The adoption problem is a matter of fit: tracing the travel of pruning practices from research to farm in Ghana’s cocoa sector

Adomaa, Faustina Obeng; Vellema, Sietze; Slingerland, M.A.; Asare, Richard

doi:10.1007/s10460-021-10292-0

Cited by 10 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 35 publications

(42 reference statements)

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“…This research is part of the interdisciplinary project Cocoa Crop Improvement, Farms and Market (CoCIFAM) at Wageningen University and Research, which collaborates with companies sourcing cocoa in Ghana and Ivory Coast and has an interest in understanding the traits and uses of agricultural practices, such as pruning, associated with sustainability (Obeng Adomaa et al, 2022;Tosto et al, 2022). The project and research comply with the ethical guidelines of the university.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Justice and Inclusiveness: The Reconfiguration of Global–Local Relationships in Sustainability Initiatives in Ghana’s Cocoa Sector

Adomaa

Vellema

Slingerland

2022

J Agric Environ Ethics

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Pressure from the public and non-governmental organisations is pushing lead companies in the cocoa and chocolate sectors towards becoming more environmentally sustainable and socially just. Because of this, several sustainability programmes, certification schemes and delivery initiatives have been introduced. These have changed the relationship between chocolate companies, cocoa exporters, and small-scale farmers. This paper observes how large companies in the cocoa export and consumer markets are shifting away from their traditionally remote position in the cocoa sector. The pressure to ensure sustainability and justice has provoked more mutually dependent relationships with cocoa producers. Our analysis outlines the implications this emerging reconfiguration of global-local relationships has for procedural justice principles of interdependence and refutability, and the distributive justice principles of need and equity. These principles are important because they enable the different dimensions of inclusion: ownership, voice, risk, and reward. This paper highlights and qualifies arrangements surrounding these justice principles that manifest in the way five service delivery initiatives - associated with sustainability programmes and led by major buying companies in Ghana’s cocoa sector – are implemented. We show inclusiveness as an outcome of dynamic global-local relationships that are constantly reworked in response to smallholder farmers’ agency and state regulations. Portraying inclusiveness as an outcome of interactions changes its conceptualisation from a predefined ethical standpoint included in the design of standards to a result of unfolding mutual dependencies, which refashion how inclusive agriculture value chains work.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Justice and Inclusiveness: The Reconfiguration of Global–Local Relationships in Sustainability Initiatives in Ghana’s Cocoa Sector

Adomaa

Vellema

Slingerland

2022

J Agric Environ Ethics

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“…It also aligns with existing literature that has documented low adoption rates around GAPs, such as pruning. 39…”

Section: Company Representatives Displayed a Healthy Level Of Critica...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards a Living Income for Cocoa Farmers in Ghana: Assessing companies' efforts to date

Gneiting¹,

Arhin²

2023

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This report analyzes existing strategies and interventions implemented by cocoa and chocolate companies operating in Ghana to raise the income of cocoa farmers in their supply chains. It has two main aims: first, to complement companies’ learning efforts by pulling together and distilling lessons and insights from across the sector; and second, to strengthen transparency and accountability around living incomes by bringing greater visibility to companies’ efforts and their impact on raising the incomes of farmers in their supply chains to date. The report covers three main areas: 1. Mapping of companies’ living income strategies; 2. Assessment of farmer income conditions; 3. Analysis of the effectiveness and impact of companies’ living income strategies. The findings might not necessarily be new for individual companies that have been implementing sustainability programs in Ghana for many years. However, the lessons that companies have learned have rarely been shared with a wider audience. This research aims to make these lessons more visible across the sector and create a joint foundation of knowledge upon which to build future living income strategies.

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“…Additionally, pruning recommendations tend to be very general. This has resulted in low adoption of the practice (Obeng Adomaa et al, 2022). Therefore, understanding the branching response of cocoa to pruning may contribute to the development of effective, yield-increasing cocoa pruning practices.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, pruning recommendations tend to be very general. This has resulted in low adoption of the practice (Obeng Adomaa et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Branching responses to pruning in cocoa

Tosto

Evers

Anten

et al. 2023

Preprint

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The branching pattern of a tree determines the efficiency of light interception and carbon assimilation. Pruning can modify the branching pattern, as a result of changes in physiological and environmental conditions, and ultimately pruning can have major effects on yield. For one of the major tropical tree crops, cocoa (Theobroma cacao), very little is known about branching response to pruning. To address this knowledge gap we performed a pruning experiment on young cocoa trees in Cote d' Ivoire. We applied five treatments: two heading treatments (the removal of the terminal apex or 66% of a branch) and two thinning treatments (the removal of 1 or 2 primary branches) and one unpruned control. The branching pattern of the primary branches was described by the number, position, and length of lateral branches right after pruning, and the same observations were repeated after a cycle of leaf production. The probability of branching and the length of lateral branches along a primary branch, in pruned and unpruned conditions, was analyzed using generalized mixed effect models. In unpruned conditions, the probability of branch presence was higher towards the middle of the primary branches and lower at the extremes. Branch length decreased going from the base to the tip of a primary branch. After one cycle of leaf production, new branches emerged preferentially on the distal section of a branch, but probability of branch emergence was reduced by the presence of other lateral branches. Pruning increased the probability of branch emergence mostly towards the tip of a branch, with heavy heading having the strongest effect. By contrast, heavy thinning increased branch emergence also toward the base of the branch. Our results can be applied to improve formation pruning, as this may trigger branching in different part of the crown, depending on the form of pruning. Our study also assists the development of three-dimensional tree models that could further our understanding of the impact of pruning on cocoa growth and productivity.

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The adoption problem is a matter of fit: tracing the travel of pruning practices from research to farm in Ghana’s cocoa sector

Cited by 10 publications

References 35 publications

Justice and Inclusiveness: The Reconfiguration of Global–Local Relationships in Sustainability Initiatives in Ghana’s Cocoa Sector

Justice and Inclusiveness: The Reconfiguration of Global–Local Relationships in Sustainability Initiatives in Ghana’s Cocoa Sector

Towards a Living Income for Cocoa Farmers in Ghana: Assessing companies' efforts to date

Branching responses to pruning in cocoa

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