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1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 29 May 2023

Awal Fuseini

It is the expectation of Halal consumers that the meat they buy in retail shops and restaurants are ethically and legally reared and slaughtered in approved premises to protect…

138

Abstract

Purpose

It is the expectation of Halal consumers that the meat they buy in retail shops and restaurants are ethically and legally reared and slaughtered in approved premises to protect animal welfare and public health. While this may be the case in multinational and well-established supermarkets due to due diligence on the part of retailers, there is evidence to suggest that some independent retail shops and ethnic restaurants in the UK partake in selling meat from illegally slaughtered animals. It is a crime that involves many players, but usually masterminded by rural entrepreneurs, including rogue farmers who supply the animals for illegal slaughter and further processing into smokies, or as part of the Islamic festival of Qurbani, in makeshift abattoirs. The purpose of this paper is to highlight illegal slaughter of sheep for the Halal market and how these impacts on food integrity and animal welfare.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper examines the legality of slaughter in accordance with UK animal welfare and food safety legislations. The documentary research approach is adopted to examine available information on the activities of organised criminal gangs in the production of smokies and their possible involvement in Qurbani fraud.

Findings

This paper demonstrates the involvement of some rogue farmers who are facilitating the smokies trade and illegal slaughter of sheep during the Qurbani sacrifice. It is worth noting that while these illegal activities occur in the Halal sector, the perpetrators are not always Muslims. The processing of illegally slaughtered sheep takes place in unhygienic conditions which is of food safety, public health concern and may violate the religious rules around slaughter.

Originality/value

Illegal slaughter for the Muslim sacrifice of Qurbani is underreported, this paper aims to highlight the animal welfare and food safety aspects of this type of slaughter, in addition to those slaughtered for smokies production.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 125 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 22 May 2015

Robert Smith and Gerard McElwee

To explore and document the emerging international market for stolen tractors and plant in the United Kingdom. Whilst this may appear to be a criminological problem relating…

Abstract

Purpose

To explore and document the emerging international market for stolen tractors and plant in the United Kingdom. Whilst this may appear to be a criminological problem relating specifically to rural crime, it is a sophisticated international criminal business organised by traditional organised crime groups (OCGs) such as the Italian, Polish and Turkish Mafia’s in conjunction with a network of criminal entrepreneurs.

Methodology/approach

Using annual statistical data provided by National Farmers Union (NFU) Mutual and Plant and Agricultural National Intelligence Unit (PANIU) and other material sourced using documentary research techniques supplemented by qualitative interviews with industry specialists we present 10 micro-case studies of rural OCGs engaged in this lucrative enterprise crime. The data is verified and authenticated using narrative inquiry techniques.

Findings

There is an entrepreneurial dimension to the crime because traditional criminal families with knowledge of rural areas and rural social capital form alliances with OCGs. The practical utility of the NFU model of entrepreneurial alliances with interested parties including the police is highlighted.

Research limitations/implications

Implications for research design, ethics and the conduct of such research which are identified and discussed. These include the need to develop an investigative framework to protect academic researchers similar to guidelines in place to protect investigative journalists.

Practical implications

An investigative framework and the adaption of the business model canvass (Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010) to cover illegal business models are proposed.

Social implications

Suggestions are provided for the need to legislate against international criminal conspiracies.

Originality/value

Uses a mixture of entrepreneurship and criminological theories to help develop an understanding of the problem from an investigative perspective.

Details

Exploring Criminal and Illegal Enterprise: New Perspectives on Research, Policy & Practice
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78441-551-8

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 May 2018

Jamal Ali, Norhafezah Yusof and Fadzli Shah Abd. Aziz

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors believed to influence the behavior of 1,042 rice farmers in Malaysia regarding the overuse of pesticides. Frequent overuse of…

1065

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors believed to influence the behavior of 1,042 rice farmers in Malaysia regarding the overuse of pesticides. Frequent overuse of pesticide will have an impact on human health and the environment, which lead to greater expenditure on health care.

