more cocoa seeds, has a lower gestation period, and has more than two harvest seasons (Boaher, Kwasi, Snijiders & Tolmer, 1999, p. 169). While this new practice produces a higher yield it is more expensive and requires farmers to use chemicals and new farming practices(Boaher, Kwasi, Snijiders & Tolmer, 1999, p. 169). Farmers social status is important “… in the adoption decision. Status is defined with respect to variables such as royalty, leadership and membership …high status farmers are expected to adopt hybrid cocoa because of the increased recognition the society will confer on them by maintaining their leadership role” (Boaher, Kwasi, Snijiders & Tolmer, 1999 p. 173). The main problem with adopting this new hybrid crop is the cost, because most cocoa farms are typically family run and small scale they are not able to afford it (Boaher, Kwasi, Snijiders & Tolmer, 1999, p. 169). While small farms can not afford this, big plantations are able to adopt this farming method and increase annual yield which increases the plantations wealth. This allows big plantations and companies to control the market and leaves little room for small scale farms to increase net profit, trapping them into a vicious cycle of …show more content…
Because larger scale plantations are able to sell a cheaper product it makes it almost impossible for small family farms to compete without cutting down net profits (Nelson & Galvez, 2000). In order for cocoa farmers in impoverished countries to increase national wealth they need to increase their productivity. Wealth in countries is directly correlated with the nations productivity, and in largely cocoa based nations efficiency in cocoa farms are very important. Wealth allows farmers a greater amount of leisure time to invest in education, health care, and capital equipment. While companies, like fair-trade, help provide farmers with health and fair crop prices to increase national wealth farmers have to increase productivity and increase capital investments (Nelson & Galvez, 2000). Educated citizens can advance nations to achieving a more economic and better developed society, which in return will change a vicious cycle into a virtuous one creating a more sustainable
Unfortunately, not everyone involved in the production of this popular sweet benefits. Today, over 70 percent of the world’s chocolate is exported from Africa (“Who consumes the most chocolate,” 2012, para 10). While chocolate industry flourishes under international demand, the situation in Côte d’Ivoire in particular illustrates dependency theory and highlights the need for the promotion of Fair Trade. Chocolate has had a considerable impact on the country’s economic structure and labor practices.
Globalization of goods /services and fair trade has helped in providing developing countries with more output of products, selling and producing techniques that are more ethical, open future investments through funding and technology. While some have benefited, others have lost jobs and resources. Coffee the second valuable traded commodity in the markets, has needed help in this industry with fair trade. These farmers crops usually grown in remote areas, have no access to credit , are indigent and in need of funding and technology. “A labor-intensive crop, coffee grows well on small and steeply slope parcels of land. Small scale producers often with landholding smaller than 3 hectares, constitute the majority of coffee producers in the country and are concentrated in some of the poorest regions.” Case Studies...(2009). The reasons these farmers do not profit well in the markets today, because they have lost their place as the foreign exchange earner allowing other competitors like Vietnam, Cost Rico, Ethiopia, India ,Tanzania and Uganda to emerge. “When the collapse of the ...
Weinhold, D. (2013). Soybeans, Poverty and Inequality in the Brazilian Amazon. Science Direct, 52, 132-143.
Since factory farms are the most popular ways to farm, the farming industry is being overrun with them. “…In the U.S. only 3% of farms now generate an astonishing 62% of that nation’s agricultural output” (Farrell). Dominating the farm industry, factory farms are slowly taking over conventional ways of farming. Supporters of the factory farms have many reasons that factory farms are beneficial. “Because factory farms are so large, they achieve ‘economies of scale,’ producing much more food at cheaper prices than smaller farms” (Farrell). Factory farms are able to make more food at a more affordable cost for consumers. According to Factory Farms: Are They Good for Consumers?, factory farms produce food cheaply, produce more efficiently, provide employment, and gross in large amounts of capital. Farrell believes that supporters ...
Nierenberg, Danielle. "Factory farming in the developing world: In some critical respects, this is not progress at all." World Watch 1 May 2003: n. pag. eLibrary. Web. 3 Dec. 2013. .
