Ma Thi Ninh thought farming would be relatively easy. The Yen Duong area of Viet Nam where she lives has excellent, arable land and offers many sought-after products, including organic sticky rice, seasonal vegetables and bamboo used for traditional handicraft products. But once she started to farm and trade in local products herself, she realised that whilst harvests were generally fruitful, the earnings were few and she, and many farmers like her, remained stuck in poverty.

It was only after several years that Ninh fully understood why. Local farmers were only able to sell to intermediaries and small-scale traders who offered low prices. The poor road and transport infrastructure in this mountainous, rural area also made it difficult to sell further afield or in other markets, where prices might be higher.