**6. Conclusions**

This article assessed how farm production diversity influences household food consumption diversity in two districts (Kilosa and Chamwino) with distinct agro-ecological and market access contexts in rural Tanzania. Specifically, (1) it examined the nature and extent of farm production diversity, and its determinants, and (2) it analyzed the role of farm production diversity on household food consumption diversity.

Findings reveal that smallholder households maintain a considerable diversity in their production, both for crops and livestock. However, significant differences exist between the two agro-ecological regions with regards to farm production diversity and food consumption diversity. While low farm production diversity was observed in Kilosa district, households in Chamwino districts had significantly higher farm production diversity in terms of crops and livestock. Regarding the role of farm production diversity in household food consumption diversity, our results underscore findings from earlier studies that this relationship is largely dependent on agro-ecological characteristics and market contexts, among other factors. Results showed that, while farm production diversity was significantly associated with increased food consumption diversity in Chamwino, the same relationship was not observed in Kilosa. This influence was also observed for seasonal food consumption diversity, particularly in Chamwino which suggests additional benefits for smallholder farm production diversification. These observations suggest a stronger role of farm production diversity on food consumption diversity in areas with challenging agro-ecological characteristics and low market accessibility, and a lesser role in presence of better agro-ecological and market access characteristics.

These findings imply that, strategies geared at promoting farm production diversity should consider the existing agro-ecological and market characteristics. In challenging agro-ecological settings and less accessible rural communities, farm production diversity can be more beneficial in enhancing food security and, most importantly, seasonal food consumption diversity. In addition, to achieve increased food consumption diversity in farm households, the focus of policy should not only be on increasing diversity of smallholder farm production but also aim at improvements in market related infrastructure and institutions.

**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, L.K., A.F. and U.G.; Data curation, L.K.; Formal analysis, L.K. and A.F.; Methodology, L.K. and A.F.; Project administration, U.G.; Supervision, A.F.; Writing—original draft, L.K.; Writing—review & editing, A.F. and U.G.

**Funding:** This research was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the project "Trans-SEC" (www.trans-sec.org).

**Acknowledgments:** The authors would like to thank the research project "Trans-SEC" (www.transsec.org), the Institute for Environmental Economics and World Trade—Hannover, Germany and Ardhi University—Dar es Salaam, Tanzania for administrative and technical support during the undertaking of this research.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest. The founding sponsors had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, and in the decision to publish the results.
