Navigating The Impact Of Covid-19 Pandemic On The Vegetable Value Chain For Sustainable Farming

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic had caused wide disruptions across various sectors, including agriculture and had posed serious threat to global food systems, particularly the vegetable value chain. The disruptions caused by the pandemic such as labour shortages, marketing facilities, loss of income, disruptions in supply chain and shifts in consumer’s preference leading to hunger, poverty and food insecurity which is adversely affecting to the livelihood opportunities of the vegetable farmers. A study was conducted to understand the experiences of vegetable farmers with respect to the impacts of COVID‐19 pandemic on the vegetable value chain. The study was administered with the vegetable farmers (n = 240) in the state of Odisha, India. It is an agrarian state of India where major part of its population depends on agriculture for sustaining their socio-economic livelihood. It constitutes of 10 agro-climatic zones out of which two agro-climatic zones that is north eastern coastal plain and east & south eastern coastal plain were taken for the study. The results from the study clearly show the multifaceted impact of pandemic on the vegetable value chain system. This paper aims to provide an overview of the challenges encountered, adaptations made in the various stages of vegetable value chain highlighting its key components and opportunities. Furthermore, it helps in obtaining valuable insights for policymakers, practitioners and researchers striving to enhance the resilience and sustainability of vegetable value chains amidst global crises.