Presented by Aulo Gelli Presented at Report Launch “Mapping the linkages between agriculture, food security and nutrition in Malawi” April 28th 2015, Ufulu Gardens, Lilongwe

1. Value chains and nutrition
Meeting on “Mapping the linkages between agriculture, food security and nutrition in Malawi”
April 28th 2015, Ufulu Gardens, Lilongwe
Aulo Gelli
Research Pellow, Poverty, Health and Nutrition Division, IFPRI

2. Value chains and nutrition
• Value chain approaches can provide useful frameworks to examine
the food system and the potential to achieve improved nutritional
outcomes by leveraging market-based systems
• However, understanding links between value chains, overall business
environment, and “nutrition” among targeted populations is complex
- Involving actors and activities working across agriculture, health and nutrition
- Very little evidence exists on the potential effects or the trade-offs involved
• How can value chains to bring about increased consumption of
nutritious food?

3. Value chains for nutrition
• Define a “value chain for nutrition (VCN) approach” as process of
developing a strategy to address nutrition problems through
interventions that alleviate constraints in demand and supply in specific
value chains
- High-level goals centre on the health and nutrition of consumers, reflecting the
end result that is intended
- Specific objectives relate to the constraints that are involved in terms of supply
and demand
• Structure of the strategy is based on the pathways through which VCN
interventions can be expected to improve nutrition, including three main
channels linking demand and supply for nutritious foods

5. Context is critical
• 5 key steps to improve design & evaluation of interventions:
1. Identifying the nutrition problem to be addressed
2. Analysis of the macro-level food systems context
3. Characterising diets, identifying constraints and relative
contributions of key foods
4. Value chain analyses also examining nutrition and food safety
value addition
5. Prioritising intervention options

6. B) High demand and inconsistent supply A) High demand and consistent supply
D) Low demand and inconsistent supply C) Low demand and consistent supply
-
Demand
Supply
+
- +
Example:
Dairy & meat products, where
demand grows with income, and
where there is an existing ample
base of suppliers.
Potential problems may relate to
high costs, inconsistent quality, and
limited attention to food
safety…etc
Possible interventions:
• Improved business and
regulatory environment (food
safety)
• Upgrades in technologies
• Improved mechanisms for
coordination between chain
actors
Example:
Beans and legumes in India, steady
increase in demand not followed
by supply side investments
Potential problems may relate to
low production capacity, inefficient
aggregation and other post-harvest
processes...etc.
Possible interventions:
• Innovation in production
technologies
• Innovation in the formulation
of inputs for production (and
improved access to inputs)
• Organization of producers to
supply higher volumes
• Facilitation for the expansion
of market outlets
Example:
Value chains for fruits and
vegetables in areas where fruit and
vegetable consumption is not
prioritized by local consumers
Potential problems may relate to
limited awareness of health
benefits, costs, competition from
unhealthy snacks…etc.
Possible interventions:
• Social marketing to stimulate
demand
• Adjustments in the regulatory
framework
• Subsidies for consumption
• Support for marketing by
retailers
• Public purchasing programs
Example:
Value chains for lesser-know fruits
& vegetables, or bio-fortified crops,
with exceptional nutritional
qualities, but with limited
production for markets
Potential problems may relate to
production capacity, inefficient
aggregation and other post-harvest
coupled with limited awareness of
health benefits, costs…etc.
Possible interventions:
• Building capacities for
primary production
• Producer organization
• Social marketing to stimulate
demand
• Subsidies for consumption
• Incentives for risk taking by
processers and retailers

7. Some reflections on trade-offs and pro-poor
considerations
• Impact pathways on consumers, producers and other chain actors
involve complex direct and in-direct effects
- Are win-win outcomes for smallholders and consumers possible?
• Pathways highlight other important trade-offs at household level
- e.g. Women’s role, decision making and time use
• On the demand side: how to promote consumption of nutritious
foods to target populations that may or may not be able to afford a
healthy diet?
• On the supply-side: is it feasible to target the poorest small-holders
and informal enterprises for intervention along the value chain?

8. Thank you!
The materials presented in these slides are based on Gelli, A., Hawkes, C., Donovan, J., Harris, H., Allen, S., de Brauw, A.,
Henson, S., Johnson, N., Garrett, J., and Ryckembusch, D. 2015. Value Chains and Nutrition: A Framework to Support the
Identification, Design, and Evaluation of Interventions. IFPRI Discussion Paper 01413. IFPRI. Washington, DC.