Learning resources
Contract farming has emerged as a vital mechanism for linking farmers to markets, improving agricultural productivity, and fostering inclusive rural development. Over the years, international organizations, notably Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), World Bank (WB),International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), have produced a list of literature to guide policymakers, practitioners, and farmers in designing and implementing effective contract farming arrangements.
This page brings together a useful list of foundational publications and practical briefs that explore the legal, institutional, and operational dimensions of contract farming. These resources offer insights into best practices, regulatory frameworks, model agreements, and tools for responsible and inclusive partnerships between producers and buyers.
Key literature for contract farming
Publications
FAO.2001.Contract farming: Partnerships for growth
FAO.2013. Contract farming for inclusive market access
FAO.2018. Enabling regulatory frameworks for contract farming
UNIDROIT,FAO and IFAD.2015. UNIDROIT/FAO/IFAD Legal guide on contract farming
FAO and IISD.2018. Model agreement for responsible contract farming: with commentary
World Bank. 2014. An analytical toolkit for support to contract farming
Briefs
FAO.2012.Guiding principles for responsible contract farming operations
FAO.2017a. Contract farming and the law: What do farmers need to know?
FAO.2017b. Contract farming and the law: What do regulators need to know?
FAO.2017c. Legal fundamentals for the design of contract farming agreements
FAO.2017d. Contract farming: Legal considerations on contractual design and enforcement
GIZ.2023.Promoting inclusive contract farming in agri-food value chains
Other useful learning resources and references
Presentations for the updated contract farming course
PPT for module 1: Basic concepts
PPT for module 2: Planning and setting up contract farming operations
PPT for module 3a : Developing contract farming agreement-Legal considerations
PPT for module 3b: Developing contract farming agreement-Business considerations
PPT for module 4: Recommendations for managing, sustaining and upscaling contract farming
PPT for module 5: Creating enabling environment for contract farming
PPT for an overview of contract farming resources
References for key concepts and topics on contract farming: Key references on various contract farming topics with indications of where these topics are discussed in the literature
Evaluation form for contract farming training: An evaluation form for contract farming training can be used by trainers to assess the effectiveness of the training and help both the trainers and us to improve our training programme.
A training course on agricultural project investment(Rural Invest): RuralInvest is a free, comprehensive toolkit developed to assist field technicians in working with rural entrepreneurs. It enables the creation of bankable, sustainable business proposals through a structured and participatory approach.
Rural Invest1: Introduction course to FAO’s Rural Invest
Rural Invest2: Business concept-Feasibility snapshot
Rural Invest3: Business plan-Detailed description
A training course on social analysis for inclusive agrifood investments-Practitioner’s guide: This provides guidance to practitioners on how to conduct social analysis to enhance the inclusiveness of agrifood investments. It describes the conceptual framework, the methodology, the tools and the concrete tasks for conducting the analysis and incorporating its findings into investment projects.
A training course on social analysis for inclusive agrifood investments-Manager’s guide: This provides an overview of social analysis and describes its importance in understanding the root causes of poverty, vulnerability and the risks of social exclusion in the context of global efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. It also discusses the challenges of making investments in agrifood systems more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient.
A training course on social analysis for inclusive agrifood investments-Field’s guide: This assists social analysts/field practitioners in generating primary data, using qualitative methods that can help to draw a detailed picture of the local social context where investments are being planned or implemented. It also explains what information would typically need to be collected through field visits at district and community levels, and how to collect and analyse it to meet the immediate needs of a mission’s objectives.
Please also check out the Toolkit page for contract samples and other tools, and check out the Library page for key literature
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].