4. Willingness to pay for market information received by mobile phone among smallholder pineapple farmers in Benin

In: Quality and innovation in food chains
Authors:
D.D.A.A. Arinloye World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Bamako Mali, BPE5118 Bamako, Mali

Search for other papers by D.D.A.A. Arinloye in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
,
A.R. Linnemann Wageningen University, Product Design and Quality Management, Postbus 17, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands

Search for other papers by A.R. Linnemann in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
,
G. Hagelaar Wageningen University, Management Studies Group, Hollandseweg 1, 6706 KN Wageningen, the Netherlands

Search for other papers by G. Hagelaar in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
,
S.W.F. Omta Wageningen University, Management Studies Group, Hollandseweg 1, 6706 KN Wageningen, the Netherlands

Search for other papers by S.W.F. Omta in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
,
O.N. Coulibaly International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Benin Station, 08BP0932 Trip Postal, Cotonou, Benin

Search for other papers by O.N. Coulibaly in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
, and
M.A.J.S. van Boekel Wageningen University, Product Design and Quality Management, Postbus 17, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands

Search for other papers by M.A.J.S. van Boekel in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
Type:
Chapter
Pages:
75–100
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3920/978-90-8686-825-4_4
Open Access

Access to up-to-date information on market prices and quality requirements remains a key issue for smallholder farmers’ access to high income markets. The aim of this chapter is to explore the problem of information asymmetry between farmers and buyers in the pineapple supply chain in Benin, and to assess strategies using mobile phones to overcome this problem. Data was collected from an exploratory case study in Ghana and a survey with 285 farmers in Benin. Results show that farmers face market information asymmetry leading to lower prices and income. In Ghana, market price alerts through mobile phones messaging allowed decreasing transaction costs for farmers. In Benin, farmers expressed a willingness to pay a premium of up to US$ 2.5 per month to get market price and quality information. Econometric analysis showed that decisive factors for the size of the premium include farm location, market channel, profit margin, contact with agricultural extension services, and technical support from buyers.

  • Adegbola, P. and Gardebroek, C., 2007. The effect of information sources on technology adoption and modification decisions. Agricultural Economics 37: 55-65.

  • Adesina, A.A. and Zinnah, M.M., 1993. Technology characteristics, farmers’ perceptions and adoption decisions: a tobit model application in Sierra Leone. Agricultural Economics 9: 297-311.

  • Adesina, A.A., Mbila, D., Nkamleu, G.B. and Endamana, D., 2000. Econometric analysis of the determinants of adoption of alley farming by farmers in the forest zone of southwest Cameroon. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 80: 255-265.

  • Agbo, B., Agbota, G.E.S. and Akele, O., 2008. Atelier de validation de la stratégie et de l’évaluation de plan d’action de la filière ananas au Bénin. Working paper. Cotonou, Benin.

  • Aker, J., 2008. Does digital divide or provide? The impact of cell phones on grain markets in Niger. BREAD Working Paper No 177. BREAD Washington, DC, USA.

  • Aker, J. and Mbiti, I., 2010. Mobile phones and economic development in Africa. Journal of Economic Perspectives 24: 207-232.

  • Akerlof, G.A., 1970. The market for ‘lemons’: quality uncertainty and the market mechanism. Quarterly Journal of Economics 84: 488-500.

  • Allen, I.E. and Seaman, C.A., 2007. Likert scales and data analyses. Quality Progress 40: 64-65.

  • Arinloye, D.D.A.A., Adegbola, P.Y., Biaou, G. and Coulibaly, O., 2010a. Evaluation des strategies optimales de production et de transformation du riz a travers une analyse du consentement des consommateurs au Benin: application du model hedonique. In: Joint 3rd African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE) and 48th Agricultural Economists Association of South Africa (AEASA) conference. Cape Town, South Africa, pp. 1-23.

  • Arinloye, D.D.A.A., Hagelaar, G., Linnemann, A.R., Royer, A., Coulibaly, O., Omta, S.W.F. and Van Boekel, M.A.J.S., 2010b. Constraints and challenges in governance and channel choice in tropical agri-food chains: evidences from pineapple supply chains in Benin. In: 2ndAgricultural science week of West and Central Africa (CORAF/WECARD). Cotonou, Benin, pp. 1-21.

