Towards a sustainable approach to clustering small-scale farmers to market their agricultural produce

The University of the Philippines Mindanao and Curtin University have been organising small-scale vegetable farmers in Mindanao into cluster marketing groups to improve their access to markets and returns from the sale of their vegetable products using the 8-Step Clustering Approach for Agroenterprise Development developed by the Catholic Relief Services (Philippines). This paper reports on an action research investigation with around 30 marketing clusters. Cluster marketing has led to: better and wider market access, improved prices, reduced costs, improved human capital and social capital, and higher incomes. However, the current process may not lead to sustainable cluster marketing without support and may lead to dependency. This paper discusses strategies to overcome key challenges identified and deficiencies in the current process and suggests changes to the 8-step process so that it may improve the chances of cluster success and sustainability

Clusters and networks as enablers of product and process innovation

One of the strategies adopted in the Philippines to facilitate a more consistent supply of good quality vegetables from smallholder farmers is the clustering approach, whereby a small group or cluster of smallholder farmers is organized to deliver a pre-determined amount of produce to a focal customer (CRS-Philippines, 2007). Developed from the CIAT Territorial Approach, the CRS Eight Step Clustering Approach for Agro-enterprise Development employs a participatory action learning process, where the cluster members proactively plan their production to meet the specifc quality and delivery requirements of their focal customer. The clustering approach is a strategy which allows smallholder farmers to access higher value chains. Evidence is provided to demonstrate how several of the clusters facilitated have utilised the skills and knowledge acquired in servicing their focal customer to develop new products for new markets, to adopt alternative low cost systems of production to reduce their reliance on external inputs, to reduce postharvest losses and product deterioration through improved packaging, to improve access to low cost community-based loans and to take advantage of local and national government grants that provide production inputs and support the development of community-based infrastructure projects