Abstract
Based on 12 years of research (SFB 564 “The Uplands Program”), a community-based breeding and marketing cooperative group was transferred to an ethnic farmer group. This study analyses the potential for developing a marketing channel for specialty local Ban pork as an alternative to supplying the local markets to ensure long-term sustainability of the communal local pig breeding and production system. Data on pig-keeping were investigated from 378 farmers who wanted to enroll in the cooperative group in 10 villages (near town, intermediate, and remote zones) in Son La province. The data on Ban pig marketing activities of the cooperative group were investigated for all of its 180 members. Information on the market demand for Ban pigs were collected by interviewing 57 traders in Hanoi city and Son La province. The results show a dominance of local Ban in remote areas, and a preference for crossbreds with exotics in closer-to-town areas. Before farmers joined the cooperative group, the commercialization of pigs in remote villages accounted for only 3.0 pigs/farm/year compared to 9.3 pigs/farm/year in the intermediate zone and 11.2 pigs/farm/year near town. Potential markets have been identified for each product category of the cooperative group. Pure Ban pigs with a weight of 10–15 kg were preferred most by customers in Hanoi city. The regular feedback of information on niche markets for different products has increased the awareness of farmers about the competitiveness of the local pig products, and the power of collective action in the market. Selected pure Ban pigs were increasingly sold to food stores in Hanoi with high prices. Farmers received an average of 9000 VND more compared to the local market price for each kg of live weight. The respective added value for the cooperative group amounted to 11,300 VND/kg live weight. The added value from selling specialty Ban pigs regularly to markets, encouraged farmers toward a market in local pig production and participation in the cooperative group. For the long-term development of the cooperative group, trademark registration is envisaged, along with strict quality control to help protect the brand of the product.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cuong, T. H. 2004. Study on current and potential market supply and demand, marketing opportunities and consumer preferences for indigenous breed animals/products. In final report development and application of decision support tools to conserve and sustainably use genetic diversity in indigenous livestock and wile relatives livestock markets and marketing, GEF-UNDP 2715-03-4709. Hanoi, Vietnam
FAO, 2011. World Livestock 2011 – Livestock in food security. Rome, Fao
Herold, P., Roessler, R., Willam, A., Momm, H. and Valle Zárate, A., 2010. Breeding and supply chain systems incorporating local pig breeds for small-scale pig producers in Northwest Vietnam, Livestock Science, 129, 63--72
Huong P. T. M., 2007. Production and marketing of indigenous pig breeds in the uplands of Vietnam – An economic analysis in Son La province. (MSc thesis, University of Hohenheim)
Huong P. T. M., Nguyen V. H., Kaufmann, B., Valle Zárate, A. and Mergenthaler, M., 2009. Emerging supply chains of indigenous pork and their impacts on small-scale farmers in upland areas of Vietnam . Contributed Paper prepared for presentation at the International Association of Agricultural Economists Conference, Beijing, China, August 16–22, 2009
Huyen, L. T. T., Lemke, U., Thuy, L. T. and Valle Zárate, A., 2006. Analysis of animal production systems in H’mong villages of Northern Vietnam, (Verlag Ulrich E. Grauer, Beuren, Stuttgart, Germany)
Ieda, N., Quang, V. B., Nga, T. D. N., Lapar, L. and Marshall, K., 2015. Characterization of smallholder pig breeding practices within a rural commune of North Central Vietnam. Tropical Animal Health and Production. DOI: 10.1007/s11250-015-0817-4
Jari, B. and Fraser, G., 2012. Influence of institutional and technical factors on market choices of smallholder farmers in the Kat River Valley (pp 59--89). In: van Schalkwyk, H.D., Groenewald, J.A., Fraser, G.C.G., Ajuruchukwu, O. and van Tilburg, A. (eds), Unlocking markets to smallholders. Lessons from South Africa. Mansholt publication series - Volume 10, (Wageningen Academic Publishers, Wageningen, The Netherlands)
