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<p>In recent years, contract farming (CF) has gained popularity among policymakers of developing nations. CF schemes involve preharvest agreements between farmers and CF firms about producing and selling agricultural commodities. It has been acknowledged that these agreements boost smallholder’s market participation, enhance household welfare, and promote rural development and agricultural transformation. While research on the environmental impacts of contract farming schemes remains limited, this study examines how CF contributes to the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices (SAP) among maize growers in Punjab, Pakistan. A survey was carried out among 350 farmers, sampled through systematic random sampling. The impact of CF was analyzed through the application of propensity score matching (PSM) and inverse probability weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA). The first stage PSM estimates showed a significant role of educational attainment, contract awareness, supplementary access to credit and availability of extension services, and perceived risk from climate change in determining farmer’s decisions to participate in CF schemes. The research presents that participation in contract farming is based on several socio-economic and environmental factors. Both PSM and IPWRA models supported that joining CF programs is associated with adopting sustainable agricultural practices to a considerable extent. It was found that the CF members are more likely to adopt diverse crop system practices techniques and improved maize varieties. Meanwhile, CF membership is not significantly related to the use of organic manure. The findings suggest that the CF arrangements considerably impacted farmers’ decision to invest in sustainable agricultural practices, highlighting the potential of structured contractual arrangements to stimulate specific sorts of sustainable innovations. However, the findings show domains that require additional interventions or changes to accomplish sustainability goals. These results demonstrate the vital importance of well-managed CF agreements rigorously matched with sustainability objectives, thereby improving environmental resilience within agricultural systems.</p>

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Contract farming as a catalyst for sustainable agriculture: the case of maize growers in Punjab, Pakistan

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年1月9日

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  • Awais Jabbar,
  • Tian Ye,
  • Jin Huang,
  • Haoyan Cheng,
  • Jian Zhang,
  • Wei Liu

摘要

In recent years, contract farming (CF) has gained popularity among policymakers of developing nations. CF schemes involve preharvest agreements between farmers and CF firms about producing and selling agricultural commodities. It has been acknowledged that these agreements boost smallholder’s market participation, enhance household welfare, and promote rural development and agricultural transformation. While research on the environmental impacts of contract farming schemes remains limited, this study examines how CF contributes to the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices (SAP) among maize growers in Punjab, Pakistan. A survey was carried out among 350 farmers, sampled through systematic random sampling. The impact of CF was analyzed through the application of propensity score matching (PSM) and inverse probability weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA). The first stage PSM estimates showed a significant role of educational attainment, contract awareness, supplementary access to credit and availability of extension services, and perceived risk from climate change in determining farmer’s decisions to participate in CF schemes. The research presents that participation in contract farming is based on several socio-economic and environmental factors. Both PSM and IPWRA models supported that joining CF programs is associated with adopting sustainable agricultural practices to a considerable extent. It was found that the CF members are more likely to adopt diverse crop system practices techniques and improved maize varieties. Meanwhile, CF membership is not significantly related to the use of organic manure. The findings suggest that the CF arrangements considerably impacted farmers’ decision to invest in sustainable agricultural practices, highlighting the potential of structured contractual arrangements to stimulate specific sorts of sustainable innovations. However, the findings show domains that require additional interventions or changes to accomplish sustainability goals. These results demonstrate the vital importance of well-managed CF agreements rigorously matched with sustainability objectives, thereby improving environmental resilience within agricultural systems.