Can citrus farmers earn more from selling online?

Hepei Zhang, Wanglin Ma, Junpeng Li and Wei Yang

Economic Analysis and Policy, 2023, vol. 80, issue C, 1549-1560

Abstract: Online sales are essential for linking smallholder farmers to a wide range of markets. In essence, online sales not only influence the income received from selling a specific product but also generate spillover effects on total farm income and household income because they promote the sales of other agricultural products and generate regional off-farm work opportunities (e.g. product sorting, packaging, and delivery). Taking citrus as an example, this study explores the income effects of online sales with a focus on net returns from citrus production, net farm income, and household income. We used an endogenous treatment regression model to address the self-selection bias issues of online sales and estimated data collected from 926 citrus-producing households in Jiangxi Province, China. The results show that online citrus sales boost income growth in rural China. Specifically, online sales significantly increased net returns from citrus production, net farm income, and household income by 5,000 Yuan/capita, 8,580 Yuan/capita, and 17,830 Yuan/capita, respectively. The income-enhancing effects of online sales are greater for female household heads than they are for their male counterparts. Our findings emphasise the importance of promoting online sales to improve rural household welfare.

Keywords: Online sales; Rural incomes; Citrus production; Endogenous treatment regression; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C24 L81 Q13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecanpo:v:80:y:2023:i:c:p:1549-1560

DOI: 10.1016/j.eap.2023.10.026

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