IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/ssefpa/v16y2024i2d10.1007_s12571-023-01429-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Large-scale agricultural investments and local food security – Evidence from a mixed-method case study in Benin

Author

Listed:
  • Anika Muder

    (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
    Thünen Institute of Farm Economics)

  • Jonas Luckmann

    (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)

  • Julia C. Schmid

    (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)

Abstract

Large-scale agricultural investments (LSAIs) and their impacts on local communities in host countries have been controversially discussed in recent years. As scholars increasingly call for more structured and comprehensive analyses, we develop a mixed-method approach using an expanded version of the “Right to Food” (RtF) framework to systematically investigate the local food security impacts of a recently established tomato-producing LSAI in Central Benin, West Africa. We find that the LSAI keeps natural resources as accessible as possible for the local community and provides employment opportunities, leading to higher dietary diversity of employees and multiplier effects in the local economy. At the same time, we find inequalities regarding the compensation of former land users as well as high job insecurity for temporary laborers who face high transportation costs to reach the LSAI. We argue that fair and inclusive compensation, improved access to markets and machinery, access to natural resources for often overlooked groups (pastoralists, hunters, fishermen) and social infrastructure are crucial factors in promoting positive outcomes of LSAIs on communities and that strong local institutions play a key role for achieving this. We conclude that the specific characteristics of our case (relatively small size, labor-intensive crop, focus on regional markets) provide favorable conditions for positive impacts on local food security. We encourage further, structured mixed-method studies, ideally including longitudinal and comparative research designs, to investigate the multidimensional effects related to the establishment of LSAIs. The extended RtF framework can thereby serve as a structural lens to systematically analyze the findings.

