Small farmers and SMEs are increasingly tied to markets and agro-industries through business linkages and alliances with each other and with other value chain stakeholders. There are many models of business linkages, some driven by producers, some by buyers and some supported by intermediaries including NGOs.
The business model critically impacts on how value is created, captured or shared by farmers, SMEs and other chain actors. It is therefore important to establish inclusive, equitable and sustainable business models for farmers and SMEs. Factors which influence sustained and equitable inclusion of smaller scale farmers and SMEs are producer organization, market coordination and intermediation, business support and financial services, buyer behaviour, and enabling policies and infrastructure.
This paper was written by Bill Vorley, Mark Lundy and James MacGregor under the guidance of Doyle Baker (FAO) for the Global Agro-Industries Forum, India, April 2008 (www.gaif08.org).
(To read the article on www.fao.org, please click here)
