Engaging with Small and Medium Agrifood Enterprises to Guide Policy Making: A Qualitative Research Methodological Guide

The methodology captures the multifaceted nature of small and medium agrifood enterprises (SMAE) business models, adding contextual insights to the literature and policy formulation processes on these small firms, which are often treated homogenously. The framework upon which the methodology is based links the business model of an SMAE to various policy areas including farmer-market linkages, decent employment (including gender equality and youth inclusion aspects), rural finance and investment, nutrition, food losses and waste as well as food safety and quality. This makes it possible to identify intervention areas that can help reconcile the commercial objectives of SMAEs with sustainable rural development outcomes. There is also scope for adapting the methodology to carry out further research on environmental sustainability and digitalization. Ultimately, more pertinent lessons can be drawn for policymaking purposes only by understanding the complex business arrangements of SMAEs and their interactions with the external environment, including the policy and institutional climate, consumer and supply base, as well as the community in which they operate.