Chocolate is everywhere in daily American life; it’s in our desserts, entire aisles are devoted to it in grocery stores, stores dedicated to its selling, even our holidays are highly associated with chocolate. Due to the abundance of chocolate products; on average, Americans will eat a chocolate product on a weekly basis (Qureshi). A majority of cocoa beans, the key ingredient of chocolate, comes from Western Africa, where child labor and often slavery runs rampant. The laborers and slaves, who cultivate the cocoa, work with dangerous weapons and chemicals in an inhospitable environment. The children, who are being forcibly worked, on the cocoa farms tend to be from the ages 12 to 16 to as young as 5 years old; these young ages are when
...t slavery is abolished worldwide, we must hold the companies that exploit child labor accountable for their actions. If we don 't speak up, we are supporting the decision of these companies to continue to exploit the labor of these children for economic gain. Just like during the colonial era, the cocoa plantation owners are benefiting from not paying their workers. These individuals are treated horribly and degraded; their only use to the plantation owners is to harvest the cocoa beans. In order for the world to become rid of this injustice, we must raise awareness that this practice is still happening. Movements such as the one lead by the individuals in California are changing the way the chocolate industry is addressing slavery and I believe that if we continue to pressure them to not use slave labor, that eventually this practice will be outlawed world wide.
Coffee farmers work in conditions that definitely qualify as somewhat less-than-pleasant. Farmers on large coffee farms earn miserable wages in exchange for backb...
Although Ghana is the second largest producer of cocoa, when the rainfall is not good in certain years the villages that rely on the cocoa plants suffer the greatest. Basic needs such as clean drinking water, hospitals, education, and proper sanitation are the main problems that the rural areas of Ghana are facing. However,
Asare, R., & David, S., (2011): Good agricultural practices for sustainable cocoa production: a guide for farmer training. Manual no. 1: Planting, replanting and tree diversification in cocoa systems, Sustainable tree crops programme, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Accra, Ghana.
Lastly, the pathogen needs to be control by cultural practices, chemical and host plant resistance. Resistant pruning will avoid the dieback penetrate to other parts of trees. The cocoa trees need regular check up to detect the symptoms of dieback on the trees and the management can be proceeding if the diseases happen.
Last but not least, several governmental initiatives have emerged over the past decade to request consumer countries to take greater responsibility over the sustainability of their cocoa supply chain and further more to support cooperative organizations (ICCO, 2012). Corresponding to a sustainable cocoa supply chain, amongst the actions of each governmental initiative are the following:
Being the largest country in Eastern Africa, Tanzania occupies an area of approximately 945, 234 km squared and is comprised of the mainland and three coastal islands (Devisscher, 2010). Indeed, the nation possesses a multitude of differing ecosystems that support not only the local people but also the wider economy (Devisscher, 2010). For many LEDCs, in the modern world agricultural practices are a key activity in not only sustaining life, but also contributing to and maintaining a healthy economy. In particular, there is a significant reliance upon such a sector within Tanzania. It is considered to be the backbone of the Nations economy (Nyoni, 2007), providing over 70% of its population with employment (Sarris et al, 2006). Most notably, such an industry is characterized by smallholder farmers, with the average size of cultivated areas ranging from 1 to 3 hectares (Sarris et al, 2006). The planting of crops such as maize, wheat, beans and cassava accounts for over 85% of the cultivated area (Sarris et al, 2006).
Another concern is that smallholders will be marginalized because companies will prefer to work with medium- and large-scale growers, thus exacerbating rural inequality (Little & Watts, 1994; Singh, 2002 as cited in Sachiko Miyata, 2009). This implies that the effect of contract farming is still debatable among different studies. Thus, the current study aims to identify the effect of contract farming arrangement between smallholder tea growers of Kefa zone and the WushWush Tea Plantation Enterprise, the largest commercial Tea Plantations in Ethiopia located in South Western of the country.
Agriculture holds a significant role in underdeveloped countries. It is often the backbone of their economic and social well-being. It acts as the main source of employment and income, 70% of a country's population rely on framing as a mean of living (CITE HERE). Because most underdeveloped countries have low rates of educational attainment, farming is a popular source of employment. It requires little to no education. As a result agriculture employs many people contributing to nations economic development. Residents can also sell what they grow, providing them with a source of income, thus not only raising the national income level but the standard of living as well. Agriculture is not only a ...