South African Farmers’ Perceptions of the Benefits and Costs of Complying with EUREPGAP to Export Fresh Citrus to the European Union (EU)

A representative stratified random sample of 100 South African farmers from across all production regions that export fresh citrus to the EU were surveyed during 2007-2008 to document their perceptions of the benefits and costs of complying with EUREPGAP standards on citrus exports. Principal Component Analysis identified six broad dimensions of internal benefits as improved operating/technical performance; regulations compliance and intra-business benefits; gains in competitiveness; regulations compliance and new market access; benefits from existing markets; and to overcome non-tariff barriers to entry. Two further dimensions of supply chain benefits identified by PCA were improved business working relationship and product quality benefits, and improved cooperation and contractual benefits. The sampled growers thus perceive operational, technical, safety, management, monetary, marketing and supply chain benefits from certification. The major costs of implementing EUREPGAP certification related to initial investment costs and the recurrent annual costs of compliance. The respondents, on average, spent R70510 on initial compliance costs, mainly for infrastructure, additional buildings and employees training. Some 60% of respondents spent less than 1% of annual farm turnover on initial compliance costs, while most of the respondents (84%) spent less than 1% of annual farm turnover on recurrent costs of compliance. Growers that owned a pack-house had statistically significantly higher initial and annual costs of compliance. The intra- and inter-firm benefits and costs of compliance identified by these results indicate factors that policymakers, and the Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa, can focus on to improve the competitiveness of SA fresh citrus exports to the EU.South African fresh citrus exports, European Union, perceived benefits and costs, EUREPGAP compliance, Farm Management,

SUGARCANE GROWERS' PERCEPTIONS OF A GRADUATED MORTGAGE LOAN REPAYMENT SCHEME TO BUY FARMLAND IN KWAZULU-NATAL, SOUTH AFRICA

A survey of 88 medium-scale sugarcane farmers (MSFs) using this scheme in 2001 shows that most MSFs would opt to first rent land before purchasing, and recognize that annual returns to land are low relative to land value. Most MSFs view long-term sugarcane supply agreements as a constraint on enterprise diversification, and consider that the quality of mentorship currently received was not satisfactory. Industry players could leverage international donor funding for empowerment projects to improve the quality of mentorship programs. Client service can be improved be better clarifying the structure of the graduated repayments, sending loan statements on time, and helping clients to interpret loan statements. There is also a new commercial opportunity to act as a co-ordinator to monitor and improve the MSFs' financial performance. Using an independent farm valuer would avoid perceptions of bias in the valuations of farms offered for sale in later rounds of the scheme. Options to improve client liquidity in later rounds include requiring larger equity down payments, choosing buyers with substantive off-farm income, and renting before buying. Younger potential clients with less liquidity and less farming experience are likely to choose the latter.Agricultural Finance,

Owners' perceptions of factors that constrain the survival and growth of small, medium and micro agribusinesses in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Public and private sector institutions in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa (SA) can identify policies and strategies to increase the survival and growth rates of small, medium and micro-enterprise (SMME) agribusinesses if they have more information about the factors that constrain business performance. The sustained growth of these SMMEs could, in turn, help to reduce poverty, income inequality and unemployment problems in the province. The owners of 44 agribusiness SMMEs in a stratified random sample of Ithala Development Finance Corporation clients in KZN were, therefore, surveyed during October 2003 and January 2004 to identify what factors they perceive constrain business survival and growth. The respondents identified eight dimensions of constraints, namely: a lack of access to services; funding constraints at start-up; lack of management capacity in the enterprise; access to tender contracts; compliance costs associated with VAT and labour legislation; liquidity stress; lack of collateral; and lack of institutional support. The provision of appropriate infrastructure and training, development of innovative loan products, and policies to reduce the cost of compliance with legislation affecting agribusiness SMMEs are some possible solutions to help deal with these constraints.Agribusiness,

Improving working relationships for smallholder farmers in formal organic crop supply chains: Evidence from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The 48 members of the Ezemvelo Farmers' Organisation (EFO) in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (SA), that are fully-certified as organic farmers were surveyed in October-December 2004 to assess their perceived levels of satisfaction, trust, cooperation and commitment in a formal supply chain producing amadhumbes (a traditional vegetable tuber), potatoes and sweet potatoes for a major SA supermarket group. Empirical recursive models show that a high level of satisfaction in the working relationship results in these farmers trusting the pack-house agent more. High levels of trust, in turn, lead to higher levels of both commitment to, and cooperation in, the supply chain. A simultaneous-equation model showed that EFO members with higher levels of commitment tend to be more cooperative, and that members with higher levels of cooperation tend to be more committed toward the working relationship. These results suggest that strategies to improve the working relationship with the pack-house agent need to promote satisfaction, trust, cooperation and commitment. For example, co-investment in better crop storage facilities at farm-level would promote satisfaction and hence trust. There is also scope for more cooperation in the planning of new organic crop products to grow and market, and to remove some price uncertainty by giving EFO farmers more information about prices that they will be paid by the pack-house in this supply chain.Industrial Organization,

