Overcoming barriers to sustainable agricultural intensification.

Summary

This article develops a theoretical framework explaining why sustainable intensification remains limited in lower-income countries despite technological feasibility for yield improvement. Through comparative case studies of beef production in Brazil and cocoa in West Africa, the author identifies common structural barriers—tenurial insecurity, limited finance and extension support, community investment risks, and cheap land favouring expansion—and proposes an optimistic pathway combining economic reform, community-level investment, and conservation policy coordination to unlock joint gains for food security and biodiversity.

Regional applicability

Whilst the case studies focus on tropical commodity frontiers (Brazil and West Africa), the theoretical framework and barriers identified may have limited direct application to United Kingdom conditions, where land is scarce, tenure is generally secure, and agricultural extension systems are established. However, the policy insights on institutional prerequisites for intensification could inform UK approaches to supporting farmer transition to regenerative or higher-productivity systems in resource-constrained contexts.

Key measures

Barriers to sustainable intensification uptake; institutional, financial, tenurial, knowledge and cultural constraints; community-level investment risks; land price effects on expansion vs. intensification decisions; potential for rapid intensification in selected locations

Outcomes reported

The study identifies institutional, financial, tenurial, and market barriers limiting sustainable intensification adoption in beef production (Brazilian Amazon/Cerrado) and cocoa cultivation (West Africa), and proposes policy pathways to overcome them. It demonstrates that technological feasibility for yield improvement exists but uptake remains constrained by structural factors favouring land expansion.

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