Design/methodology/approach

The theoretical models of compliance behavior tested include the basic deterrence model, which focuses on the enforcement of regulation as a key determinant of compliance. The models integrate economic theory with theories of social behavior to account for motivations expected, influencing individuals’ decisions on whether to follow the regulation on using pesticides.

Findings

Significance tests reported that the information regarding the danger of using pesticides, the perception toward the impact on the environment and the expected impact on health influences the compliance behavior of using pesticides.

Research limitations/implications

These findings highlight the necessity for the policy makers to design an effective program which gives more information and provide training related to the risk and the safe handling of pesticides.

Practical implications

The farmers who receive information and training related to handling of pesticides become more cautious in the use of pesticides. Countries involved in agriculture and the use of pesticides widely by their farmers need to emphasize continuous training and periodic information dissemination.

Social implications

The implication drawn is rice farmers should be encouraged to practice new methods in rice planting, especially in the integrated pest management method.

Originality/value

These research findings suggest that the overuse of pesticides in the rice farming continues to be an important problem.

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 45 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 22 May 2015

Gerard McElwee and Robert Smith

The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the topic and discuss the individual chapters in this volume as well as to provide an intellectual orientation which will hopefully…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the topic and discuss the individual chapters in this volume as well as to provide an intellectual orientation which will hopefully inspire casual readers to read further. The main thesis behind this volume is that entrepreneurial crime and illegal enterprise span two very distinct yet complimentary academic disciplines – namely Criminology and Entrepreneurial/Business Studies. And that we need to take cognisance of both instead of writing and publishing in disciplinary silos.

Methodology/approach

Our methodological approach in this volume is predominantly qualitative and in addition mainly review based. Our editorial approach is/was one of laissez-faire in that we did not want to stifle authorial creativity or impose order where there was none, or very little. The result is a very eclectic collection of interesting readings which we hope will challenge researchers interested in the topics to cross inter- and intra-disciplinary literature in search of new theoretical models.

Findings

Rather than findings we see the contribution of the volume as being an attempt to start conversations between disciplines. We appreciate that this is only a beginning. There are discoveries and perhaps a need to redraw boundaries. One surprising finding was how much the authors all drew on the seminal work of William Baumol to the extent that it has become a common framework for understanding the cross overs.

Research limitations/implications

There are many limitations to the chapters in this volume. The main one is that in any edited volume the editors are faced with a dilemma of allowing more voices to emerge or imposing a restrictive explanatory framework which in turn shoe horns the chapters into an over-arching sense-making architecture. The limitation of this volume is that it can only present a few of the voices and only begin a synthesis. Interested researchers must work hard to draw meaning from the eclectic voices.

Practical implications

The practical implications from this chapter and the edited chapters are manifold. The chapters deal with complex issues and we have opted to allow the authorial voice to be heard and to allow disciplinary writing styles to remain as they are. This allows a very practical understanding of everyday implications to emerge.

There are many policy implications which arise from this introductory chapter and the chapters in this volume but these will take time to manifest themselves. The main point to take away is that to understand and interdict crime and in particular entrepreneurial crime we must draw on inter-disciplinary knowledge and theories of entrepreneurship and business in a wider sense.

Originality/value

This chapter introduces a series of apparently separate yet interconnected chapters which explore the bounds and boundaries of illegal entrepreneurship and its originality lies in its approach.

Details

Exploring Criminal and Illegal Enterprise: New Perspectives on Research, Policy & Practice
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78441-551-8

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 December 2023

Jacob Mensah Agboli

Following the trend in the world over and on the African continent, the Parliament of Ghana passed a new law in 2020, the Narcotics Control Commission Act (Act 1019) that eased…

Abstract

Purpose

Following the trend in the world over and on the African continent, the Parliament of Ghana passed a new law in 2020, the Narcotics Control Commission Act (Act 1019) that eased the legal restrictions on cannabis cultivation and use, subject to obtaining license from the relevant authority/authorities. This paper aims to examine the implications of Ghana’s decision to legalise the cultivation of cannabis for industrial purposes for the production of fibre and for medicinal purposes.

