COVID-19 IMPACT AND SMALLHOLDER FARMING HOUSEHOLDS: INSIGHTS FROM RURAL NEPAL

Karah Mechlowitz, Matt Corcoran, Neena Joshi, Sarah L. McKune, Keshav Sah, Bhola Shrestha and Laurie C. Miller

International Journal of Agriculture and Environmental Research, 2025, vol. 11, issue 05

Abstract: Most dairy producers in Nepal are small-holder farmers; the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the dairy production value chain. This study was embedded in a longitudinal impact evaluation of educational interventions on household diet in rural livestock-holding families. The intervention and other project activities were cancelled due to COVID-19, but data collection continued and repurposed to investigate the relationship between sociodemographic variables and the impact of COVID-19 on small-holder dairy farmers over the lockdowns. Eight questions about COVID-19 impact were added to the mid- and endline household surveys, and a COVID-19 impact score calculated. Regression models examined whether – and to what degree – households reported an impact of COVID-19 on their dairy farming practices. Households with higher animal score (number/type of animals) had significantly increased odds of reporting COVID-19 impact on their dairy farming practices. Survey round was also significant: COVID-19 impact scores at midline were higher than at endline. These results suggest how livestock can act as a buffer in times of crises (e.g., providing animal source foods for the family as well as a source of income) but can also contribute to increased burdens on smallholder farming households as they cope with disruptions across the livestock value chain.

Keywords: Community/Rural/Urban; Development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:ijaeri:376223

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.376223

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