  • Arinloye, D.D.A.A., Hagelaar, G., Linnemann, A.R., Pascucci, S., Coulibaly, O., Omta, S.F.W. and Van Boekel, M.A.J.S., 2012. Multi-governance choices by smallholder farmers in the pineapple supply chain in Benin: an application of transaction cost theory. African Journal of Business Management 6: 10320-10331.

  • Binam, J.N., Tonyè, J., Nyambi, G. and Akoa, M., 2004. Factors affecting the technical efficiency among smallholder farmers in the slash and burn agriculture zone of Cameroon. Food Policy 29: 531-545.

  • Bosch, T.E., 2009. Cell phones for health in South Africa. In: Wels, H. (ed.) Health communication in Southern Africa: engaging with social and cultural diversity. SAVUSA/Rozenberg/UNISA Press Series, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

  • Brouwer, R. and Brito, L., 2012. Cellular phones in Mozambique: who has them and who doesn’t? Technological Forecasting and Social Change 79: 231-243.

  • Buys, P., Dasgupta, S., Thomas, T.S. and Wheeler, D., 2009. Determinants of a digital divide in Sub-Saharan Africa: a spatial econometric analysis of cell phone coverage. World Development 37: 1494-1505.

  • Cavatassi, R., Gonzàlez-Flores, M., Winters, P., Andrade-Piedra, J., Espinosa, P. and Thiele, G., 2011. Linking smallholders to the new agricultural economy: The case of the plataformas de concertación in Ecuador. Journal of Development Studies 47: 1545-1573.

  • Clark, K.B. and Fujimoto, T., 1991. Product development performance: strategy, organization, and management in the world auto industry. Harvard Business Press, Boston, MA, USA.

  • Claro, D.P., Zylbersztajn, D. and Omta, S.W.F., 2004. How to manage a long-term buyer-supplier relationship successfully? The impact of network information on long-term buyer-supplier relationships in the Dutch potted plant and flower industry. Journal on Chain and Network Science 4: 7-24.

  • D’agostino, R.B., Belanger, A. and D’agostino Jr, R.B., 1990. A suggestion for using powerful and informative tests of normality. American Statistician 44: 316-321.

  • Demirhan, D., Jacob, V.S. and Raghunathan, S., 2006. Information technology investment strategies under declining technology cost. Journal of Management Information Systems 22: 321-350.

  • Donner, J., 2008. Research approaches to mobile use in the developing world: a review of the literature. The Information Society 24: 140-159.

  • Donner, J., 2009. Mobile-based livelihood services in Africa: pilots and early deployments. Communication technologies in Latin America and Africa: a multidisciplinary perspective, pp. 37-58.

  • Donner, J. and Escobari, M.X., 2010. A review of evidence on mobile use by micro and small enterprises in developing countries. Journal of International Development 22: 641-658.

  • Eisenhardt, K.M. and Martin, J.A., 2000. Dynamic capabilities: what are they? Strategic Management Journal 21: 1105-1121.

  • Feder, G., Just, R.E. and Zilberman, D., 1985. Adoption of agricultural innovations in developing countries: a survey. Economic Development and Cultural Change 33: 255-298.

  • Greene, W.H., 2008. Econometric analysis. Pearson/Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, USA.

  • Herath, P. and Takeya, H., 2003. Factors determining intercropping by rubber smallholders in Sri Lanka: a logit analysis. Agricultural Economics 29: 159-168.

  • Holmstrom, B., 1979. Moral hazard and observability. The Bell Journal of Economics: 74-91.

  • Jamieson, S., 2004. Likert scales: how to (ab) use them. Medical Education 38: 1217-1218.

  • Kalyebara, R., Nkub, J.M., Byabachwezi, M.S.R., Kikulwe, E.M. and Edmeades, S., 2007. Overview of banana economy in the lake Victoria regions of Uganda. In: Smale, M. and Tushemereirwe, W. (eds.) An economic assessment of banana genetic improvement and innovation in the lake Victoria region of Uganda and Tanzania. International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, DC, USA.

  • Kizito, A.M., 2011. The structure, conduct, and performance of agricultural market information systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.

