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ROLE OF TRADE IN PROMOTING CROP DIVERSIFICATION AND NUTRITION
1. FOUNDATIONS OF TRADE AND AGRICULTURE
Trade and agriculture have always supported each other and have a long historical tradition.
During early human societies, people used to move from one place to another in search of food,
but as they started settling in places that they thought were favorable for agriculture they started
producing grains, vegetables, fruits among others, as well as livestock. This was made possible
so as to relieve some individuals in the society from the responsibilities of feeding the nation and
at the same time engage in other activities such as; artisans, priests and early bureaucrats in the
society. The appearance of food surplus and its stability led to emergence of the first forms of
trade relations – barter of food products in exchange for crafts and services. Some of these early
trade routes were along the continuation of rivers or the seacoasts and thus the transportation
opened up to the wider area. Gradually, as agriculture provided more food and made it possible
to support more people who did not farm, cities started to emerge. These large and densely
populated concentrations of people living in urban areas were typically situated in regions crucial
to transportation and commerce; they developed into markets that were highly profitable for the
specialized concentration of inhabitants. International trade grew immensely during mercantilist
period as European nations set up colonies to obtain raw materials and to gain new markets and
power worldwide. The Columbian Exchange also brought change to crops across two continents;
consuming diets and agriculture production methods. In the contemporary world, trade helps to
create a change in the production and consumption of different crops for better nutrition and food
security. When encouraging production from the basis of market requirements rather than
requirements to sustain life.
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1.1 Global agricultural trade patterns
International trade in agricultural products involves the exchange of food items between
countries and this allows countries that can produce food items cheaply to sell them in markets
where such items are required and at the same time buying items that can be produced cheaper in
other markets. These trade relationships are not static – they adapt to growth, evolution, and
change as different countries and consumers require. In its broad terms, the stylized fact is that
high income countries with scarce land and high wages import land extensive and labor-intensive
products such as bulk commodities and export processed and quality foodstuffs and livestock
respectively. While middle income countries export all sorts of foods – both bulk and processed
foods, low income export a limited number of food items that includes mostly exported cash
crops.
In more detail, the Global breadbasket such as Brazil, Argentina, and the United States supply
soybean to Asian countries to cater the increasing demand for animal feed and industrial use for
processing edible oils and meal for human consumption. Well, population, population growth,
increase in urbanization and increase in income have led to more processed foods imports and
dietary change from rice, and other grains, meats and dairy products in Southeast Asia. Food
crops export dependency of Sub-Saharan Africa has remained limited to traditional products such
as coffee, cocoa and tea for export to Europe and North America. Consumer preferences, the
access to markets that comes with trade liberalization and regionalization of trade, and
investments in transport and marketing facilities are some of the elements of external
liberalization that affect global trade fluctuations that define agricultural production incentives
globally.
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Agricultural trade enables domestic farmers and food producers gain access to global value
systems and consumers. Evaluating export earnings, lower income countries depend highly in
agricultural products with prices varying in the international market. Consuming nations are able
to have a year-round supply of foods from different seasons while at the same time, cheap
imported products can affect the livelihoods of farmers in the producing countries. Trade makes
it possible for crops, techniques, and technologies to spread around the globe thereby facilitating
productivity growth. Yet trade policies and terms should be formulated in such a way that; it
takes into consideration the efficiency of markets relative to the effects that certain policies will
have on the rural people, food security and the ability of the environment to sustain farming
activities.
1.2 Trade theories and their application to agriculture
The theories of trade which comprises of comparative advantage theory, factor endowment
theory, and new trade theory play a vital role in understanding the pattern and Flows of
agricultural trade globally. This means, based on the principle of comparative advantage, nations
focus on the production of goods in which they have greater efficiency in their production and
then exchange it with other goods. This can be applied to agriculture in that countries sell
producers’ goods that are associated with their natural resource endowment, and buy producers’
goods that are associated with high resource intensity. For instance, a country with available
arable land and a suitable climate for crop production may acquire comparative advantage for
various crop and live animal products and then sell these in exchange for buying cereals, fruits or
vegetables that require more resources per unit. The theory of Factor endowment claims that the
distribution of assets such as land, labor and capital determine the competitiveness and trade of
products such as agricultural products. Either such countries possess vast land that is suitable for
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the production of crops or they have abundant supply of farm labor and therefore become
exporters of labor-intensive crops. On the other hand, capital abundant countries can export
goods that utilize more capital such as through the use of machinery, technology and
infrastructure development in agriculture. It has been postulated by new trade theory that through
factors such as increasing returns to scale, positive network externalities among others, there are
instances when countries that are inherently agricultural can specialize in certain crops or animal
products. That is, trade provides a more extensive market for these products than could be
supported by the domestic population’s consumption level. It is therefore crucial in formulating
policies in the agricultural sector and when seeking for trade liberalization and standardization
with a view of increasing production of different crops for better nutrition and unlocking rural
livelihoods in many countries through reforms such as reducing trade barriers, setting up of
standards as well as enhancing trade related infrastructure interconnectivity.
1.3 Key international trade agreements in agriculture
The free trade has contributed greatly in the development and changes of the agriculture sector
all over the world. One of the major ones is the WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture that was
enacted during the Uruguay Round in 1995. Its ultimate goal is to change the trade in agriculture
in a way that is more favorable to developing countries by cutting subsidies for domestic support,
eliminating subsidies for export, and making markets more accessible through the cutting of
tariffs. The industrialized countries committed themselves to reducing subsidies by 20 percent
over a period of 6 years though developing countries were allowed to maintain subsidies equal to
10 percent of the production value. A significant event was the Doha Round opened in 2001 on
agriculture and development. Nevertheless, the progress has remained slow, but the members
restated their intentions of implementing the policy to foster a fair and market-driven agriculture
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sector. Even regional trade agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) influenced the movement of agricultural products among the members consisting of
United States, Canada and Mexico. Before the NAFTA’s enactment, tariffs and quotas had been
lifted from many of the agricultural products in the bloc.
Among them, one major aspect is the regulation of food safety and quality systems which are
becoming aligned across trading partners. For example, an agreement known as the Sanitary and
Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement allows members to adopt and apply measures based on scientific
evidence for the protection of health without violating the principles of the WTO. The Codex
Alimentarius Commission and World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) are some of the
bodies that set international standards on farm production, food safety testing, and their labeling.
They are involved in the management and regulation of trade and agricultural practices on a
global level. In the right implementation, it can enhance the growth of better farming technology
and nutrition-sensitive agriculture investments. However, the developing countries sometimes
they do not have technical backing as well as resources to meet such norms at a single shot.
