Influence of E-Commerce on Sales Performance of Mountainous Orange Farmers in Hubei Province, China

Due to their distance from urban markets, many mountainous rural areas face the challenge of unsold agricultural products, which contributes to poverty and hinders development. E-commerce presents a significant new avenue for connecting farmers in these regions with broader online markets. This study uses survey data collected from orange growers in rural, mountainous China. An endogenous switching regression model was employed to assess the average treatment effects of e-commerce on agricultural sales performance within a counterfactual analysis framework. Next, a mediated effects model was used to verify the pathways through which e-commerce affects the sales performance orange farmers. The results indicate that: First, participating in e-commerce increases the sales performance of orange farmers by 9.57% to 12.47%. Second, the heterogeneity analysis found that social e-commerce platforms, such as WeChat and Weibo, have a greater positive impact on farmers’ orange sales performance than e-commerce platforms, such as Jingdong and Taobao. Furthermore, the effect of e-commerce on improving sales performance is more pronounced for smallholder farmers. Third, e-commerce reduces information asymmetry and extends the product value chain and market scope in the orange marketing process. This results in reduced costs, increased value, and expanded markets, ultimately improving orange sales performance. These findings clarify the mechanisms through which e-commerce involvement affects agricultural sales performance in mountainous rural areas, providing practical insights for the development of agricultural e-commerce.