Opportunities for African Small Farmers in Ethical Foods Markets: An Entrepreneurial Perspective

Income growth in many countries is fuelling expansion of the ethical consumer segment and creating an unprecedented opportunity for small African farmers. The challenge is how to organize these farmers to seize the opportunities being offered by the emerging market. We argue in this paper that the development of entrepreneurial perspectives on small farmers’ realities could help alleviate the current economic challenges confronting them. We suggest increased engagement between researchers and academics with producers in entrepreneurial ventures to seize these opportunities. This is new model of economic development focuses on microeconomic solutions through entrepreneurial initiatives. We believe the agricultural economics profession’s ability to engage producers in this manner will not only increase its relevance but provide needed financial resources to grow education and research programs