Family farming is the most common operational farming model in Europe – representing 97 % of the European Union’s (EU) 12 million farms. Thus it is of great importance in the EU. It covers a diverse range of situations, including farms of all sizes. While there are obvious differences across...

12 million farms, 172 million hectares of agricultural land, 25 million people involved in agricultural production – these are some of the key data for the EU farming sector in 2010; but what about the situation of individual farms and how do things differ between Member States and as compared...

Farm income is a volatile, subject to significant fluctuations from year to year. One of the ways in which farm income volatility can be addressed is by adding value to the outputs of the farm and by maximising the use of farm resources of all types – land, capital, buildings,...

Greater collaboration between state bodies and local agencies providing services to farmers and rural dwellers and the development of shared services by Local Action Groups in the delivery of the LEADER programme were among the recommendations of a report published by the NRN in 2010. The report on ‘Stimulating the...

Funding under the LEADER programme is helping organic farmers Dominic and Alison Leonard to develop a farm shop and to capitalise on the amenity value of their farm. The Leonards run Castlewood Organic Farm, located along the River Nore near Durrow in Co Laois. Dublin-born Dominic and Australian-born Alison have...

Dairy farmer from Kilkenny, Bill O'Keeffe, who writes for the Irish Farmers Journal is interviewed on farm by Bryan Hynes.

Being the most common operational farming model, family farming has ensured the growth of Europe’s agricultural sector for centuries. Today’s ambitious European Union (EU) policy  framework is designed to take account of the different models of agriculture existing in the EU, including the diverse types of family farming. It focuses...

This paper presents the results of an economic, social and cultural study relating to family farms in two cooperatives: Feiraco in Galicia, Spain and Drinagh, County Cork in Ireland. The research is focused mainly on the production and analysis of the results of a specialized survey that dealt with the...

Domestic and donor-driven development agendas for African agriculture are spurring smallholder family farming as a catalyst for food security and poverty reduction. Family farms are also the backbone of agriculture in the European Union, although the process of concentration has gone further than in Africa. European agricultural policy reforms now...

Agriculture across Europe is very much driven by the reforms initiated by the European Union (EU) and World Trade Organisation negotiations. Reforms have mobilised a shift in agricultural practices from production to a somewhat contested post-production and, more recently, multifunctional agriculture regime. Accompanying such change has been the debate on...

The role of women in Irish agriculture has traditionally been understated due to the predominance of male farm owners and the preference to transfer farmland to a son or other male relative. A previous EU study into aspects of gender and agriculture across six European countries strongly indicates that the...

The concept of family farming is the recipient of much high-level political capital right now...  The United Nations has declared 2014 the International Year of Family Farming, the primary aim of which is to promote, develop and strengthen all types of familyoriented agriculture - from horticulture and livestock to fisheries and forestry - as a socially...

All businesses need to innovate if they are to thrive, and family farms are no exception. By thinking ahead and developing new approaches, farmers can increase output, develop new and improved products, diversify and tap into new income streams, and remain environmentally sustainable. Innovative farms are more likely to weather...

Milking cows on a working dairy farm in Ireland  - a Family Farm

I n the recently completed CFC/FAO Organic Aquaculture Project, INFOFISH helped fish farmers in the Asia-Pacific region adapt to the new market niche for organic aquaculture products.

In July 2009, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food launched a public consultation process on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) post 2013. As part of this process, the Department invited interested parties to submit their views on the range of issues that arise in relation to the future of...

Farming in Ireland in recent decades has not escaped the trend towards intensification. But despite this, a large proportion of Irish farmland is still managed in a way that works with nature and the landscape. This type of farmland is referred to as High Nature Value (NHV) farmland. What the...