  • Lawson-Body, A., Willoughby, L., Keengwe, J. and Mukankusi, L., 2011. Cultural factors influencing cell phone adoption in developing countries: a qualitative study. Issues in Information Systems 12: 97-105.

  • Lin, M., Li, S. and Whinston, A., 2011. Innovation and price competition in a two-sided market. Journal of Management Information Systems 28: 171-202.

  • Maddala, G.S. and Lahiri, K., 2006. Introduction to econometrics. Wiley, New York, NY, USA.

  • Maranto, T. and Phang, S., 2010. Mobile phone access in Sub-Saharan Africa: research and a library proposal. Seminar in International and Comparative Librarianship, pp. 1-23.

  • Mcgeorge, P., Crawford, J.R. and Kelly, S.W., 1997. The relationships between psychometric intelligence and learning in an explicit and an implicit task. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 23: 239-245.

  • Mendelson, H. and Tunca, T.I., 2007. Strategic spot trading in supply chains. Management Science 53: 742-759.

  • Mikami, K., 2007. Asymmetric information and the form of enterprise: capitalist firms and consumer cooperatives. Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics 163: 297-312.

  • Mikami, K. and Tanaka, S., 2008. Food processing business and agriculture cooperatives in Japan: market power and asymmetric information. Asian Economic Journal 22: 83-107.

  • MTN-Benin, 2012. Couvernature Nationale. Cotonou, Benin. Available at: http://www.mtn.bj/index.php?item=240.

  • Muto, M. and Yamano, T., 2009. The impact of mobile phone coverage expansion on market participation: panel data evidence from Uganda. World Development 37: 1887-1896.

  • Mwesige, D., 2010. Working with value chains, using multi-stakeholder processes for capacity development in an agricultural value chain in Uganda. In: Ubels, J., Baddoo, N.A. and Fowle, A. (eds.) Capacity development in practice. Earthscan, Washington, DC, USA.

  • Office National d’Appui à la Sécurité Alimentaire (ONASA), 2011. Benin-système d’information sur les marchés. Bulletin Mensuel 26. Available at: http://tinyurl.com/p4erpo2.

  • Ozer, O. and Wei, W., 2006. Strategic commitments for an optimal capacity decision under asymmetric forecast information. Management Science 52: 1238-1257.

  • Paolisso, M.J., Hallman, K., Haddad, L.J. and Regmi, S., 2001. Does cash crop adoption detract from childcare provision? Evidence from rural Nepal. International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA.

  • Peters, R.G., Covello, V.T. and Mccallum, D.B., 1997. The determinants of trust and credibility in environmental risk communication: an empirical study. Risk Analysis 17: 43-54.

  • Pop-Eleches, C., Thirumurthy, H., Habyarimana, J.P., Zivin, J.G., Goldstein, M.P., De Walque, D., Mackeen, L., Haberer, J., Kimaiyo, S. and Sidle, J., 2011. Mobile phone technologies improve adherence to antiretroviral treatment in a resource-limited setting: a randomized controlled trial of text message reminders. Aids 25: 825-834.

  • Porter, G., 2012. Mobile phones, livelihoods and the poor in Sub-Saharan Africa: review and prospect. Geography Compass 6: 241-259.

  • Porter, G., Hampshire, K., Abane, A., Munthali, A., Robson, E., Mashiri, M. and Tanle, A., 2012. Youth, mobility and mobile phones in Africa: findings from a three-country study. Information Technology for Development 18: 145-162.

  • Resende-Filho, M.A. and Hurley, T.M., 2012. Information asymmetry and traceability incentives for food safety. International Journal of Production economics 139: 596-603.

  • Roberts, N. and Grover, V., 2012. Leveraging information technology infrastructure to facilitate a firm’s customer agility and competitive activity: an empirical investigation. Journal of Management Information Systems 28: 231-270.

  • Ryan, M. and Watson, V., 2009. Comparing welfare estimates from payment card contingent valuation and discrete choice experiments. Health Economics 18: 389-401.

  • Sall, S., Norman, D. and Featherstone, A., 2000. Quantitative assessment of improved rice variety adoption: the farmer’s perspective. Agricultural Systems 66: 129-144.

