Institut für Tropische Agrarwissenschaften (Hans-Ruthenberg-Institut)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hohpublica.uni-hohenheim.de/handle/123456789/21

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Browsing Institut für Tropische Agrarwissenschaften (Hans-Ruthenberg-Institut) by Person "Alioma, Richard"

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    Analysis of long-term prices of micronutrient-dense and starchy staple foods in developing countries
    (2022) Alioma, Richard; Zeller, Manfred; Ling, Yee Khor
    The continued price increase in food commodities has long been a concern to academia and policymakers because of its substantial impact on poor consumers. Existing literature has concentrated on the cost of micronutrient-dense and starchy staple foods and the price rise in different commodities. Yet, the long-term price growth of micronutrient-dense and starchy staple foods and the price growth gap between micronutrient-dense foods and starchy staple foods have not been given much attention. The paper aimed to estimate the long-term trends in prices and volatility of micronutrient-dense and starchy staples and identify factors that have sustained the growth in prices of food commodities in developing countries. We have used the autoregressive and panel autoregressive distributed lag models to analyse the trends in relative prices and the effects of income growth. The results showed that micronutrient-dense food prices in real terms grew on average by 0.03% per month more than starchy staple food prices, with the expectation of a 12% growth gap in the next 30 years. The volatility of micronutrient-dense food items exceeds starchy staple foods in most domestic markets. Also, the prices of micronutrient-dense foods were more volatile in international markets than in most developing countries. Income growth in developing countries was one of the factors that contributed to the declining relative price of micronutrient-dense food commodities. Other factors, such as the high production of staple foods and their price stabilization policies, may have caused price trends to persist. Policies that enhance price stabilization for micronutrient-dense foods, supplementation, fortification, dietary diversity, and nutrition-sensitive interventions such as biofortification may be adopted in developing countries.
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    Publication
    Identifying governance challenges in scaling biofortification programs and the potential of training: a case study of Uganda
    (2025) Alioma, Richard; Zeller, Manfred; Birner, Regina; Bosch, Christine; Muayahoto, Bho; Zeller, Manfred; Department of Rural Development Theory and Policy, Hohenheim University, Stuttgart, Germany; Birner, Regina; Department of Social and Institutional Change in Agricultural Development, Hohenheim University, Stuttgart, Germany; Bosch, Christine; Department of Social and Institutional Change in Agricultural Development, Hohenheim University, Stuttgart, Germany; Muayahoto, Bho; HarvestPlus, International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, DC, United States
    Introduction: Biofortification initiatives can significantly help reduce micronutrient deficiencies in developing countries. However, when hidden hunger affects a large segment of the population, large-scale implementation is necessary to achieve the desired results. We aimed to identify governance challenges in biofortification, and potential remedies based on a conceptual framework that considers low demand and the invisible nature of micronutrient traits in crops. Methods: Using process net maps and quantitative methods, this paper explores how farmer training can address governance issues. Results: Results show that, in addition to common agricultural marketing issues, sweet potato vine multipliers struggle with vine supply, value chain actors adulterate iron beans, and consumers are hesitant to pay higher prices for biofortified crops. These problems may result from information asymmetry, merit goods, collective action issues, and free riding. Furthermore, training had little impact on reducing the governance challenge arising from information asymmetry. Discussion/conclusion: One of the key solutions was investing in subsidies to increase production and raise awareness of the importance of nutritious foods. With governance problems, there is a need to take them into consideration when planning and expanding biofortification programs.