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Food Production Standards, Farm Size and Farm Worker Welfare in Kenya . Christoph Ehlert 1 , Dagmar Mithöfer 2 and Hermann Waibel 3 1 Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung e.V. 2 World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) formerly icipe 3 Leibniz University of Hanover
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Food Production Standards, Farm Size and Farm Worker Welfare in Kenya Christoph Ehlert1, Dagmar Mithöfer2 and Hermann Waibel31Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung e.V. 2 World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) formerly icipe 3 Leibniz University of Hanover The presentation is part of a collaborative research project (2004-2008) of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe, Nairobi, Kenya) and the University of Hanover funded by GTZ-BMZ
Introduction - open questions in 2005 in Kenya • Do standards exclude small scale farmers? • Who owns the certificate? • How many small-scale farmers are involved in export production? • What is at stake if SH are being excluded? • Should SH be supported in achieving (and maintaining?) individual and independent certification? • Which farms (large, medium, small?) should be supported in attaining the standard? • What are implications of certification and farm size for farm worker welfare? • What is the overall development impact of standards?
GlobalGAP requirements Source: Mithöfer (2011) based on EurepGAP Version 2.1-Oct04
Study objectives • Assess differences in welfare that farm workers enjoy at large-scale compared to small-scale horticultural farms in Kenya • Analyse the difference in farm worker welfare on small-scale internationally certified versus small-scale non certified farms
Conceptual approach – dimensions of welfare • training (general / specific human capital) • income (hourly wage) • physical health (frequency of symptoms) • mental health (GHQ-12)
Hypotheses Certified farms... • ... need better educated workers, more likely to invest in the training of farm workers. • ... are expected to pay higher wages to attract and keep more highly-skilled workers. • ... are expected to foster physical and mental health due to improved working conditions. Large farms... • .... workers are more likely to have specific knowledge and skills due to a higher degree of specialization. • .... are expected to pay higher wages in order to retain specialized labour and to reduce monitoring costs. • No difference is expected in physical health between large and small farms. • Mental health is expected to be better on small-scale farms because of better direct communication between hierarchy levels.
Horticulture supply chains in Kenya & survey design EurepGAP certified farms in Kenya (44 certificates for Kenya) [june 2006] Smallholder farms (47) Contracted large-scale farms (18) Exporter-owned farms (8) Middleman Exporter companies Domestic market European market
Survey sites (2006 survey) Large scale farms Small scale farms
Key Findings • Worker welfare is a multidimensional concept. • Farm size and GlobalGAP certification show positive impact on different welfare measures. • Impact varies among farm types and welfare indicators. • Overall effect of farm size and GlobalGAP certification on farm worker welfare depends on labor intensity at different farm types as well as size of workforce. • Beyond these two factor, the type of contract – casual versus longer tenure – has an effect on welfare measures. Food Production Standards, Farm Size and Farm Worker Welfare in Kenya Christoph Ehlert, Dagmar Mithöfer and Hermann Waibel d.mithoefer@cgiar.org; d_mithoefer@hotmail.com
Recommendations • Government/ donor/ research: Possibilities of leveraging entry points that private market governance mechanisms provide in enhancing social standards need to be assessed. • Government/ donor/ research/ business: key indicators for monitoring farm worker welfare need to be defined. • Government: Contracts and conditions for casual workers need to be evaluated. Food Production Standards, Farm Size and Farm Worker Welfare in Kenya Christoph Ehlert, Dagmar Mithöfer and Hermann Waibel d.mithoefer@cgiar.org; d_mithoefer@hotmail.com