The export value chain of baby corn in India: governance, inclusion and upgrading

Abstract

It is important to understand the implications of participation in global value chains (GVCs) in horticulture for farmer and worker upgrading/downgrading. This article examines the functioning and dynamics of supermarket driven GVCs in a high-value export crop, baby corn, to understand the significance of standards in farms and pack houses in India. It explores patterns of governance, smallholder inclusion, economic and social upgrading, or lack of it, and its determinants and changing nature of farmer and labor linkages. This article presents case studies of farmers and various types of labor on farms and in pack houses, based on interviews with the exporter and facilitator management staff, field visits to the operations and a personal interview survey of 76 farmers and workers across the entire value chain of baby corn in western India conducted during 2011–2012.