I welcome this discussion. Although youth and women are central to family farming I think one should not exclude the focus also on male smallholder farmers. Another aspect I wish to underline is that the future of family or smallholder farming is also connected to overall situation in agricultural production, in particular the rapid spread of large scale agriculture, particularly in Latin America and increasingly also in Africa. Such expansion, which so far has not been proven sustainable is targeting the very land where smallholders or family farmers are cultivating thus creating conflicts around land and water access. I wish that the discussion could also reflect on this problematic aspect in addition to the important issues that have already emerged in the invitation to this discussion and the various comments.
In order to more fully present my reflections on this issue I will attach the study I conducted for the Swedish FAO Committee, "Responsible agricultural investments - how to make principles and guidelines effective, " which argues why a shift from large scale to family farming is necessary both in terms of economic, social and ecological concerns.
I welcome this discussion. Although youth and women are central to family farming I think one should not exclude the focus also on male smallholder farmers. Another aspect I wish to underline is that the future of family or smallholder farming is also connected to overall situation in agricultural production, in particular the rapid spread of large scale agriculture, particularly in Latin America and increasingly also in Africa. Such expansion, which so far has not been proven sustainable is targeting the very land where smallholders or family farmers are cultivating thus creating conflicts around land and water access. I wish that the discussion could also reflect on this problematic aspect in addition to the important issues that have already emerged in the invitation to this discussion and the various comments.
In order to more fully present my reflections on this issue I will attach the study I conducted for the Swedish FAO Committee, "Responsible agricultural investments - how to make principles and guidelines effective, " which argues why a shift from large scale to family farming is necessary both in terms of economic, social and ecological concerns.
Sincerely
Kjell Havnevik