While diversity is a key attribute of resilience in general in the environment and the economy, a trend of extinction has established itself not only among flora and fauna but also among humans. This is the case for smallholder farmers who for more than half of a century have been struggling to survive against overriding economic and political powers. The purpose of this article is to underline the key aspects of this trend while questioning its sustainability.
Conventional agriculture: pros and cons
One of the strengths of large agricultural producers is their scale. Clearly, this means that they have the capacity to produce large quantities of food in the short term for a very low price. Intensively obtained high yields are an attempt to ensure food security which is not only a matter of high economic value but also of political importance in the context of rising population numbers worldwide. Against this background, over the past few decades, it has been considered that the larger the scale, the better it is, thereby giving a competitive advantage to large producers compared to smaller ones.
To a certain extent, conventional farming has coped with the task that it was initially set in the 1950s: to do away with famine. Yet, taking into account the fact that nowadays over 90% of crop varieties have disappeared, 50% of habitable land is used for agriculture purposes, farming consumes about 70% of water use worldwide and produces about a quarter of gas emissions, the question remains whether this is not too high a price to pay.
Despite all the efforts and costs involved, in 2019 there were still 820 million people worldwide suffering from hunger and 1.3 billion lacking regular access to nutritious and sufficient food according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Moreover, the FAO noted that the situation had deteriorated over the past three years. For instance, the number of hungry people in several African countries that received agricultural funding from development entities and which mainly supported industrialized agriculture has risen by 30% in just 14 years.
There is evidence that conventional farming is failing its anti-famine goal and that it is transpiring to be increasingly unfriendly towards the environment and health. Yet large farms continue with their existence and growth due to the subsidies offered by states and development entities. Such a state of affairs casts doubts as to the truthfulness and prudence of the political vision for agriculture and people, a vision that is crucial for exploring the potential of small-holder farms in the transition to sustainable food systems.
A chance for small producers
A positive answer to this question is still valid for many and yet there are clear examples that prove there is another, more environmentally-friendly way to secure food. Thus, in order to overcome severe food, fuel, and material shortages, in the 1990s Cuba shifted away from the industrialized model and used an alternative, non-conventional approach to agriculture, one that “elevated it on the world stage as a global leader in sustainable agriculture while at the same time producing unique challenges for Cuban farmers, policymakers, researchers and academia”.
Although the “non-conventional approach” to agriculture has been around for decades, it has only managed to emerge over the past several years as the worsening climate crisis and biodiversity issues force influential policymakers to revise their approach to food systems and consider a shift from a degenerative to a regenerative type of agriculture.
In 2018, the FAO, jointly with other UN partners, including UN Environment, presented and launched the Scaling Up Agroecology Initiative which seeks to “work with food producers, governments and other stakeholders to strengthen agroecology.”
This initiative, if supported and implemented by governments, is expected to contribute not only to addressing poverty, hunger, and climate change but also to the fulfillment of Sustainable Development Goals in areas such as health, education, gender, water, energy, and economic growth.
As agroecology might be difficult to perform by the traditional large agricultural producers, small-holder farmers are in the spotlight. The FAO has pledged support to this category of farmers to overcome the constraints they face and admitted that “small family farmers lie at the heart of the solution” for a competitive and sustainable agriculture.
Nevertheless, a more recent publication on the FAO’s commitment to agroecology shows that “Current funding for agroecology is minuscule in comparison to funding devoted to research and development supporting agribusiness’ and that ‘Important work remains to be done at the country level to advance agroecology.”
At the same time, the authors of the publication identify a range of opportunities that the FAO can provide to advance this socially inclusive and environmentally sound approach to food production. These opportunities, together with the political support and financial commitment of national governments, have the potential to change the paradigm so that small-holder farmers who have been striving to survive for years can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.
