@article{Ruml:298450,
      recid = {298450},
      author = {Ruml, Anette and Qaim, Matin},
      title = {New evidence regarding the effects of contract farming on  agricultural labor use },
      address = {2019-12},
      number = {858-2019-5137},
      series = {135},
      pages = {42},
      year = {2019},
      abstract = {Contract farming recently gained in importance in many  developing countries. Various studies  analyzed effects of  contracting on productivity and income in the small farm  sector. A few  studies also looked at effects on  agricultural labor use, suggesting that contracting tends  to  increase labor intensity, thus generating additional  farm employment. An increase in the use of  farm labor is  plausible when contracting involves additional work in  production, harvesting, and  post-harvest handling.  However, we argue that the opposite may also be true,  namely when  contracting involves labor-saving procedures  and technologies. We use primary data from the oil  palm  sector in Ghana and show that farmers with a contract use  significantly less labor per unit  of land than farmers  without a contract. We also analyze whose labor input is  reduced.  Household labor is reduced more than hired labor.  Especially male household members  reallocate time to  off-farm employment. Contracts also reduce the likelihood  of using child labor  in farm production. This is the first  study to show that contract farming reduces agricultural  labor  use in certain situations.},
      url = {http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/298450},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.298450},
}