Fruits and Vegetables

Transcription

1 Rural development and agriculture Briefing Note Fruits and Vegetables The background International trade in fruit and vegetables has increased considerably since the early 1980s. Countries in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the European Union (EU) and Asia have become established as the largest import and export regions. Most of this trade is interregional, especially in the EU. In the case of tropical and subtropical fruit, however, all three regions are reliant on growers in the southern hemisphere. In 2001, the global trade in non-traditional fruit and vegetables was worth USD 15.5 billion. 1 At the same time, developing countries had a combined share of 56 per cent of global exports. Bananas and citrus fruits lost ground, accounting for just 43 per cent of the global fruit trade, down from 50 per cent in Apples, grapes and pears make up the majority of the remaining share, with grapes accounting for 22 per cent in 2001, up from 17 per cent in The other vegetables category makes up 60 per cent of the vegetable trade (2001). This category includes green vegetables, salads, root vegetables, and pumpkins and squashes. Tomatoes account for 22 per cent. In the fruit sector, Chile and Mexico dominated avocado exports with a 53 per cent share in Mexico, the Philippines and Brazil had a 62 per cent share of the mango trade. Costa Rica and Côte d Ivoire were responsible for 61 per cent of pineapple exports. 1 Source: no more up-to-date aggregated data is available. However, it can be assumed that trading volumes have at least doubled since Thailand and Hong Kong were the principal exporters of other fresh fruit. A similar breakdown is found in the vegetable sector. Mexico is the leading supplier of tomatoes, asparagus, aubergines and onions. Zimbabwe and Guatemala dominate the global market for green peas, while Kenya is the main producer of green beans. Export crops safeguard the livelihoods of millions of people. These crops are thus very important in development policy terms. The trade in fruit and vegetables is particularly dependent on rapid transport solutions given the perishable nature of products, although political and climate conditions also come into play. Most fruit and vegetable producers benefit from a combination of appropriate demand and favourable geographical and logistical conditions. For instance, Latin American nations are among the leading exporters of fresh fruit and vegetables, not least given their proximity to the US market. African nations are also increasingly attempting to benefit from this sales market. Requirements related to quality and agricultural practices have also become significantly more stringent in import countries during recent years as demand for healthy foods has grown, especially among consumers in industrialised nations. Consequently, many products ultimately cannot be exported from the countries where they are grown because of excessive pesticide residues, the use of pesticides banned in importing countries and noncompliance with a variety of standards.

2 I. Food safety and sustainability standards spurring structural change Food has become subject to much more far-reaching requirements in recent years. This is partly due to the harmonisation of national regulatory measures under the umbrella of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and partly due to changes in consumer preferences in the wake of repeated food scandals. More stringent criteria and food inspections have been put in place and the principle of due diligence has also emerged as a precursor to private voluntary standards. To safeguard good product quality and appropriate production conditions, sustainability standards, including organic standards, have grown in importance. This trend is mainly driven by consumers in import countries, who are showing an increased interest in highquality, sustainably produced foods. Standards are an efficient tool for bringing about an improvement in economic, social and ecological conditions. Consumers are evidently willing to reward these efforts. It is not unusual for smallholders, in particular, to lack the conditions required for sustainable and qualityassured farming. These include sufficient access to land, adequate technical equipment and knowledge about the health risks caused by polluted water and chemicals. Hygiene standards are also a problem. It is hard for smallholders farming an area of less than five hectares and often living in remote regions with poor infrastructure to shoulder the high costs of production and marketing while also complying with higher food and quality assurance requirements in buyer countries. 1. Harness the potential of standards The majority of producers, and most notably smallholders, have not made use of food safety and sustainability standards to date. These standards are comprehensive and achieving and complying with them requires in-depth knowledge. Training and continuing education are thus needed to unlock potential. Besides elaborating training content tailored to the situation, efforts must be made to support training providers and develop agricultural vocational training systems. 2. Respect the SPS, Codex Alimentarius and HACCP Sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures serve to protect humans, animals and plants. The WTO's SPS Agreement contains rules that its members must follow. Individual measures are subject to WTO members national sovereignty and have to be substantiated by a risk assessment. Moreover, measures must not be unjustifiably different in WTO countries. However, food safety measures have also led to an increase in trade restrictions in recent years since governments are expanding the measures required to safeguard health to create a home advantage for national producers. By contrast, international standards set forth by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and the Codex Alimentarius (Latin for food code) define the required level of protection. The Codex Alimentarius brings together food product quality and safety standards, and was first published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in This codex is considered binding around the globe. The hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) approach was also developed in 1959 with the aim of guaranteeing the safety of food. This system aims to assess hazards in the processing chain, supply chain and in finished products in order to counteract or avoid risk. 3. Promote good agricultural practice GAP stands for good agricultural practice, and is applied to fruit and vegetables in the form of voluntary standards, such as GlobalGAP and Local- GAP, and other sustainability standards relating to quality assurance. Conventional farming and the promotion of sustainable farming methods relating to the responsible use of water, the protection of the environment, compliance with labour laws and animal welfare are at the heart of Global- GAP, which is the most widespread standard for fruit and vegetables. Implementing the GlobalGAP standard for goods that are primarily destined for export not only opens up new income opportunities, but also promotes more sustainable agriculture with positive effects on the environment and society. Investments in good agricultural practice also lead to better market access and higher income.

