ABSTRACT
Over the past five years the farmers of Baan Tiam, a small lowland village in northern Thailand, have participated in a rapidly changing agricultural sector. By far the most important change has been the adoption and rapid expansion of contract farming. Farmers who previously grew crops on their own account are now commonly entering into contracts with companies to grow crops according to predefined schedules and techniques. The primary driver of this transformation has been the reduction in garlic production, which farmers in Baan Tiam grow independently and sell to traders in an open and non-contractual market. In recent years garlic cultivators have fallen victim to reduced yields and low prices. Yields have suffered as a result of soil nutrient depletion and unfavourable weather, while prices were temporarily depressed by the 2003 bilateral trade agreement between Thailand and China which resulted in an influx of cheap Chinese garlic. The decline in garlic yields and prices have left many farmers with burdensome debts, given that garlic production requires substantial household investment in inputs. In brief, contract farming in Baan Tiam has emerged in a context of environmental and economic uncertainty.