Kayonza, M., 2014. Strategies to link smallholder pig farmers to formal markets for enhanced livelihoods in Goromonzi district, Zimbabwe. (MSc Thesis University of Wageningen)
Lapar, M. L. A., Toan, N. N., Staal, S., Minot, N., Tisdell, C., Que, N. N. and Tuan, N. A., 2012. Smallholder competitiveness: insights from household pig production systems in Vietnam. Selected Paper prepared for presentation at the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE) Triennial Conference, Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, 18–24 August, 2012
Lemke, U., Kaufmann, B., Thuy, L. T., Emrich, K. and Valle Zárate, A., 2006. Evaluation of smallholder pig production systems in North Vietnam. Pig production management and pig performances, Livestock Science, 105 (1–3), 229--243
Levy, M., Dewey, C., Weersink, A., Mutua, F., Carter, N. and Poljak, Z., 2014a. Evaluating critical factors to the economic feasibility of semi-intensive pig rearing in western Kenya. Tropical Animal Health and Production, 46, 797--808
Levy, M. A., Dewey, C. E., Poljak Z., Weersink A. and Mutua F. K., 2014b. Comparing the operations and challenges of pig butchers in rural and peri-urban settings of western Kenya, African Journal of Agricultural, Research, 9(1), 125--136
Lubungu, M., Chapoto, A. and Tembo, G., 2012. Smallholder Farmers Participation in Livestock Markets: The Case of Zambian Farmers. Working Paper No. 66, (Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute (IAPRI), Lusaka, Zambia)
Masuku, M. B., Kirsten, J. F., Van Rooyen C. J. and Perret, S., 2003. Contractual relationships between small-holder sugarcane growers and millers in the sugar industry supply chain in Swaziland, Agricultural Economics Research, Policy and Practice in Southern Africa, 42, 183--199
Mbuthia, J. M., Rewe, T. O. and Kahi, A. K., 2014. Evaluation of pig production practices, constraints and opportunities for improvement in smallholder production systems in Kenya. Tropical Animal Health and Production. DOI: 10.1007/s11250-014-0730-2
Mueller, J. P., Rischkowsky, B., Haile, A., Philipsson, J., Mwai, O., Besbes, B., Valle Zárate, A., Tibbo, M., Mirkena, T., Duguma, G., Sölkner, J. and Wurzinger, M., 2015. Community-based livestock breeding programmes: essentials and examples. Journal of Animal Breeding and Genetics, 132 (2), 155--168
Olson, F., 2009. United Producers Inc. Chapter 11 Restructuring. Journal of Cooperatives, 23, 130--140
Ouma, E, Dione, M., Lule, P., Roesel, K. and Pezo, D., 2014. Characterization of smallholder pig production systems in Uganda: constraints and opportunities for engaging with market systems, Livestock Research for Rural Development 26, Article #56. Retrieved December 7, 2014, from http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd26/3/ouma26056.htm
Piepho, H. P., Buechse, A. and Emrich, K., 2003. A hitchhiker’s guide to mixed models for randomized experiments, Journal Agronomy & Crop Science 189, 310--322
Phuong, N. V, Hanh, D. T. M., Cuong, T. H., Markemann, A., Valle Zárate, A. and Mergenthaler, M., 2014. Impact of quality attributes and marketing factors on prices for indigenous pork in Vietnam to promote sustainable utilization of local genetic resources. Livestock Research for Rural Development, 26, Article #126. Retrieved December 7, 2014, from http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd26/7/phuo26126.html
Regmi, A. and Gelhar. M., 2005. New Directions in Global Food Markets. U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 794, (USDA Economic Research Service, Washington, DC)
Riedel, S., Schiborra, A., Huelsebusch, C., Huanming, M. and Schlecht. E., 2012. Opportunities and challenges for smallholder pig production systems in a mountainous region of Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, China. Tropical Animal Health and Production, 44, 1971--1980
Restrepo, M. J., Lelea, M. A., Christinck, A., Hülsebusch, C. and Kaufmann, B. A., 2014. Collaborative learning for fostering change in complex social-ecological systems: a transdisciplinary perspective on food and farming systems. Knowledge Management for Development Journal 10, 3, 38--59