3 The GlobalGAP standard gives producers the opportunity to form organised groups and gain joint certification. This also gives smallholders the chance to participate in the global market. Certification allows them to improve their farming processes in terms of both quality and quantity and, most significantly, the traceability of their products. Smallholders who do not yet have the knowledge and resources to farm for export can often enter into supply agreements with supermarket chains in their countries through merchants. There is also a demand for higher-quality products within these chains. Farmers wishing to enter into such agreements often have to meet criteria set out in local standards, such as Local- GAP. This allows them to gather experience with the certification system while they transition towards the export market and the GlobalGAP standard. 4. Improve the transfer of knowledge Despite this, environmentally friendly growing and processing methods are not yet established in many sectors. Smallholders also lack the knowledge and resources to implement local and international standards. Inadequate investments in replacing old stands of crops are curbing productivity, and suboptimal processing methods are impairing the quality of agricultural products. III. Income opportunities for smallholders and local value creation Smallholders growing fruit and vegetables can be classified into three groups: firstly, farmers who are already selling their products successfully on the export market; secondly, the large number of producers who grow their products for self-sufficiency or to serve local markets and frequently also have the potential to grow for export; and thirdly, smallholders who practice urban farming, growing vegetables or keeping livestock on unused urban land and selling their products directly in their town or city. Most of these smallholders live below the poverty line or are at risk of poverty. The choice is either to opt for a process of professionalization, which involves enhancing agrotechnical and business skills with the aim of growing into a successful fruit and vegetable business, or to give up professional farming and work in another sector. Young people, in particular, are increasingly choosing to move to urban areas to find work. This demographic trend is raising the average age of smallholders in rural areas. For many smallholders, selling their products locally is the first step on the path to professionalization and a more commercial approach. Weekly markets are one way in which they can benefit from coordinated support. Training measures can also provide smallholders with the assistance they need in order to enter into commercial fruit and vegetable production for local consumption with the prospect of serving urban markets (local supermarket chains) and export markets. Major fluctuations in fruit and vegetable prices are one of the key problems facing smallholders. Supply volatility is the main factor behind this fluctuation. Volatility occurs as a result of weather-related variations in yields and usually cannot be foreseen at the time when producers need to make decisions on what to grow. Unlike tea and coffee, fruit and vegetables can rarely be stored for a long time, if at all, and must reach the market quickly after harvest. A surplus or shortage of products can cause prices to fall or rise sharply at certain points in time. Many discount retailers source their fruit and vegetables on the spot market and directly pass on changes in price to their customers. Renegotiations between producers and retailers involved in contract farming are often out of the question or only possible to a limited degree. Many smallholders therefore choose to diversify and grow mixed crops to avoid extreme price fluctuations. Government funding for cooling equipment and storage facilities can also mitigate supply fluctuations to a certain degree. 1. Promote the development of infrastructure Fruit and vegetable growers often have limited opportunities to avoid significant price fluctuations as their products perish quickly. Infrastructure in producer countries should be developed to an optimal standard to mitigate the risk of potential losses and make sales as reliable as possible. Besides building and maintaining paths and roads used to transport products, another public task is to facilitate the sale of fruit and vegetables at local markets. This not only benefits the producers but also helps to ensure a reliable supply to the local population.