Thus, it is evident that early trade liberalization, sufficient policy space, differentiated
timeframes and technical support are vital for trade driven agriculture growth. In the end,
however, it is the human development aspect that has to be integrated into the cooperation in
global markets, including market liberalization. Thus, in order for the overall structure of global
trade to raise all boats the principles of economic efficiency and equity must also be
incorporated.
1.4 Concepts of crop diversification and nutrition
Diversification of crops and better diets are some key components of sound agricultural practices
and Food security. Before the onset of modernization farming practices, most farming systems
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were complex and included several crops, livestock and other forms of production to minimize
risks, enhance crop and animal dietary diversity and support local ecosystems. But the present-
day agriculture has tilted towards cereal mono-products and is also highly differentiated which
has had a very bad effect on diets as well as ecosystems. Crop diversification offers solutions to
these challenges through the realizing of biodiverse production, which boosts incomes,
resilience, the fertility of the soil and sustainability of the environment. Techniques such as
growing rows of legumes within cereals rows can fix nitrogen, and the crop feeds the people in
addition. Fruit tree-based agroforestry systems with emphasis on livestock and annual’s mimic a
forest and at the same time yields diversified products. Increasing production of native grains
excluding millets and pseudo-cereals provides more options better suited to the local
environments and are traditional foods for indigenous populations that have nutritional values for
climate change. Homestead gardening increases the earnings of women farmers through sales of
food crops and ensures a steady supply of quality foods to consumers. Finally, it is important to
understand that crop diversification strategies cannot function without the proper trade and
policy environment. This entails investment in aspects such as transport to the market, storage
facilities, markets that offer reasonable prices and institutions that carry out research on new
crops or act as the source of information on sustainable production practices. Intersectoral
cooperation and coordination between various stakeholders within the food systems is required
for timely supply and distribution of diversified harvests and the nutrient rich food basket to the
target population. Sustainable production and economic, human health and environmental
considerations form the requisite frameworks which can ensure that agricultural systems can feed
the present and future population through diverse, nutritional crops.
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1.5 Historical trends in crop production and trade
The advancements in agriculture and trade have always been correlated with each other and the
two have always directly impacted each other and subsequently led to change and innovation in
crops and their availability. Initially, most agricultural productions were focused on staple cereal
crops such as wheat, rice, and corn to feed existing population. With the increase in surpluses,
there were chances for exchange; based on archeological research, staple foods were exchanged
along with other commodities like honey, spices, fruits and vegetables in early civilizations of
Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus and Egypt. Between the 9th and 14th centuries, classical medieval
globalization saw the Columbian exchange of crops between the Old World and New world
along with a diffusion of crops such as sorghum, coconut, banana and others across Afro-Eurasia
through Islamic trade and the silk route. Exploration voyages in the 15th and the 16th centuries
were also informative for introducing the intercontinental possibilities of leading money crops
such as sugarcane, tobacco, tea, coffee, cacao, and cotton. Subsequently, the imperial trading
networks’ intentionality spread these luxury crops in colonial territories within the tropic to feed
the increase in European consumption. The industrial revolution for farming and transportation
starting from the mid-19th century allowed the development of what may be truly considered a
global food system, with grain and meats from the settler colonies of America, Australia and
New Zealand feeding the rapid growing urban population and booming population of Europe.
Continued 20th century global crop research also opened the flood gates to increased production,
distribution and consumption of major grains such as wheat, rice, maize and soy. In the present
contemporary world, cooperation in international and regional trade is still regarded as being
necessary to enhance the accessibility of food and nutrition security in a world characterized by
climate change, natural disasters, conflicts, and pandemic diseases. Bettering the productivity of
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agriculture, improving the stability of local staple crops’, and making affordable the access to
better and nutritive fruits, vegetables and bio fortified crops would remain priority globally.
2. TRADE POLICIES AND CROP DIVERSIFICATION
Optimal trade policies which have the potential of improving crop diversification are known to
help significantly in improving on the nutrition status of people. Developing countries that
liberalize agricultural trade embark on a process of trade transformation where farmers start
specializing on production of export crops that have higher value than basic staple crops. Some
people have feared that this practice affects domestic food production, but it is also evident that
the income generated from cash crops helps the households buy a variety of foods. Furthermore,
effective trade policies and strategies can contribute to the enhancement of public and private
investments in transport, storage, and distribution networks that address food losses, and support
the incorporation of small farmers into value added produce chains for fresh horticultural
produce. Many works describe how increased rural wages and declined actual food costs
resulting from agricultural trade liberalization grant poor agrarian households enhanced capacity
to acquire lower quantities of diverse and better-quality food. This can help to lower
micronutrient malnutrition by a very large extent.
Particularly, a recent World Bank policy research working paper on the effect of the North
American Free Trade Agreement on rural Mexico noted greater production of non-cereal crops,
improved diet quality, and decreased rates of anemia in the rural populace, particularly among
pre-school children in low-income farm households. However, areas that continued to have crop
concentration on basic cereals realize minimal enhancements on the nutritional indicators. For
instance, while Mexico’s trade and agricultural reforms have at times been accused of
marginalizing smallholder corn farmers and producers, the nutritional benefits that come with
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increased rural revenue and dietary diversification cannot be overlooked. The governments can
come up with other social protection policies and technical assistance to support the struggling
smallholder farmers to change from the reduced value crop farming and invest more in fruit and
vegetables farming as oppose to leaving farming altogether. The public sector can also take up
the role of improving road, cold chain, irrigation infrastructure and wholesale produce markets to
support the chain proactively to enhance the flow from trade policy to crop diversification and
nutrition outcomes.
