on ecological issues. In contrast to the other private actors in the network, this
organization wanted to communicate directly with the local producers, particularly
if it decided to engage in a long-term micro-trade arrangement with the Hmong
processing and marketing cooperative. Moreover, benefits passing to the community had to be clearly evident to the fair-trader, thus supporting the basic cooperative setting of the processing group.
The Uplands Program, with its various Thai partners, played a key role in
mediating between the various actors in the network and in balancing power
differentials between large private companies and public agencies on the one
side, and loosely organized and traditionally marginalized smallholders on the
other. It also facilitated the information diffusion process concerning the various
process and product specifications for fresh and dried litchi, as required by the
private companies. The initiation of face-to-face negotiations was particularly
crucial for a gradual alignment of dissenting expectations between suppliers and
Table 9.4 Key actors in the litchi processing and marketing network and their expectations
Actor
Type of organization
Major expectations
Hmong fresh litchi
marketing network
Inter-village private
trading alliance
Higher and more stable prices, and secure
market throughout the season for fresh
litchi; quick payment after delivery of
the produce
Hmong litchi processing
and marketing
cooperative
Cooperative on shareholder basis (nonregistered)
High and stable prices; extending the sales
season through processing; secure
market channels, preferably overseas
British-based hypermarket
chain
Private company
Procuring fresh, high-grade litchi with no
chemical residues from organized
farmers; higher profit margins by
eliminating middlemen
French natural food retailer Private company
Procuring fresh or ‘slow-dried’ litchi
produced under natural, chemical-free
conditions from individual growers or
farmer groups; supply over an extended
period
Thai export company
Private company
Procuring fresh litchi of export quality
(GlobalGAP certified); high profit
margin through sales to Europe;
long-term business relations with both
farmers and EU importers
German-based fair trade
organization
Private company
Procuring dried, safe-to-eat litchi, with
specific packaging, for ethical
consumers in Europe while paying ‘fair
prices’ to organized farmers
Department of Agriculture,
Ministry of Agriculture
(Thailand)
Public agency
Training farmers and providing
certification for Good Agricultural
Practices (GAP)
The Uplands Program and
its Thai partners
Publicly funded
research network
Initiating pro-poor innovation processes
and building partnerships that can be
studied in an action-research context
9 Participatory Approaches to Research and Development in the Southeast. . .
359
organization wanted to communicate directly with the local producers, particularly
if it decided to engage in a long-term micro-trade arrangement with the Hmong
processing and marketing cooperative. Moreover, benefits passing to the community had to be clearly evident to the fair-trader, thus supporting the basic cooperative setting of the processing group.
The Uplands Program, with its various Thai partners, played a key role in
mediating between the various actors in the network and in balancing power
differentials between large private companies and public agencies on the one
side, and loosely organized and traditionally marginalized smallholders on the
other. It also facilitated the information diffusion process concerning the various
process and product specifications for fresh and dried litchi, as required by the
private companies. The initiation of face-to-face negotiations was particularly
crucial for a gradual alignment of dissenting expectations between suppliers and
Table 9.4 Key actors in the litchi processing and marketing network and their expectations
Actor
Type of organization
Major expectations
Hmong fresh litchi
marketing network
Inter-village private
trading alliance
Higher and more stable prices, and secure
market throughout the season for fresh
litchi; quick payment after delivery of
the produce
Hmong litchi processing
and marketing
cooperative
Cooperative on shareholder basis (nonregistered)
High and stable prices; extending the sales
season through processing; secure
market channels, preferably overseas
British-based hypermarket
chain
Private company
Procuring fresh, high-grade litchi with no
chemical residues from organized
farmers; higher profit margins by
eliminating middlemen
French natural food retailer Private company
Procuring fresh or ‘slow-dried’ litchi
produced under natural, chemical-free
conditions from individual growers or
farmer groups; supply over an extended
period
Thai export company
Private company
Procuring fresh litchi of export quality
(GlobalGAP certified); high profit
margin through sales to Europe;
long-term business relations with both
farmers and EU importers
German-based fair trade
organization
Private company
Procuring dried, safe-to-eat litchi, with
specific packaging, for ethical
consumers in Europe while paying ‘fair
prices’ to organized farmers
Department of Agriculture,
Ministry of Agriculture
(Thailand)
Public agency
Training farmers and providing
certification for Good Agricultural
Practices (GAP)
The Uplands Program and
its Thai partners
Publicly funded
research network
Initiating pro-poor innovation processes
and building partnerships that can be
studied in an action-research context
9 Participatory Approaches to Research and Development in the Southeast. . .
359