Design/methodology/approach

The author adopted the qualitative analysis critical review methodology in sourcing information from peer-reviewed articles, coupled with the author’s own professional knowledge, background and training, to critically analyse and review the reasons behind Ghana’s decision to legalise cannabis cultivation and the implications such a major policy change/shift.

Findings

It was found that, while the law mentions industrial and medicinal purposes for the legalisation of cannabis, the real reason, at least in the immediate term, is mainly economic. This agrees with those of other African countries that have legalised cannabis cultivation but appears to contrast with those of Europe and America.

Research limitations/implications

This research is limited to Ghana and the few African countries that have legalised cannabis cultivation so far. The main reason for the legalisation (economic benefits) may also change in the future when the economics of scale turn in the favour of the country. Therefore, Ghana’s case may not represent the case of all countries legalising cannabis cultivation.

Practical implications

The research implication of this paper is that it brings to the world the law on cannabis cultivation in Ghana. It provides a professional and scientific position paper on Ghana’s drug law regime regarding cannabis, thus, serving as a useful reference literature to the academic and research community on the topic. More importantly, it discusses the implications of such major policy change from an objective perspective, unravelling the real reason behind the State’s decision to legalise the cultivation of cannabis in Ghana.

Social implications

This paper will bring to the fore the other consequences of Ghana’s cannabis cultivation legalisation policy change, which little attention has been devoted to so far.

Originality/value

This paper, apart from reference to other published texts on the topic, which have been duly acknowledged, represents the sole work of the author. It has not been produced anywhere or by anyone else either in Ghana or elsewhere.

Details

Drugs, Habits and Social Policy, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2752-6739

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 4 January 2024

Winnie Nalubowa, Roberta Moruzzo, Paola Scarpellini and Giulia Granai

In Uganda, smallholder farmers produce about 70% of the food but receive very low prices on the sales channels they use. To improve farmers' livelihoods, other innovative sales…

Abstract

Purpose

In Uganda, smallholder farmers produce about 70% of the food but receive very low prices on the sales channels they use. To improve farmers' livelihoods, other innovative sales channels such as farmers' markets (FMs) have to be explored. Therefore, the study aimed to determine the potential of establishing farmers' markets in Uganda, focusing on Kampala district.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative methodology was used to understand farmers' perceptions and the factors that could influence the success of the farmers' markets. In addition, the potential of FMs has been analyzed through the components of the Localized Agri-Food System (LAFS).

Findings

The respondents had a positive perception of the farmers' markets, and farmers have an urgent need for other sales channels that could be profitable for them. Factors that could influence the success of the FMs were highlighted, including infrastructure in the marketplace, transportation and taxation by the government.

Research limitations/implications

The study had a limited sample size of the farmers, and it was carried out in 3 divisions of Kampala district, an urban area; thus, the findings cannot be generalized to fit the other regions of Uganda.

Originality/value

The LAFS showed that the foundation for establishing FMs is available; however, it has to be strengthened through the coordination of different stakeholders that work with the farmers.

Details

Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-0839

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 30 October 2019

Ronald Benard, Frankwell Dulle and Hieromin Lamtane

This paper aims to examine the challenges facing fish farmers in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in information sharing on fish farming.

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the challenges facing fish farmers in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in information sharing on fish farming.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used both quantitative and qualitative methods. It involved 240 fish farmers who were randomly selected. Questionnaires, focus group discussions (FGDs), observation and key informant’s interviews were used as methods of data collection. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse quantitative data, while content analysis was used for qualitative data.