2.1 Tariffs and quotas on agricultural products
Trade barriers such as import tariffs and quotas set by countries on imported agricultural
products have implications for the kind of crops farmers decide to grow and therefore for
nutrition. Large tariffs on fruits, vegetables and other healthy produce makes it expensive for
consumers to buy these products and for producers to cultivate them. This is because the costs of
importing foods are often higher than local prices, thus making healthy foods expensive enough
to discourage people from consuming them. At the same time, domestic farmers may invest on
more hectares on staple cereal and oilseed crops which are shielded by import barriers than
invest on fruit and vegetable production, which is not shielded. The result of having these two
effects combined is a decrease in the availability and cost of various micronutrient-rich foods for
the population. Similar effects can be observed where quotas for amounts of imported
agricultural products are set at predetermined levels. Through restricting the quantity of imports
that can be brought into a country, quotas decrease the available quantity in the domestic market,
and this increases the price of the goods as well as decreasing the demand for them while also
offer little encouragement to local farmers to move to other crops and produce crops other than
what is protected by the quotas. Therefore, from nutrition point of view, lower tariffs and quotas
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are preferable so that there is easier access to greater quantities, more frequently and at
reasonable cost, more varieties of nutrient dense foods, whether imported or domestic
production. Nevertheless, governments also employ trade policy instruments for the protection of
domestic farmers and farmer’s income, for attaining food security through encouraging local
production of staple foods and for tariff revenues. Hence, achieving these objectives needs some
level of planning in terms of what tariffs rates and quota limits should be set depending on the
needs or circumstances of the countries or the crops in debate. It may be possible to justify the
ongoing subsidization of certain perennial staples to serve as a safety net for rural households,
but the variety of fruits and vegetables could still be made more accessible. Discriminatory
access to export markets can also provide incentives for countries to diversify in crop production.
In sum, more context-dependent strategy is required to identify and use trade policy tools and
mechanisms to avoid negative impacts on nutrition and crop heterogeneity.
2.2 Subsidies and their impact on crop choices
Although state sponsored subsidies and incentives to encourage growth and shield particular
domestic crops may indeed have been implemented with the noble purpose of fostering
productivity and preventing vulnerability to external shocks, such policies have several perverse
effects that work against crop diversification and better diets. Nonetheless, price support policies
whose aim is to guarantee minimum prices or purchase excess grain production compel farmers
to concentrate more on promoted staple crops. It can cause monopolies and excessive production
of staple foods such as wheat, rice, corn, and soybeans to the detriment of the growth of fruits,
vegetables and beans. For instance, in the United States, agricultural policies for many years
have promoted only two crops which are corn and soybeans. Approximately, 30-40% of the
income of the average farmer is dependent on direct governmental subsidies and reduced cost of
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insurance for such crops. This deters farmers from adopting or capitalizing time, money, people,
or equipment to cultivate a diverse array of crops. Subsidies also lead to even larger supplies of
grains, which all but puts downward pressure on market prices, thereby harming producers of
other crops in developing nations. It makes locally produced foods unprofitable and discourages
attempts at substituting imports with locally produced foods, which could be healthy, and affects
food security. Removing trade distorting domestic support and adopting market approaches for
more sustainable subsidies is a step ahead for all crops and also market regulation in nutrition-
based crops.
2.3 Non-tariff barriers and diversification incentives
Tariff and non-tariff barriers must be considered as it has important influence in a country
agriculture products export and import. Most of the developing countries depend on the export of
raw produce, particularly staple crops; they experience hazards such as price swings, climatic
variations, and variations in the terms of trade. However, crop diversification is crucial in the
fight against hunger and building resilience to climate change shocks. This has encouraged
growth of income producing crops like horticultural crops, pulses and animal source foods. By
making the different foods available domestically, improvement in the diet quality is achieved
through diversification. But most diversification initiatives in the developing countries focus on
exporting since the higher-income countries provide better and less volatile returns. Agricultural
subsidies, complex rules of origin and strict standards of measure are non-tariff barriers for the
developing countries, which are in the developed countries. For instance high compliance cost is
evident in EU vegetable exports through the stringent documentation, certification, labeling, and
traceability systems. Emerging market and developing economy competitiveness is, therefore, a
function of the ability to address these non-tariff barriers through enhancing their capabilities as
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well as rationalizing their procedures. However, diversification for domestic markets is also
crucial as well, especially if there are needs and wants for particular products in a certain
country. Some recent studies indicate that when countries participate in RTAs characterized by
low levels of intra-RTA non-tariff barriers, there is a tendency to diversify staple as well as
fruits/vegetables exported in the region. Additionally, trade policies can provide a more even
more direct encouragement to produce healthy foods because it can include export subsidies or
import taxes for inputs on particular commodities. In the end, governments must find a way to
sustain productivity increases in staple crops as they implement policies that seek to make
healthy foods cheaper and competitive – at the regional and global levels. The present discussion
underscores the fact that deliberate and well-planned trade policies and trade facilitating
incentives can be most effective in enhancing export prospects in fruits, vegetables and pulses;
simultaneously, the availability and access to these commodities in the domestic markets can be
made a reality by enhancing their consumption.
2.4 Trade facilitation measures for new crops
It will be crucial to support such policies and facilitate the trade by adopting friendly trade
policies and trade liberalization measures especially when countries are looking forward to
diversifying crops and improving nutrition outcome. Lowering the tariff and non-tariff barriers
for new climate resilient, bio fortified and high value crops may encourage more production
diversity among the farmers and at the same time allow easy access to newly developed imported
varieties and technologies. Some of the measures which need to be considered to promote trade
facilitation are; reduction of time taken to clear borders, risk-based operations, payments and
documentation, AEO schemes, and clear and standard trading procedures. WT0 Trade
Facilitation Agreement, for example, entails measures that can help to streamline customs
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procedures and integrate them into a more efficient and cooperative system. It is also necessary
to advance the quality of the testing facilities and accreditation systems at borders to avoid ad
hoc holds for new agricultural products.
In addition, policies on seed and breeding material trade, such as the modification of licensing of
imports – or phytosanitary standards conforming to international norms – engender the creation
and use of improved climate-, and nutrition-responsive crop varieties adapted to local
environments. To counter this openness, improve in quality infrastructure and conformity
assessment provides confidence to consumers as well as authorities concerning the safety of new
foods that are imported into the domestic markets. Others include the digital traceability that
involves tracking of new crops and varieties within the supply chain as well as the provision of
confidence. The trade policies and procedures will be developed through the continuous
engagement of stakeholders to enable the governments to align the trade policies and procedures
with the twin goals of transition towards biodiverse resilient production systems and the
nutritional outcomes of trade.