  • Sey, A., 2010. Managing the cost of mobile communications in Ghana. In: Fernandez-Ardevol, M. and Hijar, A.R. (eds.) Communication technologies in Latin America and Africa: a multidisciplinary perspective. UOC, Barcelona, Spain, pp. 143-166.

  • Statpac, 2010. Surveys designing tutorial: survey sampling methods. Lyndale, Bloomington, IN, USA.

  • Suzuki, A., Jarvis, L.S. and Sexton, R.J., 2011. Partial vertical integration, risk shifting, and product rejection in the high-value export supply chain: the Ghana pineapple sector. World Development 39: 1611-1623.

  • Teece, D.J., Rumelt, R., Dosi, G. and Winter, S., 1994. Understanding corporate coherence: theory and evidence. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization 23: 1-30.

  • Thangata, P.H. and Alavalapati, J., 2003. Agroforestry adoption in southern Malawi: the case of mixed intercropping of Gliricidia sepium and maize. Agricultural Systems 78: 57-72.

  • Thiele, G., Devaux, A., Reinoso, I., Pico, H., Montesdeoca, F., Pumisacho, M., Andrade-Piedra, J., Velasco, C., Flores, P. and Esprella, R., 2011. Multi-stakeholder platforms for linking small farmers to value chains: evidence from the Andes. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability 9: 423-433.

  • Thiele, G., Devaux, A., Reinoso, I., Pico, H., Montesdeoca, F., Pumisacho, M., Velasco, C., Flores, P., Esprella, R. and Manrique, K., 2009. Multi-stakeholder platforms for innovation and coordination in market chains. International Potato Center, Lima, Peru, 431 pp.

  • Verbeek, M., 2008. A guide to modern econometrics. Wiley, New York, NY, USA.

  • Verbeke, W. and Ward, R.W., 2006. Consumer interest in information cues denoting quality, traceability and origin: an application of ordered probit models to beef labels. Food Quality and Preference 17: 453-467.

  • Wang, C.L. and Ahmed, P.K., 2007. Dynamic capabilities: a review and research agenda. International Journal of Management Reviews 9: 31-51.

  • White, H., 2004. Books, buildings, and learning outcomes: an impact evaluation of World Bank support to basic education in Ghana. World Bank Publications, Washington, DC, USA.

  • Williamson, O.E., 1985. The economic institutions of capitalism: firms, markets, relational contracting. Free press, New York, NY, USA.

  • Woiceshyn, J. and Daellenbach, U., 2005. Integrative capability and technology adoption: evidence from oil firms. Industrial and Corporate Change 14: 307-342.

  • World Bank, 2010. The little data book on information and communication technology, Development Data Group. World Bank Publications, Washington, DC, USA.

  • World Bank, 2011. The little data book on information and communication technology, Development Data Group. World Bank Publications, Washington, DC, USA.

  • World Bank and ITU, 2012. The little data book on information and communication technology, Development Data Group. World Bank Publications, Washington, DC, USA.

  • Yin, H., Guo, T., LI, B., Zhu, J. and Sun, X., 2013. the theoretical analysis model and statistical test research on enterprises development: a study of data from 195 large and medium manufacturing enterprises in China. Przeglad Elektrotechniczny 89: 198-206.

  • Yin, R.K., 1994. Case study research. Design and methods. Sage publishing, Beverly Hills, CA, USA.

  • Zegeye, T., Tadesse, B., Tesfaye, S., Nigussie, M., Tanner, D. and Twumasi-Afriyie, S., 2001. Determinants of adoption of improved maize technologies in major maize growing regions of Ethiopia. Enhancing the contribution of maize to food security in Ethiopia. In: Proceedings of the Second National Maize Workshop of Ethiopia. Ethiopian Agricultural Research Organization, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

  • Collapse
  • Expand

Quality and innovation in food chains

Lessons and insights from Africa

Cover Quality and innovation in food chains
E-Book ISBN:
9789086868254
Publisher:
Wageningen Academic
Print Publication Date:
29 Mar 2016

Metrics

All Time Past 365 days Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 0 0 0
Full Text Views 123 77 6
PDF Views & Downloads 78 56 1