article · Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies
Pig farming offers valuable income smoothing for smallholders, yet it remains vulnerable to income instability caused by external challenges such as animal diseases. This research investigates what influences this financial variability and examines the risk preferences and performance of pig farmers in a risk-prone setting in Cameroon. Analysis of survey data reveals that farmers are generally risk-averse, and this cautious group achieves the strongest economic performance. Income variability increases due to the presence of pests and diseases, alongside farmer gender. Conversely, farmers who can successfully adopt new farming methods experience lower income variability. The findings suggest that improving animal health management through better and more frequent use of vaccines and drugs can stabilise incomes, providing relevant insights for livestock policy across developing tropical regions.
Livestock provides critical financial security for rural households, but disease outbreaks can quickly wipe out livelihoods. By identifying what causes income swings and highlighting how new farming practices stabilise returns, this work helps agricultural policymakers and development organisations design targeted animal healthcare and training interventions to safeguard smallholder incomes.
The research highlights opportunities for veterinary pharmaceutical suppliers and agricultural extension services to deliver high-quality vaccines, medicines, and farmer training programmes. Targeted users are smallholder pig producers seeking to stabilise income against disease. While these findings provide applied analytical evidence that can shape livestock management policies and service delivery, the abstract does not indicate a specific commercial technology or product pipeline ready for deployment.
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Purpose Livestock production, particularly pig production has an instrumental value for producers and consumers. Smallholders also consider it as an income-smoothing activity. However, pig production is plagued by many exogenous factors, especially diseases, making it a risky activity with considerable variability in income. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the drivers of income variability and farmers’ risk preferences in pig production. Design/methodology/approach Using survey data from an archetypical risk-prone environment, we shed light on the drivers of income variability and farmers’ risk attitudes. We also evaluate the performances of pig farmers. In so doing, we employ various econometric techniques. First, we apply the Generalised Linear Model to determine the extent to which production risks influence income variability. Second, we used Sharpe’s ratio to conduct a comparative evaluation of the income and investment performance of pig farmers. Findings Our results confirm the risk-averse nature of pig farmers. Further analysis indicates that farmers’ gender, as well as the presence of pests and diseases, positively influences income variability, while the ability of pig farmers to adopt new farming methods negatively drives income variability. Our results generally indicate a positive performance, with risk-averse farmers being the most performing category of pig farmers. Research limitations/implications We suggest improvements in pig farm management such as in the quality and frequency of administration of vaccines and drugs, which may boost animal health and reduce income variability. Our results and suggestions, though context-specific, provide support for policy development in pig production in developing countries in the tropics. Originality/value This study provides rare evidence of drivers of income variability and farmers’ risk preferences in tropical livestock production.
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DOI: 10.1108/jadee-06-2024-0179
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