2.5 Case studies of trade-induced crop diversification
Trade reforms and adjustments in trade policies and practices have fostered alterations in
cropping practices and specialization in many countries. One good example is the North
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that saw more Mexicans engaging in the cultivation
of high-value export crops such as vegetables, fruits, and nuts after the implementation of
NAFTA in 1994. In a number of qualitative and quantitative analyses, the authors have
established that Mexican non-traditional horticultural exports expanded significantly to the
United States soon after NAFTA diminished agri-food trade barriers. For example, Yúnez-Naude
and Barceinas (2002) reported that the area under fruits and vegetables increased by 45. 01
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percent in the exporting states in the 1990-2000 period. They attribute this export driven
diversification into horticulture partly to the NAFTAs trade reforms. Other than emulating export
market access, foreign direct investment post-NAFTA also provided the means for increasing
Mexico’s produce industry, and in particular, the production of fruits and vegetables for the US
market; similar trade policy driven crop diversification have occurred in countries exporting to
the E. U. For instance, Swinnen et al. (2015) reveal that a number of Eastern European and
Central Asian countries experienced on-farm crop diversification as they shifted production
toward fruits and vegetables for newer and bigger imports into Europe after the breakdown of the
Iron Curtain. Also, in sub-Saharan Africa, the preferential trade access with the U. S. and E. U.
has encouraged agricultural diversification and a higher non-traditional agro-export development
such as horticulture fruits and vegetables particularly in Senegal as noted by Maertens and
Swinnen, 2015. Therefore, empirical literature from various countries across the world provide
support that decreasing barriers to high income country markets by FTAs promotes crop
diversification and horticultural exports from developing countries.
3. NUTRITIONAL IMPACTS OF TRADE-DRIVEN DIVERSIFICATION
A study of the effects of trade-related crop diversification shows that these policies can have a
great effect on the nutritional status. When countries liberalize to trade, then there is inclination
towards growing export-oriented crops and away from these traditional crops. For instance, as
many countries in the developing world complete for integration into the world economy, there
has been a shift towards some of the leading cash crops such as coffee, cocoa, rubber, fruits,
vegetables, flowers etc. This is a double-edged sword as far as nutrition is concerned. Thus,
diversification toward fruits and vegetables may enhance the accessibility of micronutrients,
vitamins, minerals, and fiber in relation to roots and tubers, which would help to address the
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problems associated with the deficiency of vitamin A and anemia. Though it may improve the
export earnings by focusing mostly on the large cash export crops, it can result in the removal of
nutrient dense foods from the diets and also have the effect of a seasonality or scarcity where
most land and labor are directed towards the production of those crops. Trade liberalisation also
always escalates imports including highly processed foods which can have negative effects on
the diets and the problems of overweight/obesity. Therefore it is crucial to consider how
production diversification affects the total supply, access, variety and intake of food across
populations. There is a strong need for policies and strategies to be implemented in order to close
the gaps and ensure that the vulnerable groups can continue to access the nutritious traditional
foods after the trade liberalization and agricultural commercialization, adequate supply of the
critical micronutrients throughout the year and prevent the highly processed unhealthy foods
from replacing the healthier whole foods in the food system. To achieve positive nutrition
outcomes, crop diversification must enhance the availability, access, utilization and consumption
of a diverse diet by farmers and consumers, especially the poor rather than simply benefiting
large export-oriented producers and global value chains. It entails linking smallholders to better
demanding domestic urban markets for a more diverse crop. This can be done by having proper
infrastructure and transport, storage and policies that would link the small producers to such
dynamic markets as well as outreach and information on the biofortified crops. Therefore, while
trade-opening has its role in encouraging agricultural diversification, there is need for support
policies in other sectors such as health, infrastructure, research and rural development to support
the production changes to ensure the diversified nutritious foods are available, accessible and
available throughout the year locally.
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3.1 Dietary diversity and nutritional outcomes
The expansion of the agriculture sector through export trade can be beneficial to the community
in that it will lead to increased availability of varied foods that are free from diseases. Increased
accessibility and price reduction of horticultural products like fruits, vegetables, animal-source
foods and bio-fortified crops has been related with increase in population population dietary
diversity. For instance, one of the significant reforms that relaxed the market in Morocco was the
liberalization of food markets, which allowed an influx of foods that were rare before such as
fruits and vegetables, nuts, seafood, among others. Thanks to this flow’s improvement, it also
stimulated the growing household consumption of those nutritious foods across all the
socioeconomic classes. Dietary diversity, accessibility and consumption that were realized
enhanced the eradication of malnutrition and anemia among mothers and children of tender age.
Al similar fashion, the diversification of horticultural and livestock exports in some sub-Saharan
African countries led to enhanced local supply chain development and access to fruits,
vegetables, meat and dairy that have positive impacts on child growth. However, there are
limitations to the market availability of foods as this is not necessarily a direct determinant of
purchases or consumption patterns due to other factors such as income poverty, cultural factors
that may limit the intake of certain foods, lack of nutrition knowledge, and gender inequalities in
terms of control over resources within households. Hence such policies as trade reforms that
include social protection programs, nutrition education, and women’s empowerment as strategies
for the vulnerable groups to obtain and consume decent nutritional food. Thus, it is postulated
that if trade- driven agricultural diversification is inclusive in its design, it can unlock pathways
to enhancing availability, affordability and consumption of diverse and nutrient dense foods –
which are essential drivers of nutrition security.
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3.2 Trade and availability of micronutrient-rich crops
Economic liberalization has fostered the accessibility and convenience of nutrient-rich
commodities in developing nations due to enhanced trade liberalization and economic growth. In
particular, a higher trade in fruits and vegetables, which are rich in micronutrients, has enhanced
the availability of nutrient-rich diets for multiple impoverished homes. A study synthesizing 155
studies based on food expenditure data from nationally representative household surveys in
different developing regions revealed that higher increasing income and urbanization driven by
trade integration have a positive and higher effect in changing consumption of micronutrient rich
produce. For instance, work done on the impact of improved incomes in rural and urban areas of
India, Uganda, and several countries in South East Asia revealed that consumers are able to buy
more fruits and vegetables containing vitamin A. Market-driven economic growth has also
enhanced transportation, handling, and delivery systems, minimizing loss and degradation to
increase the availability of fresh and healthy foods at home.
In the same regard, international and regional trade agreements have continued to contribute to
the introduction of inexpensive manufactured foods that are rich in calories, sugars, iodized salt,
and unhealthy oils. The foods replace local foods and food culture characterized by indigenous
grains and crops that are rich in micronutrients. These changes have led to the development of a
nutrition transition, whereby societies move from undernutrition to obesity through the
consumption of new imported processed foods in developing countries. However, properly
formulated trade and Agriculture policies can improve availability and cost of barrier nutrient-
dense crops through interventions like market access for producers of traditional crops and
subsidies towards sustainable production methods. Furthermore, trade policies should take into
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the account market access for the health products against public health needs while protecting the
poor ranked micronutrient-dense local crops from increased cheap processed imports.