4 2. Impart agro-technical and business skills Farmers must also be trained in identifying the commercial benefits and drawbacks of growing fruit and vegetables. GIZ s farmer business school approach can be used to impart this type of knowledge. With this approach, farming and commercial skills can be acquired to improve income opportunities and strengthen farmers negotiating position. IV. Local supply to urban consumers and nutritional significance Although fresh fruit and vegetables are grown in abundance in producer countries, the consumption of these products among local populations is often inadequate or imbalanced. This results in deficiencies and damage to human health. This symptom is also known as hidden hunger since people are not necessarily undernourished, but rather suffer from symptoms of malnutrition related to an imbalanced diet. Poor diets in the burgeoning urban middle and upper classes are increasingly leading to marked obesity and the spread of non-contagious diseases like diabetes. This phenomenon is also found in countries that have not yet achieved the status of industrialised countries or emerging economies, such as the Pacific islands, where many people are overweight despite the abundant availability of fruit. According to United Nations forecasts, 60 per cent of the world s population will live in towns and cities in It is possible that this process will be accompanied by growing poverty in towns and cities and food insecurity. Urban residents are especially vulnerable since their consumption of food is affected by variations in supply and sometimes also major price fluctuations. In this context, extensive, reliable infrastructure is vital to ensure the rapid transport of perishable goods. Many people who have moved from rural to urban areas in the course of urbanisation are seeking to use their agricultural skills in towns and cities as a source of income. There is a great incentive to do so since prices are typically high, especially for transportintensive and perishable goods. As a result, small vegetable fields and livestock herds are popping up on the outskirts of towns and cities or even in city centres. These urban growers mostly sell their fruit and vegetables locally to other urban residents, meaning that, unlike many rural farmers, they take care of both production and marketing. Their proceeds are much higher than those of growers who transport their products from the surrounding areas since no intermediaries are involved. New, short value chains similar to those of farm shops in rural areas are thus being created within towns and cities, with farmers selling products directly to the end customer. The role of women is especially important in this regard since, in many societies, they are responsible for feeding the family and therefore choose what is grown. A wider variety of produce can also improve food security. It is generally possible to combine the task of growing fruit and vegetables at home and selling products directly to passing customers with other responsibilities such as taking care of children and performing additional household duties. 1. Promote urban farming Urban farming helps to provide a balanced range of food in urban areas and is relatively environmentally friendly thanks to its short transport routes. Urban green areas also contribute towards a better microclimate, reducing the local temperature. However, it remains important to recognise the interrelationships between food, water and energy consumption and to counteract environmental pollution. In order to be viable for the future, food production in towns and cities must use water and energy efficiently and take account of environmental issues Encourage household gardening Promoting household gardens can also be an effective way of preserving local varieties of fruit and vegetables. Local species and varieties often have excellent characteristics for ensuring a healthy diet. Growing and sharing planting and seed stock also fosters and increases biodiversity. To this end, it will be necessary to raise government and public awareness of the potential of household gardens Minimise agricultural emissions However, urban farming also poses challenges. For instance, urban livestock keeping and vegetable growing cause increased pollution in the form of methane gas from livestock, nitrates from vegetable fertiliser, pesticide residues and pollution.

5 In addition, water consumption and wastewater have to be managed properly, which is not always the case, to prevent health and hygiene-related problems Raise awareness of good nutrition It is recommended that the various (political) stakeholders make a concerted effort to promote a healthier diet and stimulate local consumption of food and vegetables. This mainly involves activities to raise awareness of healthy eating among producers, their families and rural and urban consumers, whose higher incomes often cause them to change their eating habits, rendering them more vulnerable to lifestyle diseases like obesity and diabetes. Contact Eberhard Krain E eberhard.krain@giz.de T I Published by: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Registered offices Bonn and Eschborn, Germany Dag-Hammarskjöld-Weg Eschborn, Germany T F E info@giz.de I Division Rural Development and Agriculture / October 2015