Potato and Potato Seed Production Under Contract Farming—a Study from Empirical Evidence of Case Studies

Abstract

India is an agrarian country, and 70% of the rural population is engaged in agriculture for their livelihood. Consumption of potato is being part of the daily routine for many consumers in India and world. The area, production, and productivity of potato in India has been increasing, and export of potato also has been increasing. The production of quality potato is still an issue faced by the Indian farmers due to lack of credit to purchase quality seed tubers, fertilizers, pesticides and so on. These issues are tackled through contract farming which provides the credit, fertilizer, quality seed tubers, harvesting support and technical support to the farmers. PepsiCo is one of the biggest companies involved in contract farming in India for potato production and enhances the quality of potato production for their processing unit which provides quality of product to the consumers as well as good remuneration to the farmers through contract farming. Small and marginal farmers involve in contract farming to meet the global demand. Nowadays, potato production under contract farming has been increasing but violation of the contract by the companies is also increasing. Intervention of the government is required to monitor the contract between potato farmers and companies to avoid conflicts and violations. The involvement of the government in contract farming enhances the quality of the product for the consumers as well as the quality of lifestyle for the farmers through the availability of fair remuneration for their potato production.