3.3 Impact on traditional vs. non-traditional crops
Export-oriented agricultural diversification can provide diverse nutritional consequences based
on the tradition of either staple foods or non-traditional category of crops. Non traditional
agricultural exports (NtAEs) like fruits, vegetables, nuts, spices, floriculture etc have enhanced
the supply and accessibility of diverse, micro nutrient rich and quality foods. For instance the
expansion of export production crops like coffee, fruits and nuts in developing nations such as
those in South-East Asia and Latin America has led to a rise in local demand of these goods since
their prices reduce with time given the oversupply in the global market. This has increased the
diversity specifically the so-called micronutrient consumption in the form of fruits and
vegetables resulting to better health. However, this has also led to a situation where NTAEs have
been emphasized at the expense of local staple grains cultivation in certain regions. Affordability
of staple crops such as rice, wheat and maize continue to be essential in attaining the access
dimension of food security through enough calories. Reduced production of staple foods may be
a concern to the poor given that they rely on these items a lot for energy needs. Additionally,
substitution where a person consumes more fruits and vegetables, and less of other staples may
not be make up for the loss if total calorie intake is still low. Hence, high value NTAEs improve
human nutrition through micronutrients but the traditional base staples remain relevant in
meeting macronutrients requirements. Trade policymakers should therefore pursue the vision of
production diversification with the philosophy that does not harm the production of staple crops.
This may mean sustaining subsidies, supporting prices, or protecting trade in core cereal crops
even where export-led agriculture is promoted. The right formulation of trade and agriculture
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policies means that countries can optimize the global market opportunities for better nutrition
while still ensuring that there are sufficient, accessible and affordable staple foods.
3.4 Global value chains and nutrient preservation
The effect of trade, agricultural diversification and participation in global value chains on
Nutrition is not easily determinable due to the mixed effect it has on the human body. On one
hand, market access to high value international markets provides producers with c incentives and
income to shift from staple cereals to more nutritious and quality horticulture produce such as
fruits, vegetables and pulses. The observation made by the evidence is that engaging in the
supermarket channels enhances the access and do-ability of cross-sectional, micronutrient-dense
produce among both farm households in rural areas and consumers in urban areas. For instance,
surveys that examined the Kenyan domestic horticulture industry revealed that contract farmers
growing crops for export markets produced more vitamin A dense kale and OFSP through
contract farming for both market and own consumption. Concurrently, integration into GVCs
brings with its standards of shelf life, appearance, size and homogeneity that are advantageous to
capital-intensive large-scale producers and can lead to the loss of sizable portions of perishable
nutritious produce such as green leafy vegetables, fruits and vegetables in the GVCs.
Refrigerated storage, transport and packaging that delays respiration, ethylene formation,
moisture loss and mechanical damage, microbial contamination and nutrient leaching are some
other important factors to avoid vitamin and mineral losses in horticultural products in
procurement chains across the globe for fresh and lightly processed products. If proper post-
harvest handling is not practiced, the loss of nutrients negates the potential diversification in diet
and food quality in developing countries that can be achieved through trade driven agricultural
diversification in the absence of proper cold chain networks and logistical support. Cognitive
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learning and capacity enhancement directed towards nutrient retention technologies such as cool
temperatures, barrier layers, and hygiene within the commoditized agriculture trade and
modernization initiatives can ensure that improved health maximization returns on high-quality
horticultural market access for both producers and consumers in developing nations.
3.5 Trade's role in addressing malnutrition
Trade can serve as an effective weapon against malnutrition by increasing the availability of
more and varied foods as a result of diversified production and trade. Market access and demand
promotion activities that enable farmers in developing countries to diversify their production
portfolios and expand their trading horizons can encourage producers to produce and sell a
variety of crops including fruits, vegetables, pulses, and biofortified staple crops. For instance,
export markets that offer high values for their produce and specialty domestic markets are
enabling smallholder farmers to move away from producing staple cereals to more health edible
horticulture crops. Trade-related structural diversification and development of value chains can
also support increased production of livestock and aquaculture which are source of protein and
micronutrient’s missing in diets. It is further refined through the trade corridor development
which helps smallholders farmers to gain access to regional and global value chains through
easing barriers to trade that promotes availability, affordability and consumption of more diverse
and nutritious foods. On the other hand, policies promoting better compliance with food quality
safety and nutritional standards in production and supply chain globally would go a long way in
encouraging production of better and healthy foods. In conclusion, it is possible to find that
carefully designed trade and agricultural policies can rely upon market indications to shift the
existing food systems from dependence on staple crops and to provide sufficient, nutrient-rich,
and diverse diets. Nutritional dimensions need to be brought into trade policy decision-making
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process in order to ensure that trade leads to improved access to healthy and affordable foods and
supports food system change.
4. ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS
Despite all these, trade has the capability to directly influence crop diversification and improve
food nutrition; this is however weighed against by several environmental and socioeconomic
factors. In the production stage crop diversification can help to improve the health of the soil and
fertility because crops have different nutrient requirements, disrupt disease cycles and in many
situations increase the productivity when done through intercropping per unit area. This
decreases chemical input over monocultures making the soils, water and ecosystem to be healthy.
Nevertheless, if conversing was not done in the correct manner of crop rotation, then
diversification could cause the loss of some nutrients in the soil. Market demand is also a
determinant of the degree of diversification which farmers will undertake – new value chains
will go for products that already have markets that are developed, and the costs of the inputs
required to produce the commodity are cheap. Some opportunities exist in the form of processing
and storage that may help in minimizing waste but energy consumption and plastic waste are
possibly made.
In terms of its socioeconomic value, diversified and nutrient dense crops which are relatively
expensive assets can enhance farmer income through product quality, but this is limited by
markets access. The capital-intensity of the inputs, the absence of infrastructure and cold storage,
and affordability of the inputs and credit is likely to limit smallholder participation or capture of
the full value. Another reason for focusing on supply-side risk management for food safety is
that building farmer cooperatives in developing countries allows farmers to pool their resources
collectively to address evolving quality standards. Regional trade offers occasions of income
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from extra produce production and off seasons, thus improving food and nutrition security. Yet,
women, who are involved in food production most of the time, do not legally have full access to
land, which creates disincentives in terms of long-term investment in management of the land to
support diverse cropping patterns. Availability and cost factors determine the extent to which
communities receiving staple foods such as white rice or wheat flour enhance their diet.
Therefore, policies aimed at market development that ensures sustainable farmer/trader-food
processor-retailer-consumer linkages remain central to any reasonable progress towards
realization of diversification agendas as informed by enlightened policies in areas of financing,
infrastructure including storage and appropriate land rights.
