Potato Contract Farming: Prospects and Challenges in Gujarat, India

Gujarat is known for its French fries potatoes in India. This state is number one in potato productivity. It provides an amicable business environment for producers and processors for contract farming. To understand potato production practices, 180 contract farmers were studied in different villages of northern Gujarat after doing multistage sampling from districts to Talukas and then villages. Data were analysed through frequencies, percentages, and Garrett ranking techniques. It was found that potato contract farming was more centric towards larger producers although processors screened out their preferred producers on the basis of a number of parameters, like land holding capacity, business sense, youthfulness, and positive attitude. Potato contract farming in the state was more informal than formal. The processors provided seed and in time consultancy support to the producers. Higher input cost was the major reason for breaching the contract. Any conflict in this direction was solved through a participatory approach. Ultimately, lack of labour and credit issues made contract farming challenging for the producers that need to be nullified by the processors.