Impact of Contract Farming on Small Farmers: A Comparative Study of Contract and Non-Contract Potato Farmers from West Bengal

Abstract

The recent farmer protests and policy debates in India have reignited interest in contract farming (CF henceforth) within critical agrarian studies. CF permeates various regions of India, and the prevailing literature often provokes ideological debates that tend to oversimplify the narrative into "win-win" or "win-lose" scenarios. Between the two extremes, the critical perspective on CF raises many concerns, such as unequal power dynamics, the monopsony position of firms, and exploitative practices. Prominent microeconomic studies on CF in India propose various approaches to resolving market failures, aiming to benefit farmers through enhanced production, income, and employment prospects. Despite several studies over the past couple of decades and recent policy debates, the implication of CF on smallholders due to the complex interplay of social relations of production and capitalist tendencies of corporate firms is understudied in India.