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The cattle modernisation sought by American missionaries in colonial North India advanced a productivist argument around the efficiency of cattle and their contribution to agriculture. On the face of it, by criticising the excessive supply of cattle in North India, this position went against the core preservationist concerns of the cow protectionists. But in reality, these modernisers struck a range of correlations with colonial and nationalist positions on the management of livestock and, ironically, even some limited space with the cow protectionists in treating India's cattle as productive beings that were beneficial to the nation. These American prescriptions were stable constructs that became visible once again in the American food aid apparatus in India after Independence and shared overlapping concerns with ongoing cattle productivity debates in India. This paper illuminates the overlaps between the advocacy of the multiple constituents and a recurrence of certain patterns of contestation that were constitutive of the very paradigm of agrarian modernisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coconut industry is one of the important economic sectors in the Philippines. Coconut products are the main exporting agricultural commodity in the Philippines. This paper provides an overview of the coconut supply chain in the Philippines including coconut production, export markets, and supply chain structure, as well as analysis of constraints to increased agricultural production. One of the major problems in the export of coconut products is the declining volume of production, which resulted in the failure of meeting the demand in the world market. The policy recommendations are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coconut industry is one of the important economic sectors in the Philippines. Coconut products are the main exporting agricultural commodity in the Philippines. This paper provides an overview of the coconut supply chain in the Philippines including coconut production, export markets, and supply chain structure, as well as analysis of constraints to increased agricultural production. One of the major problems in the export of coconut products is the declining volume of production, which resulted in the failure of meeting the demand in the world market. The policy recommendations are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2008, the price of grain spiked internationally, leading to a series of events commentators began to call the global food crisis. Although low agricultural productivity was not the cause of the crisis or the high rates of food insecurity that followed, intergovernmental agencies fell into old patterns and largely responded with policies geared towards increasing agricultural productivity. The UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS), however, has offered alternatives to this productivity trap, providing a space for dialogue on different approaches. In this paper, I review CFS policy recommendations from 2010 to 2017, and argue that by focusing on small-scale producer livelihood rather than productivity rates and the availability of food on markets, the CFS has contributed to the normative elaboration of alternative paradigms. I argue further, that the CFS's reformed structure and the inclusion of civil society in policy-making facilitated space for the promotion of these alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that within the range of complementary activities necessary to secure the food security of marginalised groups in South Africa in places such as Greater Sekhukhune, the aspect of agricultural production is often neglected. A comprehensive approach to food security should focus on exploiting opportunities around increasing local food availability through production, as well as stimulating food accessibility by, for example, supporting small enterprises through micro-credit, and supporting food utilisation through education. In this way a range of options is created that vulnerable people can adopt to promote their livelihoods beyond survivalist strategies. This paper explores the issue of agricultural production within Greater Sekhukhune to provide insights into the challenges facing a comprehensive food security strategy that would guarantee food supply through a range of interventions. The study in the Greater Sekhukhune District in Limpopo Province was conducted through two sets of household surveys (2004 and 2006) and the responses to the agricultural production part of these surveys are discussed. Marked changes from 2004 to 2006 were observed. For "agrarian reform" to be a success, the necessary institutional framework needs to be in place to enable a broad range of services from government and non-governmental actors. The facilitation of such "joined up government", although in existence in theory, requires concerted political will to become a reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary India possesses a food security paradox—progress in combating food insecurity is occurring at a slower pace than might be expected, given the nation's rapid economic growth. This paper provides a conceptual framework to explain this phenomenon. Drawing on the work of Amartya Sen, it uses a broadly framed analysis to conceptualise the problem in terms of the interactivity between three types of entitlement failure. Firstly, pure exchange system entitlement (abilities to obtain food from welfare programmes) has been curtailed by institutional shortcomings in pivotal programmes. Secondly, opportunities for wage-labour entitlement (abilities to obtain food from monetary incomes) have been restricted for vulnerable households because of the sequencing and geographical patterning of recent economic growth in India. Thirdly, opportunities for vulnerable households to address their needs through own-production entitlement (abilities to grow one's own food) have been curbed by land fragmentation and environmental degradation. These interactions have created vicious cycles of food insecurity for vulnerable households. Through this approach, the deeper causal roots of India's food security paradox are articulated, thus underscoring the importance of multi-pronged, holistically constructed policy agendas. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper reviews the characteristics of the agricultural credit policy in Kazakhstan with a particular focus on emerging rural financial institutions. It is not easy to evaluate the real effect of credit policies due to the limited funds directed at agricultural production. Kazakhstani experience shows that commercial banks are used almost exclusively to provide agricultural producers with credit, while the new specialized credit institutions emerging in the agricultural sector only cater to a very small fraction of the total demand for credit. Presently, there are discussions in Kazakhstan concerning the creation of a specialized agricultural bank; however, this idea has some shortcomings that should be taken into consideration. Lack of credit is one of the main reasons for insufficient investment in agriculture. The underdeveloped land market in Kazakhstan makes formal credit institutions very cautious about accepting agricultural land as collateral. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]