Browsing by Person "Happy, Fardous Ara"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1

Dairy farmers’ market choice, food safety and production efficiency in rural Bangladesh
(2025) Happy, Fardous Ara; Hess, Sebastian
The dairy sector in Bangladesh is a cornerstone of rural livelihoods, functioning not only as a vital source of food and nutritional security but also as a powerful vehicle for poverty reduction through the productive engagement of surplus family labor and the generation of household income from milk product sales. As the most economically pivotal component of the agricultural sector, the dairy value chain (encompassing production, processing, marketing, and food safety) relies fundamentally on the contributions of smallholder dairy farmers. These producers, primarily resource-constrained and operating small-scale enterprises with limited access to improved cattle breeds, are predominantly situated in geographically isolated regions. Such structural limitations hinder their market connection. Consequently, farmers typically earn less than half of the final consumer price, while national milk production remains insufficient to meet the rising demand for safe, nutritious, and high-quality dairy products. Understanding the existing farming conditions and market dynamics is therefore essential for designing effective policy interventions and management advice that could improve the dairy sector in rural Bangladesh regarding production, productivity, food safety, and market access. As a starting point for this, a systematic literature review examines the market attributes of the dairy value chain in Bangladesh and compares them to the dairy sector in India. Despite rising demand for dairy products, particularly in urban and high-income areas, the traditional dairy markets (TDM) continue to dominate in both countries, accounting for about 80 percent of milk production. The weak linkage of milk producers to the commercial dairy market (CDM) is driven by the combined influence of CDM limitations and the continued appeal of the TDM. CDM lacks adequate promotional services to attract producers, while TDM systems offer proximity and familiarity with rural producers. Nevertheless, TDM supplies dairy products of inferior quality that are primarily consumed locally. These products have limited value addition and a shorter shelf life. Additionally, perceived unfair pricing and bargaining pressure within TDM often lead to malpractices, including adulteration. In contrast, CDM - especially through cooperative and private sector contractual models - offers better market access, value-added product diversification, and wider geographic distribution which tends to benefit both producers and consumers. Beyond this systematic review, a stratified survey was conducted in 2023 in three different agro-climatic milk-producing regions of rural Bangladesh. Data were collected through farm visits, interviewing N=511 milk producers using a structured questionnaire. Respondents in the sample were active sellers of milk either in commercial dairy markets (CDM) or traditional dairy markets (TDM). According to the results, market structures at dairy villages determine dairy farmers’ self-selection into different markets. Access to commercial markets (CDM) is influenced by physical infrastructure, particularly the availability of paved roads. Where such infrastructure exists, farmers are more likely to choose cooperative or private processors over the available local market (TDM). Interestingly, despite offering better prices, the nominal value of raw milk appeared to have limited explanatory power in farmers' market choice decisions. Instead, household-specific factors such as the shadow value of milk play a more influential role. Even more notably, a distinct subgroup of farmers who adhere to high food safety and hygiene practices prefer selling in local or informal markets, despite having access to commercial alternatives. As food safety practices are important for farm sustainability and safe milk sales, the key drivers influencing the adoption of food safety practices (FSPs) at small-scale dairy farms have also been analyzed based on the survey data: Farmers' knowledge and attitude towards food safety management has a strong influence on the adoption of FSPs. However, farm-level high compliance costs for FSPs, limited market incentives at the milk collection stage, and shortcomings in milk pricing policies significantly hinder the adoption of FSPs. These effects are particularly pronounced among untrained farmers, as they are less likely to show a positive attitude of farmers towards food safety implementation. Furthermore, the presence of these barriers has a negative impact on resource utilisation and farm inspections—eventually slowing progress towards safer dairy practices. Regarding productivity, results show that variations in milk production are largely explained by the number of lactating cows per farm. The mean technical efficiency (TE) peaks in the river zone, but is mostly uniform across market types. Intra-household milk consumption increases TE in coastal and dry regions. Moreover, the distance to food markets is inversely correlated with TE. The relatively high TE among cooperative-linked farms is facilitated by the provision of training and extension services. In general, household education, consumption of home-produced milk, diversified income sources and experience in dairy production serve as significant factors in driving the TE of dairy farms in Bangladesh. Although food safety practices are empirically correlated with lower TE, they remain essential for long-term farm sustainability and consumer health. Therefore, promoting a synergy between the efficiency of the CDM and the accessibility of TDM for producers should be a central goal of dairy sector interventions, enabling the transformation of rural dairy markets into high-value, CDM-like systems. This transition supports the growth of smallholder farming and therefore requires the development of strong producer associations and the provision of improved training, extension services and rural infrastructure. CDM frameworks also need to incorporate more effective price incentives for milk from farms with high food safety standards. In combination, these measures will strengthen the CDM by enhancing productivity, farm safety, income stability, and the delivery of safe milk to consumers. It is vital that implementation of such policies will be adapted to region- and market-specific contexts.