Impact of Farmer Associations on Sales and Crop Diversification

Abstract

Contributing to the growing interest in understanding the impact of farmer cooperatives on rural household welfare, we add new empirical evidence to the current literature and debate. In particular, this study investigates the impact of farmer cooperatives on sales per hectare of land and crop diversification, which have been largely overlooked. We apply the Propensity Score Matching method to the Cambodia Inter-Censal Agricultural Survey 2019, with its large sample size of 16,000 small-scale producers. Additionally, we perform a robustness check to ensure our findings are unbiased. Results indicate that Cambodian farmers perceive the cooperatives as a risk-sharing mechanism or knowledge-sharing platform that provides technical know-how to cope with natural calamities. Propensity Score Matching (PSM) outputs show a significantly positive impact of participating in the cooperatives on sales and the crop diversification index. This study thus advocates increasing technical support and implementing policies by the government to help cooperatives thrive and expand.