Suggested Citation

  • Anika Muder & Jonas Luckmann & Julia C. Schmid, 2024. "Large-scale agricultural investments and local food security – Evidence from a mixed-method case study in Benin," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 16(2), pages 511-531, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ssefpa:v:16:y:2024:i:2:d:10.1007_s12571-023-01429-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s12571-023-01429-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s12571-023-01429-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s12571-023-01429-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wegayehu Fitawek & Sheryl Hendriks & Aurélien Reys & Filippo Fossi, 2020. "The effect of large-scale agricultural investments on household food security in Madagascar," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 12(6), pages 1349-1365, December.
    2. Kebede, Dereje & Emana, Bezabih & Tesfay, Girmay, 2023. "Impact of land acquisition for large-scale agricultural investments on food security status of displaced households: The case of Ethiopia," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    3. Saturnino M. Borras & David Fig & Sofía Monsalve Suárez, 2011. "The politics of agrofuels and mega-land and water deals: insights from the ProCana case, Mozambique," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(128), pages 215-234, June.
    4. Kedir T. Roba & Thomas P. O’Connor & Nora M. O’Brien & Chanyalew S. Aweke & Zenebe A. Kahsay & Nick Chisholm & Edward Lahiff, 2019. "Seasonal variations in household food insecurity and dietary diversity and their association with maternal and child nutritional status in rural Ethiopia," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 11(3), pages 651-664, June.
    5. Kilian Nasung Atuoye & Roger Antabe & Yujiro Sano & Isaac Luginaah & Jason Bayne, 2019. "Household Income Diversification and Food Insecurity in the Upper West Region of Ghana," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 144(2), pages 899-920, July.
    6. Tsegaye Moreda, 2018. "The right to food in the context of large-scale land investment in Ethiopia," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(7), pages 1326-1347, July.
    7. Bamlaku Alamirew & Harald Grethe & Khalid Hassan Ali Siddig & Tesfamicheal Wossen, 2015. "Do land transfers to international investors contribute to employment generation and local food security?," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(12), pages 1121-1138, December.
    8. Bamlaku Alamirew & Harald Grethe & Khalid Hassan Ali Siddig & Tesfamicheal Wossen, 2015. "Do land transfers to international investors contribute to employment generation and local food security?," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(12), pages 1121-1138, December.
    9. Mabe, Franklin N. & Nashiru, Sulemena & Mummuni, Eliasu & Boateng, Vivian F., 2019. "The nexus between land acquisition and household livelihoods in the Northern region of Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 357-367.
    10. Juliana Porsani & Lowe Börjeson & Kari Lehtilä, 2017. "Land Concessions and Rural Livelihoods in Mozambique: The Gap Between Anticipated and Real Benefits of a Chinese Investment in the Limpopo Valley," Journal of Southern African Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(6), pages 1181-1198, November.
    11. Bin Yang & Jun He, 2021. "Global Land Grabbing: A Critical Review of Case Studies across the World," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-19, March.
    12. Vaitla, Bapu & Coates, Jennifer & Glaeser, Laura & Hillbruner, Christopher & Biswal, Preetish & Maxwell, Daniel, 2017. "The measurement of household food security: Correlation and latent variable analysis of alternative indicators in a large multi-country dataset," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 193-205.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Castet, Antoine, 2024. "The impact of large-scale land acquisitions on child food insecurity in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    2. Abdul-Hanan Abdallah & Michael Ayamga & Joseph A. Awuni, 2023. "Impact of land grabbing on food security: evidence from Ghana," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(7), pages 6071-6094, July.
    3. Bin Yang & Jun He, 2021. "Global Land Grabbing: A Critical Review of Case Studies across the World," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-19, March.
    4. Anika Trebbin, 2021. "Land Grabbing and Jatropha in India: An Analysis of ‘Hyped’ Discourse on the Subject," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-21, October.
    5. Borras, Saturnino M. & Franco, Jennifer C. & Moreda, Tsegaye & Xu, Yunan & Bruna, Natacha & Afewerk Demena, Binyam, 2022. "The value of so-called ‘failed’ large-scale land acquisitions," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    6. de Juan, Alexander & Geissel, Daniel & Lay, Jann & Lohmann, Rebecca, 2022. "Large-scale land deals and social conflict: Evidence and policy implications," GIGA Working Papers 328, GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies.
    7. Atenchong Talleh Nkobou & Andrew Ainslie & Stefanie Lemke, 2022. "Broken promises: a rights-based analysis of marginalised livelihoods and experiences of food insecurity in large-scale land investments in Tanzania," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(1), pages 185-205, February.
    8. Dwyer, Michael B. & Nanhthavong, Vong, 2023. "Making concessions pay? Historical vs. potential tax revenues from Laos’s rubber sector," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    9. Kamaldeen Mohammed & Evans Batung & Moses Kansanga & Hanson Nyantakyi-Frimpong & Isaac Luginaah, 2021. "Livelihood diversification strategies and resilience to climate change in semi-arid northern Ghana," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 164(3), pages 1-23, February.
    10. Yue Wang & Dengjiao Liao & Bin Yan & Xinhai Lu, 2023. "Employment of Land-Expropriated Farmers: The Effects of Land Expropriation and Gender Difference," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-19, October.
    11. Maren Radeny & Elizaphan J. O. Rao & Maurice Juma Ogada & John W. Recha & Dawit Solomon, 2022. "Impacts of climate-smart crop varieties and livestock breeds on the food security of smallholder farmers in Kenya," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(6), pages 1511-1535, December.
    12. Matita,Mirriam & Zingwe,David & Dizon,Felipe Jr Fadullon, 2024. "Comparative Impacts of Input Subsidies, Irrigation Investments, and Social Cash Transfers on Food and Nutrition Security in Malawi," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10778, The World Bank.
    13. Mariana Romo-Aviles & Luis Ortiz-Hernández, 2018. "Energy and nutrient supply according to food insecurity severity among Mexican households," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 10(5), pages 1163-1172, October.
    14. Nolte, Kerstin & Voget-Kleschin, Lieske, 2014. "Consultation in Large-Scale Land Acquisitions: An Evaluation of Three Cases in Mali," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 654-668.
    15. Mohammed, Kamaldeen & Batung, Evans & Kansanga, Moses Mosonsieyiri & Luginaah, Isaac, 2024. "Alcohol misuse as a social determinant of food insecurity among smallholder farmers," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).
    16. Wang, Weiwen & Gong, Jian & Wang, Ying & Shen, Yang, 2021. "Exploring the effects of rural site conditions and household livelihood capitals on agricultural land transfers in China," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    17. Bageant, Elizabeth & Lentz, Erin & Narayanan, Sudha & Jensen, Nathan & Lepariyo, Watson, 2024. "How do women’s empowerment metrics measure up? A comparative analysis," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    18. repec:osf:osfxxx:cu8rj_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. John Anku & Nathan Andrews & Logan Cochrane, 2022. "The Global Land Rush and Agricultural Investment in Ghana: Existing Knowledge, Gaps, and Future Directions," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-17, December.
    20. Man Jiao & Hengzhou Xu, 2022. "Does Rural Construction Land Marketization Inhibit State-Owned Industrial Land Transactions? Evidence from Huzhou City, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-17, September.
    21. Derib Woldeyohannes Benti & Worku Tuffa Birru & Workneh Kassa Tessema & Messay Mulugeta, 2022. "Linking Cultural and Marketing Practices of (Agro)pastoralists to Food (In)security," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-22, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:ssefpa:v:16:y:2024:i:2:d:10.1007_s12571-023-01429-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.