Findings

It was found that the most frequently used ICTs by fish farmers in sharing agricultural information were mobile phones, radio and television. Also, the study revealed that major challenges facing fish farmers in sharing information include unfavourable radio or television broadcasting time, high cost of acquiring and maintenance of ICT facilities, lack of training on ICT, poor network connectivity and low level of literacy. Moreover, it was further found that there was negative significant relationship (P < 0.05) between challenges associated with the use and degree of ICT usage by fish farmers.

Originality/value

The study is original with the exception of areas where citations have been made. Besides, it provides awareness and understanding of the challenges facing fish farmers in ICT usage in information sharing on fish farming, and this will enable improvement of timely provision and access to relevant information and hence improved fish farming production.

Details

Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society, vol. 18 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-996X

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 19 May 2021

Russell Hogg

This chapter examines some key themes raised by the intersection of the urban, the rural and the penal against the backdrop of the Australian ‘rural ideal’. But the chapter also…

Abstract

This chapter examines some key themes raised by the intersection of the urban, the rural and the penal against the backdrop of the Australian ‘rural ideal’. But the chapter also seeks to look critically at that ideal and how it relates (or does not) to the various lifeworlds and patterns of settler development that lie beyond the Australian cityscape. Attention is directed away from the singular focus on the rural/urban divide to stress the importance of North/South in understanding patterns of development and penal practices beyond the cityscape in the Australian context.

Details

Crossroads of Rural Crime
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80043-644-2

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1998

Ngai Weng Chan

Malaysia is an ex‐colonial, newly‐industrialising country, with a sustained high economic growth rate averaging eight per cent GDP per annum over the past ten years. Within such a…

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Abstract

Malaysia is an ex‐colonial, newly‐industrialising country, with a sustained high economic growth rate averaging eight per cent GDP per annum over the past ten years. Within such a rapidly booming economy, the pace of social, economic and political change is fast, as is the pace of technological change. Other things being equal, these are the changes in which environmental hazards can be magnified. As a result of rapid economic development, physical systems are disturbed and changed. For example, the modification of the hydrological cycle due to deforestation, urbanisation, development of hill slopes and other human land use have given rise to increased risks of landslides. In recent years, the collapse of a block of luxury condominiums in Kuala Lumpur, the Genting Highland and Pos Dipang landslide tragedies as well as other landslide disasters have caused substantial loss of life and damage to property and infrastructure. Combined with intensive development of hill slopes and hill land for housing, recreation, tourism, agriculture, highway and dam construction, and other human induced land use changes, the exposure and vulnerability of human populations to landslide hazards have also increased. Other reasons, largely structural, such as persistent poverty, low residential and occupational mobility, and landlessness, manifested in illegal squatting and farming on hill slopes and foothills have also contributed to increased vulnerability of large communities to landslide hazards in many parts of the country. As Malaysia pushes ahead to meet its target of becoming a fully industrialised country by the year 2020, further environmental degradation is expected to occur. Notwithstanding other aspects of environmental degradation, the occurrence of landslide hazards is expected to become a common feature of Malaysian life.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 2009

Marcelo Motta Veiga

The purpose of this paper is to examine the flaws of the take‐back program for empty pesticide containers implemented by the Brazilian chemical industry, which despite its overall…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the flaws of the take‐back program for empty pesticide containers implemented by the Brazilian chemical industry, which despite its overall success, is not working in the selected small rural community.

Design/methodology/approach

This is an exploratory single‐case study indicating that the outcome of the Brazilian take‐back program still requires clarification.

Findings

The Brazilian take‐back program for pesticide containers targets large rural communities where economies of scale can operate. It is not possible to use the same reverse logistics strategy for both large and small rural communities.

Research limitations/implications

Despite the fact that this exploratory single‐case study might not be generalized to other small rural communities without further research; it indicated some implications for the development of other take‐back programs.

Originality/value

The paper shows that an efficient take‐back program for pesticide containers should be designed taking in account the characteristics of each rural community. A strategy for a large rural community might not work in small ones. Economies of scale, postponement and speculation can be addressed to improve the reverse logistics strategy.

Details

Management Research News, vol. 32 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0140-9174

Keywords

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