4.1 Biodiversity and ecosystem services
There is common understanding of the fact that diversity in ecosystems is connected to the
variety in regards to the functions, goods, and services that the ecosystems provide. Crop
diversification – growing a diverse range of crops as opposed to the singular monoculture crop –
supports the natural ecosystem functions and their stability including nutrient cycling, pest and
disease regulation, pollination, and buffering against extreme weather conditions and
environmental fluctuations. Diversifying crops also helps avert climate change effects through
increased ecosystem carbon storage capacity. Diversified trading systems have the potential to
support a variety of crops, diversified diets and multiple health benefits. However,
socioeconomic drivers can suppress these favorable ecological interactions; the expansion of
food chains erases local and diverse agricultural production system; homogeneity, specialized
and large scale production replaces diverse crop production system globally. What ecosystem
approaches which attempt to balance productivity and conservation of biological diversity can do
this. For instance, sustainable productive landscapes support a relatively high biological diversity
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and ecosystem activity, and yield socio-economic products – healthy food, energy, and income.
Conservation agriculture practices involve adding components of natural structures to the
farming structures; this increases the ground and aerial diversity and nutrient cycling, pest
control and Climate. Thus, the loss of species and ecosystems must be addressed through
corporate and public policies, and trading systems that re-establish the ecological and social
integrity of markets by increasing the availability of information, the adoption of standards and
certifications, payments for ecosystem services, or by circular economic evaluations of external
costs. For example, aligning of the measures with regard to biodiversity goals and BIA with
measures of nutrition and food security can create models for sustainable crop diversification
where socioeconomic and ecological advantages are mutually reinforcing. Therefore, the inter-
connectedness of the effects of the elements of biodiversity on ecosystem functions and the
provision of ecosystem services positions biodiversity at the core of sustainable agroecological
and nutritious food production systems.
4.2 Climate change resilience through diversification
Crop diversification has therefore been adopted as one of the main strategies taken to enhance
climate change resilience in agriculture production systems. These include diversifying the crops
that are grown in a particular area since this will ensure that farmers do not get severely affected
by climatic changes because they will always have crops that can be grown regardless of the
prevailing weather conditions. On the same note, diversification is also important to farmers
because it allows them to effectively harness opportunities in the domestic and export markets.
Socioeconomically crop diversification offers nutritional diversity, managing economic hazard of
unpredictability in environmental conditions through growth of crops suitable for changed
environment ( Vermeulen et al. , 2012). The expansion effects that export crop diversification
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trade liberalisation policies may have on these resilience benefits may apply at the regional level
as well.
For instance, where climate change is leading to a rise in cases of drought, growing crops that are
drought resistant alongside crops that require water in areas that experience increased drought
serves as a form of climate resilience. The crops let farmers generate income and food even
when there is little rainfall, thus protecting incomes and livelihoods against climatic risks such as
droughts. More than just offering value addition to staple cereal production through pulses,
fruits, and vegetables which are more climate resilient, diversification gives the consumers and
population nutritional diversity. Such strategies facilitate sustained production and enterprise in
rural livelihoods in the face of climate challenges. On the other hand, appropriate trade policies
foster diversifying farmers in accessing other markets both nationally and internationally to
enjoy economic returns from other products that may suit consumers’ changing tastes and
preferences in value chains.
Therefore, increased facilitated trade of a diversity of crops that are suited for specific climate
change impacts on weather ultimately enhances the robustness of agricultural systems to weather
volatility. Policies that encourage diversification in crops and market access for a healthy stock
of climate resilient crops will go a long way in responding to climate risks hence attaining the
goal of sustainable rural development. Crop diversification is thus another realistic climate
adaptation strategy that also leverages on trade globalization for socioeconomic disruption.
4.3 Income effects for smallholder farmers
Liberalization trade policies that encourage crop diversification are likely to generate meaningful
impacts in specific income for smallholder farmers in developing countries. Several developing
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countries have demonstrated that by offering incentives to small farmers to produce non-staple
commodities such as horticultural products like fruits and vegetables, significant improvements
in earnings can be realized by smallholder farmers. The study carried out in Kenya showed that
farm households, which derived over 80 per cent of their income from export vegetable
production, generated five times as much income as the more conventional type of smallholder
maize-farming operation. Besides income level impacts, trade-driven diversification also has
positive effects that further stabilise and lower income variability for small farms. Cultivating a
larger number of crops reduces the number of production losses due to weather conditions and
pests compared to the mono-crop production system, which results in less fluctuation in the
annual income. Exporting through value chains also enhance credit and insurance that ease
consumption and provide a hedge against income volatility among the small farm holders. From
an economic point of view, increased and more predictable farm incomes benefit other
development indicators among them being smallholder farmers. Higher incomes cause higher
spending on food, health, and education, which results in enhanced nutrition and human capital
in farming agro-families. There are also significant qualitative effects, particularly in so far as
gender differences are concerned; diversification towards high value horticultural crops offers
significant income earning prospects to female farmers in the vicinity of production locations,
understanding the income and risk implications related to policies and trade regimes that
promote crop diversification is a critical component of informing debates on how to enhance
food insecure, smallholder farmer incomes through greater market integration in development
contexts. Nevertheless, realizing these positive small farm income effects does entail overcoming
some enduring constraints that include: market conditions that limit access to productive inputs,
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credit, transportation infrastructure and ability to meet high quality standards - all of which
remain significant impediments to smallholder participation in high value agricultural trade.
4.4 Gender dimensions of crop diversification
Crop diversification has different effects in terms of socioeconomic in regard to gender. Positive
relationship between yield heterogeneity and women farmers: A study shows that yield
heterogeneity is particularly more advantageous to women farmers because they are able to gain
more access to the nutritious crops for home use as well as market sale. However, gender norms
that favor the male-dominated system restrict women’s autonomy in decision making as well as
access to resources such as land, credit and extension services in agriculture. This limits their
abilities to embrace new crops and farming practices. We also established that female farmers
practiced crop diversity by managing 9% less plots than male farmers in the same village based
on a cross-village survey conducted by IFPRI in 2019. As shown by the qualitative data, negative
social perceptions of women who were seen as having no interest or desire to engage in farming
activities were seen as influential factors, this along with time poverty that resulted from
women’s domestic workload. It is hence important to incorporate gender factors into policies and
activities regarding crop diversification and nutrition. It has been determined that measures to
develop women farmers’ capacities, to demystify access to inputs and services as well as through
female extension agents, to support women farmer organizations, and to encourage joint decision
making have been effective in addressing barriers that are due to gender. The changes in gender
roles of men, women, and children in each of the livestock rearing, food processing, and
preparation should also be considered. In Guatemala, through the provision of the USAID
project, nutrition education programs were tailored for mothers and grandmothers based on the
fact that they are usually responsible for preparing meals for the family. This kind of
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multidimensional interventions with gender at their focal point can set the wheels of innovation
rolling to garner the linkages between crop diversification, food and nutrition security for
women, poverty reduction and women’s economic and social empowerment.