The effects of entrepreneurial quality on the success of small, medium and micro agri-businesses in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

This paper estimates a logit model of the effects of entrepreneurial quality on business success in a stratified random sample of 44 small, medium and micro enterprise (SMME) agribusiness owners financed by Ithala Development Finance Corporation, using loan repayment as a proxy for success. These owners were surveyed during October 2003-February 2004 and asked to score four components of entrepreneurial quality identified by Guzman and Santos (2001): preference for working as self-employed, motivation type, energizer behaviours, and personal and external factors. The results show that strong energizer behaviours (such as current and planned business expansion and staff training), more business experience, and family assistance to become an entrepreneur, promote loan repayment, while lack of access to electricity (proxy for lack of access to services) negatively affects loan repayment. Policymakers and public and private financial institutions could give more attention to these factors when implementing policies to promote access to finance by, and the growth of, agribusiness SMMEs.Agribusiness,

Impact on South African meat demand of a possible free trade agreement with the European Union

The Rotterdam model is used to estimate a demand system for South African (SA) beef, chicken, mutton and pork during 1971-1995 and identify the potential impacts on demand for these meat types of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between SA and the European Union. Conditional cross-price Slutsky elasticity estimates show that for a given 1% change in each meat price under an FTA, the beef price change would have the largest impact on consumption of the other meats. The net effect of the FTA would depend on the extent to which different meat prices fall if meat imports increase. Import competition may be felt particularly from poultry imports as most of SA beef imports are of a low quality.International Relations/Trade, Livestock Production/Industries,

Assessing the efficacy of a South African microlender's loan screening mechanism

Bivariate probit analysis was used to assess the efficacy of a South African microlender’s loan screening process. This micro-lender grants short-term cash loans to individuals who are employed and earning a fixed salary. Loan applicants with more stable incomes, who are contactable via telephone or post, who are employed in less risky business sectors, who have more disposable income relative to debt, and who have had a good credit history with other lenders, are more likely to be accepted. None of the factors with a significant effect on the loan screening decision could explain subsequent loan default by accepted applicants. The microlender may have screened out very risky clients and accepted a riskier, profitable pool of loan applicants with risk being controlled through effective monitoring. This is important where tangible collateral is unavailable and where the risk must be acceptable to commercial lenders wanting to link up with profitable micro-lenders.Financial Economics,

Efficacy of collateral types used by financial intermediaries in KwaZulu-Natal

Collateral is an important incentive device used by lenders to encourage loan repayment. However, collateral must have secure and transferable title, it must be marketable, have low lender liquidation costs and lenders must be able to attach the collateral. Study results for rural and micro-enterprise finance institutions in KwaZulu-Natal showed that assets such as vehicles and equipment were not effective as collateral due to high costs in attaching the asset. Cessions on crops were often constrained by flaws in collection mechanisms. Secure and transferable property rights were important preconditions for land to have value as collateral. Collateral substitutes such as joint liability mechanisms were less effective when lending to large farmer groups (30-60 members) compared with small groups (4-6 individuals) of micro-entrepreneurs operating in urban areas.Agricultural Finance,

Loan products to manage liquidity stress when broad-based black empowerment enterprises invest in productive assets

Investments in productive assets by broad-based black economic empowerment (BEE) enterprises in South Africa (SA) during the 1990s have been constrained, in part, by a lack of access to capital. Even if capital can be sourced, BEE businesses often face a liquidity problem, as conventional, equally amortized loan repayment plans do not take into account the size and timing of investment returns, or there are lags in the adjustment of management to such new investments. This paper describes five alternative loan products to the conventional equally amortized loan: the single payment non-amortized loan; the decreasing payment loan; the partial payment loan; the graduated payment loan; and the deferred payment loan. Recent SA experience with the graduated payment loan and the deferred payment loan suggests that there is scope to alleviate the liquidity problem if a wholesaler of funds can offer such terms to private banks and venture capital investors who then on-lend to finance BEE asset investments that are otherwise considered relatively high credit risks. This would shift the liquidity problem away from the client to the wholesaler of the funds, but requires access to capital at favourable interest rates. Such capital could be sourced from empowerment funds earmarked by the private sector, donors and government.Financial Economics,

Improving the provision of financial services to micro-entrepreneurs, emerging farmers and agribusiness: Lessons from Kwazulu-Natal

Three development finance institutions (DFIs) which operate in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province were assessed in 1996/97 to see how they could improve financial viability and outreach to emerging farmers, agribusiness and micro-entrepreneurs. Improved service quality and emphasis on mobilising savings would help clients and enable the DFIs to diversify their portfolios. Better access to branches and lower loan approval times (improved screening and administrative procedures) could also lower client transaction costs. Charging a suitable interest rate spread is necessary but not sufficient for lenders to achieve subsidy independence. Reducing arrears through stricter loan contract enforcement (borrower accountability for loan repayment, lower collateral specific risks, secure and transferable collateral) will also promote financial viability. Providing both savings and loan services together would reduce borrower access costs, and allow savings to serve as a form of collateral and borrower information for lenders.Agricultural Finance,