Roessler, R., Herold, P., Momm, H. and Valle Zárate, A. 2012. Organisation of breeding under difficult framework conditions – the case of smallholder pig breeding in mountainous areas in Northwest Vietnam. Archiv Tierzucht, 55 (6), 590--602
Roessler, R., Herold, P., Willam, A., Piepho, H.-P., Thuy, L. T. and Valle Zárate, A., 2009. Modelling of a recording scheme for market-oriented smallholder pig producers in Northwest Vietnam, Livestock Science, 123, 241--248
Roessler, R., Drucker, A. G., Scarpa, R., Markemann, A., Lemke, U., Thuy, L. T. and Valle Zárate, A., 2008. Using choice experiments to assess smallholder farmers' preferences for pig breeding traits in different production systems in North–West Vietnam, Ecological Economics, 66, 184--192
Schmitt, F., 2009. Building traceability systems to assure international market access for livestock products from developing countries: concept and examples from technical assistance projects carried out by ADT Project GmbH, Bonn. Animal Science Seminar University of Hohenheim, February 9, 2009, Stuttgart, Germany
The Anh, D., Quang, C. T., Tuan, D. T., Binh, V. T., Thinh, L. D. and Thai, B. T. 2006. Collective actions and participations of small scale farmers to markets – one of the opportunities for poverty escape for poor farmers in Vietnam, (Center for Agrarian System Research and Development (CASRAD), Hanoi, Vietnam)
Tilburg, A. and Schalkwyk, H. D., 2012. Strategies to improve smallholders’ market access (pp 35–49). In: van Schalkwyk, H. D., Groenewald, J. A., Fraser, G. C. G., Ajuruchukwu, O. and van Tilburg, A. (eds), Unlocking markets to smallholders. Lessons from South Africa. Mansholt publication series – Volume 10, (Wageningen Academic Publishers, Wageningen, The Netherlands)
Tisdell, C., 2010. An economic study of small pigholders in Vietnam: Some insights gained and the scope for further research. Economic Theory, Applications and Issues. The School of Economics, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072
Tjällden, U., 2003. Indigenous Breeds of Domestic Animals in Northern Vietnam. Opinions of, and Attitudes towards, Local Breeds among Farmers. Minor Field Studies International Office, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
Tung, D. X., 2001. Assessment of domestic pork demand in Vietnam. In: Proceedings of National Workshop on Animal Husbandry and Health. National Institute of Animal Sciences, Hanoi, Vietnam
UK Agriculture, 2009. The sheep industry-stratification. Retrieved August 30, 2010, from http://www.ukagriculture.com/livestock/sheep_industry.cfm
Valle Zárate, A. and Markemann, A., 2010. Community-based breeding programmes incorporating local breeds: Concept, research results and implementation strategy on pigs in Northern Vietnam. Paper presented at the 9th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production. Leipzig, Germany, 1–6 August 2010
Wright, I. A., Tarawali, S., Bluemmel, M., Gerard, B., Teufel, N. and Herrero, M., 2011. Integrating crops and livestock in subtropical agricultural systems. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 92 (5), 1010--1015
Acknowledgments
We express our sincere thanks for the financial support of the Uplands Program sponsored by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. In addition, the field assistants Dinh Khanh Thuy and Luong Ngoc Son are gratefully acknowledged.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Statement of animal rights
The manuscript does not contain clinical studies or patient data.
Informed consent
All persons gave their informed consent prior to their inclusion in the study. Details that might disclose the identity of the subjects under study should be omitted.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Le, T.T.H., Muth, P.C., Markemann, A. et al. Potential for the development of a marketing option for the specialty local Ban pork of a Thai ethnic smallholder cooperative group in Northwest Vietnam. Trop Anim Health Prod 48, 263–271 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-015-0945-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-015-0945-x