4.5 Land use changes and sustainability
These changes in the land use are central to the conception of agricultural trade and crops, and
contain profound implications for the ecological balance and the welfare of people and indeed
where global trade networks and commodity crops grow large, large changes in land use emerge
that affect our soils, our species, and ecosystem services. For instance, replacement of varied
local ecosystems and traditional food baskets with large-scale production of traded cereals and
oil crops has been associated with top soil erosion, increased application of pesticides/fertilizers,
agro-landscape simplification, and declining wildlife. These environmental changes are thus
considered to have negative effects on sustainability of the agroecosystems. They also affect the
sustenance of rural people and their food intake by reducing the agrobiodiversity, crop genetic
resources, and farming technologies that have been in use for several years. Vulnerability is
experienced in social and economic domains as well after ecosystem degradation, which is not
good for the communities involved. It is sad that many rural areas are leaving the diverse
cropping techniques that help them and the environment to be more balanced. Instead, rent-
seeking, through the simplification of production of one or two global commodities and their
export has taken root in the local use of land and food systems, and the associated impacts are
not only nutritionally detrimental but also environmentally unsustainable. Such an approach, the
shift from the current trend that leads to the concentration of farming into large scale commercial
production, can enhance on-farm crop diversity that supports agroecological sustainability and
nutritional adequacy at the same time. Agrobiodiverse systems improve the fertility of soils and
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their natural pest control mechanisms while offering diverse and nutritionally rich foods. Trade
policy and planning has to respond to externalities associated with agricultural land use which
was primarily converted for export commodity production. In collaboration with crop calendar
and crop diversification, a broader trading system can bring income without compromising
production sustainable and nutritional value. Eradicating overspecialization, however, needs
anticipative policy to save agrobiodiversity in regions and promote crop diversely mixes that
help enhance resilience. Thus, through strategic approach and the signals provided by the
ecological economics, trade can enhance livelihoods, and at the same time enhance the land-use
heterogeneity which is fundamental to sustainable food production and rural nutritional
adequacy.
5. FUTURE DIRECTIONS AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS
As the literature on trade, crop diversification, and nutrition gains more evidence, several policy
implications and future research direction can be highlighted. First, more studies should look into
what policies are beneficial when the focus is on supporting staple commodity production while
at the same time providing incentives for diversified production of fruits, vegetables and
biofortified crops through both market signals and regulation. Managing this balance remains
important because many developing countries remain in the undernutrition world, while being
unable to compete internationally in various nutrition-improving crops and in fact, one important
category of knowledge for economists is how trade and related policies might alter incentives
and improve competitiveness.
Second, there is a need to conduct distributional analyses of the nutritional effects of
liberalization, trade expansion, and diversification. The fact is that if the total production and the
availability of a variety of foods rich in nutrients increase, the problem is still insufficient at least
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in the means of acquiring these products for the needy population with low purchasing
capacities. Trade and diversification processes should be further explored by researchers to see
how it interacts with pro-poor policies, social protection and support for women in smallholder
farming to promote improved nutrition. Such research should feed into policy making that
synchronously utilizes trade, domestic regulation, income support measures and investments in
rural infrastructure aimed at increasing production diversity and access to nutrition.
There is a potential for policy work to enhance the incorporation of nutritional considerations in
trade arrangements and liberalization. With trade as a determinant becoming more important, it is
crucial to push for norms and rules that would encourage production diversification, increased
adoption of biofortified crops and consumer awareness of healthy diets. Trade policy dialogue
should also include germplasm exchange technologies and innovations of diverse resilient
systems for improved nutrition. All this integrated trade and nutrition policy cooperation and
capacity building might stem from current REC’s or South-South cooperation. Collectively, these
proposed future research and policy directions underscore the importance of understanding and
advocating for improved nutrition in ways that are integrated into the discussion of trade and
markets, not as an afterthought or issue that requires separate consideration.
5.1 Emerging markets and changing consumer preferences
The increase in income levels in the emerging markets is leading to a change in demand patterns
where there is an inclination towards higher valued and processed foods. There is a clamor for
more meat, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, and packaged foods given the growing middle-
income consumers in countries such as China, India, and Nigeria. For instance, in India, the
consumption of dairy products per head of population has risen from 60 gm in 1980 to around
120 gm in 2009. There has been a shift in trends with customers placing a higher value on food
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quality, safety, sustainability and healthy living. The consumer also desires convenience, health,
taste and quality in their food that should be made through sustainable means only. These shifts
in emerging markets are also being driven by e-commerce and modern retail. The rate at which
people are doing their grocery shopping online is increasing at a rate of over 20% annually in
China as the use of digital platforms makes the access to more options available. Policy makers
should therefore take into account these demand-side changes when pulling out measures that
seek to foster diversification of crops for improved nutrition via agricultural trade policies. While
there is a need to encourage exports of traditional bulk products, there is also the need to shift to
product differentiation through high value horticulture, livestock and aquaculture exports that
will meet income elasticity demands. It can offer tariff concessions to Pakistan, export incentives
and technical support to farmers who are changing over to these crops. Import policies should be
developed taking into consideration the need to satisfy consumer demands for variety, safety and
environmentally friendly products while at the same time consider the domestic production
agendas. For instance, reduction of restrictions on importation of fruits during off seasons can
offer a rich diversity of food products without necessarily countering the local producers. With
existing and emerging modern retail, policies should ensure smallholder farmers’ inclusion into
contract farming to access private standards. Finally, by ensuring that the trade policies
correspond to the new market trend in consumption, the governments can catalyze diversification
and availability of healthy food options in the agricultural sector.
