Can “green food” certification achieve both sustainable practices and economic benefits in a transitional economy? The case of kiwifruit growers in Henan Province, China

Abstract

The unique "green food" certification scheme in China, which is aimed to ensure environmental and product safety, has attracted increasing attention. In this study, using 398 household-level survey data from kiwifruit growers in Xixia county of Henan Province, China, alongside a propensity score matching method, we examined the impact of "green food" certification scheme on economic and environmental effects. Our results showed that: (a) the "green food" certification program did not have significant environmental effect of sustainable production practices because kiwifruit growers did not significantly increase farmyard manure, reduce pesticide and chemical material inputs, except for employed labor inputs; (b) the certification did have significantly economic effect because certified growers received higher sale prices and had reasonable and even higher economic benefits. These findings suggest that the "green food" certification program did not significantly reduce the chemical material inputs, but it helped kiwifruit growers receive higher economic benefits. The "green food" certification program has not achieved its two major goals for kiwifruit production in China [EconLit citations: O13, O44, Q01]. K E Y W O R D S "green food" certification, China, economic benefit, impact assessment, kiwifruit, sustainable practices 1 | INTRODUCTION Over the past two decades, considerable growth has occurred in certified markets (e.g., Fair Trade, the Rainforest

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