global supply chains,standards and the poor

This collection of 22 papers combines conceptual and empirical materials on the globalization of agricultural supply chains and standards and their impacts on local producers, growth, and poverty. Swinnen (economics, Catholic U. of Leuven, Belgium) first presents the more conceptual work, which includes discussions of recent trends and strategic incentives in public and private food quality standards, costs and benefits of compliance with food safety standards for exports by developing countries, the dynamics of vertical coordination in supply chains in transition countries, and trade liberalization and rent distribution in vertically related markets. Empirical studies from Asia, Latin, America, Africa, the former Soviet Union, and Central and Eastern Europe are then presented, some of which summarize findings of large studies organized by international institutions such as the World Bank or the International Food Policy Research Institute, while others are the product of academic research. Finally, policy issues are examined, including the role of the public and private sectors in commercializing small farms and reducing transaction costs, capacity building for food safety and agricultural health standards compliance, and public sector initiatives to facilitate small farmer access to international marketing channels. Distributed in the US by Oxford U. Press. Annotation c2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)