5.2 Technology and innovation in diversified agriculture
With the emphasis on increasing the share of agricultural production and enhancing the quality
of consumed food and feeding, technology and innovation will be the key enablers of sustainable
efficiency and climate smartness. Computer AI, big data, satellite imagery, and genomics can
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increase performance, output, and ‘bionic’ sustainability in diversified crop production systems
for cereals, pulses, fruits, and vegetables. For example, intelligent farming with the help of AI
and big data in precision crop farming can help in variable rate application for each crop, and
drones and satellites in early disease detection and precision scouting for intervention. Likewise,
local breeding can be accelerated through genomic tools to develop and release higher yielding
and biofortified crops that are well adapted to specific environments. For the efficient
development and deployment of technology and to encourage innovations in its wider
acceptances, there is a dire need for supportive policies and institutions for the deployment of
technology, transfer of technology and development of research and development capabilities.
Public and private sectors must be encouraged to invest in agricultural R&D, access and
adoption should be supported through incentives, subsidies and or/financial instruments and
foundational infrastructure on connectivity, electricity, storage, and transport, among others,
should be made available to address challenges of technology use by smallholder farmers.
However, practical applications, again through technology and knowledge transfer through
international participation and multiple stake holders in different research institutions, private
sector as well as civil society is very important for developing appropriate solutions for specific
contexts. Sound policies and linkages thus constitute a critical element of solutions in supporting
technological capacity for the long-term and mutually reinforcing goals of increasing production
of diverse and nutritious foods, strengthening food value systems, increasing availability of a
wide array of healthy foods all year round, improving incomes of farmers, and ultimately
nutrition status.
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5.3 Trade policies for promoting nutritious crops
While globalization brings economic prosperity, malnutrition rates are still high, and authorities
must determine how trade can encourage the production of micronutrient-rich
crops. International Trade Liberalization has increased the availability of calories, but not
necessarily the nutritional balance, therefore, it is required to adopt new trade policies to
reintroduce competitive markets for nutrient-rich crops. These could be public procurement
programs, protectionism in the form of tariffs and quotas on the import of non-nutritious crops
that otherwise cannot compete in the home market, bans on the export of crops that are grown
solely for use in energy or manufacture, and certification programs to assist the nutritious crops
to command premium prices. such interventions may appear as reestablishing protectionism or
reverting to the government’s interference, but some protectionism and government involvement
may ensure public health. For example, the Indian government has established minimum support
price mechanisms for pulses and millets to increase domestic supply of these healthy yet
traditionally non-commercial crops. Likewise, changes in trade policies and practices might
diminish margins on calorie-dense, nutrient-poor commodity crops by decreasing subsides for
agricultural inputs. The savings could support the promotion of nutritious crops through the
development of better seeds and enhanced soil management practices. Governments should
engage relevant players in the industry to address nutrition-sensitive value chain for perishable
fruits, vegetables, and animal source foods. cold storage, refrigerated transport and processing
infrastructure is important for reducing post-harvest losses and for small farmers to get access to
long distance markets in urban areas. In addition to infrastructure, the smallholder farmers
require training on post-harvest handling and management as well as the market information
systems that contain information on timely prices, transport routes and food hygiene laws. There
is limited information available with small farmers, meaning that the bargaining power is tilted in
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favor of middlemen – something that effective trade policies and collaboration with private
sector can fix. Trade interventions however cannot, on their own, initiate changes in food
systems but in concert with a range of nutrition policy interventions, trade policies have the
capacity to reshape incentives that are currently confronting farmers and consumers with respect
to available sources of foods.
5.4 Balancing food security, nutrition and trade objectives
As nations begin creating policies and programs to address food insecurity, malnutrition, and
trade performance, choices have to be made on which of these problems are most important and
if solving one will also solve another. This is because there is an ongoing policy conflict between
two goals; the efforts to increase production of staple cereal crops in order to meet the set food
balance in order to allow the country to feed itself on one hand and the need to divert resources
to encourage production of diverse and healthy foods such as fruits, vegetables and legumes on
the other. Thus, nutrition-sensitive value chains for non-cereal crops may bring benefits both for
smallholder farmers and consumers and have a positive impact on food accessibility, but they
need long investment horizons and may negatively affect the food access in the short run. In the
area of trade, governments also have to make choices between subsidizing commodities and
services, investing in infrastructure and providing extension services and safety nets and fiscal
balances. Sustained precision of interventions and improvement on the regional integration to
facilitate countries to produce what they indeed have an edge in can mitigate such tensions. More
efforts could be brought by advance in technology, novel financial instruments, cross-sector
collaborations, and South-South cooperation to enhance nutrition-sensitive value chain
development for diversified production systems that are sustainable for trade. Achieving these
objectives poses a challenge to leaders so as to pursue them without deepening disparities in
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access to adequate diet. Meaningful indicators for food security, nutrition and trade,
accompanied by clear monitoring frameworks, can provide the basis for measuring the impact of
changes in policies in real time. Lasting change solutions are best implemented with a cross-
cutting approach that will be consistent with the sustainable development goals; this way
countries can actually work on the promotion of economic, social and environmental goals all at
once.
5.5 International cooperation for sustainable diversification
In the context of current global challenges in ensuring access to food and adequate nutrition,
further sustainable crop diversification through international trade and cooperation becomes the
discourse for development. Mixed production enterprises involving all classes of crops,
particularly horticultural crops and bio-fortified crops can improve the nutritional quality and
food security. However, transition requires significant capital commitments and cooperation for
smallholder farmers who constitute most growers in the nutrition-sensitive areas but have low
ability to absorb risks. The need for a closer cooperation with the international community and
more concessional sources of funding is acutely felt to advance diversification efforts.
Development agencies need to focus on long-term initiatives supporting technology interventions
and physical connectivity required for dynamic high-value horticultural trade. PTAs to encourage
import/export of health foods while protecting the livelihoods will facilitate vulnerable countries
to address domestic nutritional requirements and also have gains in their engagement in
international GVCs. The agreements on the regional economic communities could enable the
adoption of harmonized standards and minimization of the non-tariff barriers to fortify the intra-
regional flow of the agricultural products. Apart from production, it is crucial to put in place
sufficient cold chain, storage, and transport infrastructure via PPP investments, which will curb
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post-harvest losses, preserve quality and facilitate smallholder marketing to distant urban
consumption centers. While trade has the potential of diversification with resultant nutritional
benefits, there are other negative externalities which must be guarded against: unfair distribution
of value added, potential health hazards consequent on increased use of chemicals for enhanced
yields, threats of development of mono crop systems that are unhealthy for the soil and
displacement of rural populations from land grabbed for export crops. As articulated by the UN,
deliberate diversification processes coordinated globally, if priority is given to nutrition,
environment and social needs, can be effective strategies for sustainable eradication of
malnutrition.
