Improving Smallholder Navel Orange Farmers Participation in Agricultural Supply Chain: Perceptions from the Officials and Intermediaries in Gannan, China

บทคัดย่อ

The fact that smallholder farmers are not well-structured and well-organized in the agricultural  supply chain is well-known. An effort to better understand how to improve smallholder farmers’ participation in the agricultural supply chain is an effective approach to increasing their farm income and optimizing the supply chain. Hence, the present study was aimed at developing countermeasures on how to integrate smallholder farmers into the agricultural supply chain. The study employed questionnaires to collect survey data from the officials and intermediaries in Gannan—a region with the highest navel orange production in China. Their concerns and suggestions were assessed with the t-test, providing a thematic summary of the differences in their perceptions. The results of the study revealed the levels of intermediaries’ and officials’ agreements on the survey items. The intermediaries were much more concerned about the product quality issues while the government officials tended to focus on the recommendations to provide better infrastructure services and brand building to support the Gannan navel orange industry development. Through the analysis of the results, some of the future policy implications relating to the research issue were propounded.