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Sustainable food systems require mechanisms that assure consumers about the sustainability of agricultural production. Building on the existing literature on the impact of sustainability standards, this study is the first to assess the effectiveness of participatory guarantee systems (PGS) for the certification of organic produce. The study uses representative farm-level data on local vegetable value chains in northern Vietnam and uses a broad set of sustainability outcomes as well as counterfactual analysis, including systematic robustness checks. The results show that PGS significantly improves farm profitability (+117%), agroecology performance (+40%), and gives farmers more choice of sales channels (+23%). However, PGS had no significant effect on returns to labour and reduced the average crop yield. Capacity development on nursery practices, transplanting of healthy seedlings rather than direct seeding, reduced tillage, and collective crop planning and management are some of the innovations that can counter adverse effects on crop yields, increase soil health as well as improve returns to labour, and thus attract more youth to farming. Overall, the study shows that organic PGS can make vegetable production more economically viable and more agroecologically sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmers in sub-Saharan Africa do not have much choice of quality seed of vegetable cultivars adapted to local growing conditions and consumer demand. Only a handful of vegetable seed companies invest in local breeding research, while nearly all rely on seed imports. Our objective was to analyse to what extent existing seed laws and regulations enable or restrict the development of a research-based vegetable seed sector in Africa. Using a regulatory value chain approach, we analysed written laws and regulations for 13 countries and interviewed private and public sector stakeholders. We generally find that countries have taken a government-centred approach to seed quality control without recognizing that government agencies have little capacity to do this properly for vegetable crops. Mandatory Value for Cultivation and Use (VCU) trials and state-controlled seed certification are the two examples of regulatory approaches that may work for cereals but are not well suited for vegetables. No country has vegetable breeding as a goal in their national seed policy, and only four set out specific objectives for the vegetable seed sector. Tailoring seed policies, laws and regulations more specifically to vegetables could stimulate local variety development and seed production and benefit smallholder farmers and consumers at large. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food systems in many countries are experiencing a shift from traditional foods toward processed foods high in sugar, fat and salt, but low in dietary fiber and micronutrients. There is an urgent need to better understand drivers of changing food behavior, particularly for lower-income countries. This study analyzes drivers of food choice among children and parents in rural Nepal. It uses qualitative data collected through key informant interviews and focus group discussions with school children, parents and teachers. The study reveals substantial changes in food behavior during the past decade with increased consumption of rice, meat, and highly processed snack foods while an increased consumption of fruit and vegetables is not evident. It identifies cash availability is the main driver of increased rice, meat and snack food consumption. The second driver is the 2015 Nepal earthquake, which accelerated the transition from homegrown food to purchased food as people got habituated to eating more meat and snack foods while reconstruction tripled local wages and changed the food environment. This shows how humanitarian assistance in the wake of extreme shocks can unintentionally contribute to unhealthy eating habits. An integrated school and home garden intervention appears to contribute to healthier diets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the combined impact of school vegetable gardens linked to complementary nutrition education on the nutritional awareness, knowledge, perceptions, and eating behavior of 8–14-year-old schoolchildren in Burkina Faso. The study uses a repeated cluster randomized controlled trial and a sample of 30 schools and 1,760 schoolchildren. The results show a small but significant (p < 0.05) increase in knowledge of sustainable agriculture (+5.0%) and knowledge of food and nutrition (+6.6%), but no significant increase in other outcome indicators including fruit and vegetable consumption. More caution is needed in the promotion of school gardens for improving child nutrition in very low income countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the combined impact of school gardens linked to complementary lessons and promotional activities about gardening and nutrition on the nutritional awareness, knowledge, perceptions, eating behaviour and nutritional status of 10- to 15-year-old schoolchildren in Nepal. We used a cluster randomised controlled trial design to collect data from 30 schools and a sample of 1275 and 785 schoolchildren for the 2014 and 2015 school years, respectively. After one year of intervention, we found a significant (p < 0.01) increase in children’s awareness about fruit and vegetables, their knowledge about sustainable agriculture, their knowledge about food, nutrition and health and their stated preferences for eating fruit and vegetables. However, these improvements in intermediary outcomes did not translate into significant improvements in fruit and vegetable consumption or nutritional status. To influence children’s food decisions, it may be required to work more intensively with parents and to increase the availability of fruit and vegetables at the household and community level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study quantifies the impact and cost-effectiveness of training poor rural women in Bangladesh in home gardening and nutrition. We use baseline and follow-up data for 646 intervention and control households and apply a difference-in-difference estimator. We find that the intervention significantly (p < 0.01) increased vegetable production (+16.5 g/person/day), vegetable consumption and the micronutrient supply from the garden. Using the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) approach, we show that the intervention can be considered cost-effective in abating iron, vitamin A and zinc deficiencies. Home garden interventions can therefore make an effective contribution to addressing micronutrient undernutrition. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Intensification of agricultural land use in developing countries is coincident with increased use of synthetic pesticides, which could lead to misuse and overuse. For measures to reduce risk from pesticides to be effective, it is necessary to understand farmers’ rationale for pesticide use. This study was undertaken to analyze the relationship between pesticide use and farmers’ risk behavior and knowledge of pesticide risk. Data were gathered from 200 Thai farmers growing hot (chili) pepper (Capsicum annuumL) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicumL). Pesticide risk knowledge was measured using a pesticide risk beliefs inventory. Risk behavior was measured with farmers making pesticide use decisions under hypothetical situations. Farmers were highly risk averse because they preferred to incur a high cost of pesticides to quickly eliminate pest problems. Regression analysis indicated that pesticide use is positively associated with lower levels of pesticide knowledge and higher levels of risk aversion. Enhancing farmer knowledge about pesticide risk can make an immediate contribution to lowering pesticide use. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract Tomato is an important crop in Bangladesh and India, contributing to livelihoods and nutrition, but it is heavily affected by pests and diseases. This study analyzes pest and disease damage and farmers’ crop protection methods and quantified the potential economic gains of alternatives to chemical pesticides. Data come from a questionnaire survey of 744 tomato-producing farmers in India (Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka) and Bangladesh (Jashore). Farmers reported an average tomato yield loss from pests and diseases of 11.0 t/ha, of which Phthorimaea absoluta caused 2.1 t/ha. Farmers relied heavily on chemical pesticides, but also applied other methods. Better knowledge of pesticide health risks and beneficial insects and more use of alternative pest control methods were associated with lower pesticide use. Using an economic surplus model, we estimate ex-ante that the promotion of integrated pest management for the control of P. absoluta could generate economic gains of USD 264 million in Bangladesh and India over a 20-year period while insect resistant varieties could generate economic gains of more than USD 8.6 billion over this period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how a resettlement programme in northwestern Vietnam has affected the livelihood assets, strategies and outcomes of the resettled and host households. Data were collected using informal interviews, followed by a structured survey of 56 resettled and 52 host households. Results show a significant decline in natural capital for the resettled households and a lesser decline for the host households; however, both groups have partially compensated for this through land use intensification. The net income of the host households did not change significantly after resettlement, whereas the farm revenues of the resettled households fell dramatically, but, due to the compensation payments made to them, their net household income actually increased. Most compensation money has been consumed rather than invested in livelihood assets; livelihood outcomes might therefore deteriorate when the compensation payments end. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of agent-based models (ABMs) for investigating land-use science questions has been increasing dramatically over the last decade. Modelers have moved from 'proofs of existence' toy models to case-specific, multi-scaled, multi-actor, and data-intensive models of land-use and land-cover change. An international workshop, titled 'Multi-Agent Modeling and Collaborative Planning - Method2Method Workshop', was held in Bonn in 2005 in order to bring together researchers using different data collection approaches to informing agent-based models. Participants identified a typology of five approaches to empirically inform ABMs for land use science: sample surveys, participant observation, field and laboratory experiments, companion modeling, and GIS and remotely sensed data. This paper reviews these five approaches to informing ABMs, provides a corresponding case study describing the model usage of these approaches, the types of data each approach produces, the types of questions those data can answer, and an evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of those data for use in an ABM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research on land use and land cover change (LUCC) has put more emphasis on the importance of understanding the decision-making of human actors, especially in developing countries. The quest is now for a new generation of LUCC models with a decision-making component. This paper deals with the question of how to realistically represent decision-making in land use models. Two main agent decision architectures are compared. Heuristic agents take sequential decisions following a pre-defined decision tree, while optimizing agents take simultaneous decisions by solving a mathematical programming model. Optimizing behaviour is often discarded as being unrealistic. Yet the paper shows that optimizing agents do have important advantages for empirical land use modelling and that multi-agent systems (MAS) offer an ideal framework for using the strengths of both agent decision architectures. The use of optimization models is advanced with a novel three-stage decision model of investment, production, and consumption to represent uncertainty in models of land use decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mungbean (Vigna radiata (L). Wilczek) is a hardy early-maturing legume that can be used as a catch crop in the wheat and rice systems of South and Central Asia. To facilitate increased production, this study surveyed 345 mungbean growers and 336 non-growers in areas of Pakistan and Uzbekistan where there is potential for expansion. Low seed quality, low farmer awareness of the effect of mungbean on soil fertility, and high labor costs are identified as common constraints. In Pakistan, pests and diseases are a major constraint while low market demand is particularly a problem for farmers in Uzbekistan. Farm households were found to have little knowledge of the health benefits from mungbean consumption. It is therefore a priority to give farmers access to quality seed of improved varieties and to combine this with value chain development in Uzbekistan while promoting the benefits of mungbean to soil quality, incomes and human nutrition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]