CBS project receives major grant to study food trade under climate change in Tanzania
The project examines how climate change and dominant actors in food markets affect prices and conditions for both farmers and consumers.
A new research project led by Stefano Ponte at Copenhagen Business School has received DKK 10 million in funding from the Danida Fellowship Centre.
The four-year project, Market Power, Climate Change and Vulnerability in Food Value Chains in Tanzania (MAPOCAVU), is carried out in collaboration with the University of Dodoma, Sokoine University of Agriculture and the University of Johannesburg.
Below, project leader Stefano Ponte, who is a professor at Department of Management, Society and Communication, explains the project in his own words.
What does this grant mean to you – and what possibilities does it create?
“We are delighted to have received funding for this research grant. It represents not only recognition of the importance of interdisciplinary research, but also a key opportunity to undertake fieldwork, collect high-quality data, and collaborate closely with stakeholders and researchers in the Global South. Importantly, the grant allows us to combine theoretical analysis with empirically grounded insights and long-term, collaborative engagement.”
What are you investigating in the project?
“In MAPOCAVU, we analyse how climate change and market power interact to shape vulnerability in food systems, with a focus on Tanzania. While climate shocks increasingly threaten food security, existing research and interventions often overlook how concentrated markets affect smallholder farmers and low-income rural and urban consumers.”
What does “market power” mean?
Market power means that a small number of large companies or intermediaries have a high degree of control over a market. This means that they can, in practice, influence prices, trading conditions and market access.
This can mean that farmers receive lower prices for their products, than they should, while consumers may face higher and more unstable food prices.
How are you going to do it?
“We examine the intersection of climate change and market power through a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative and qualitative analysis, field research and value-chain analysis. We follow maize and rice from the farm to the plate in Tanzania,” Stefano Ponte says.
“First, we analyse climate exposure and variability using environmental, agricultural and consumption data from our own surveys, semi-structured interviews and remote sensing to understand how weather shocks affect food production and consumption. Then, we examine market structures to identify where market power is concentrated among traders, processors and intermediaries, and how this affects pricing and access to markets for farmers and low-income consumers. Finally, we study how market concentration influences the distribution of risks and benefits along these food value chains.”
What will be the societal impact of the project?
“The ultimate goal of MAPOCAVU is to generate evidence that supports more resilient, equitable and climate-adaptive food systems. By understanding how market power and climate change jointly affect vulnerability among farmers and consumers, we aim to inform policies that reduce inequality, strengthen farmers’ livelihoods and improve food security among both rural and urban consumers in Tanzania.”
About the partnership
The project builds on long-standing research collaborations between CBS and partners in Tanzania and South Africa. The MAPOCAVU team includes researchers from CBS, Sokoine University of Agriculture, the University of Dodoma and the University of Johannesburg. The project will also recruit three PhD students based in Tanzania, who will spend research stays at Copenhagen Business School during their studies.