1. Key Aspects of the Family Farming in the World
GLOBAL DIALOGUE ON FAMILY FARMING
ROME-FAO, 27-28/10/2014
Prof. Dr. Sergio Schneider
Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul/Brasil

2. Summary
1.A World of Family – small – Farms;
2.Contributions of Family Farming;
3.The Hidden Features and Advantages;
4.Main Constrains of Family Farming;
5.How to Support and Foster Family Farming?;

3. 1. A World of Family – small – Farms

4. What we already know about family farming in the world ?
1.There are around 500 million units of familly farms in the world – total of units is 570 million;
13% in low income countries;
36% in lower middle income countries;
71 %FFs have less than 1 hectar of land;
2.Family Farms are Highlly Diversify:
by acess to land;
by farming/production systems;
by income and economic position - poverty
3.Statistics and Information is misunderstood about FFs.

5. Source: Lowder, S.K., Skoet, J. and Singh, S. 2014. What do we really know about the number and distribution of farms and family farms worldwide?

6. Source: Lowder, S.K., Skoet, J. and Singh, S. 2014. What do we really know about the number and distribution of farms and family farms worldwide?

7. Source: Lowder, S.K., Skoet, J. and Singh, S. 2014. What do we really know about the number and distribution of farms and family farms worldwide?

8. Family and Land
Rural Communities
Culture - Values and Tradition
Peasantry Small Scale Production

9. Family and
Land
Rural Communities
Culture - Values and Tradition
Peasantry
+
Family Farming
Food Production
Markets
Society
Land Access
Local resources
Environmental Resilience
Income Generation
Employment
Rural Development
Local Supply
National and Global Food Chains
Economic Development

10. FAO concept/definition of FAMILY FARMING:
1.It’s very diificult to define FFs: there were find out more than 36 definitions:
13 Latin American family farms;
7 refere to Sub-Saharan family farms.
2.The International Steering Committee for IYFF: Family Farming (which includes all family-based agricultural activities) is a means of organizing agricultural, forestry, fisheries, pastoral and aquaculture production which is managed and operated by a family and predominantly reliant on family labour, including both women’s and men’s. The family and the farm are linked, co-evolve and combine economic, environmental, social and cultural functions

11. Fonte: Van der PLOEG, 2014 – Ten Qualities of Family Farming

12. 2. Main Contributions of Family Farming

13. 1.Food Security and Production;
2.Rural Poverty Overcome;
3.Demographic dinamics;
4.Livelihood resilience – climate change;
5.Rural Development – local economies

14. 3. The Hidden Features and Advantages

15. 1.Cultural and Symbolic dimensions;
2.Gender;
3.Generation – young people and sucession;
4.Access to knowledge and traditions; ‘Art of farming and rural space with people’

16. 4. Mains Constrains of Family Farming

17. To Better Understood
1.Family Farming is not just about SIZE – the key role of the FAMILY and the WORK;
2.Family Farming is not against tecnology and Markets – theoreticall and political misunderstandings;
3.The Risks of Climate Changes and the erosion of conditions to work, produce and to live !!
4.The Squeeze of the Global Chains – food globalization – by prices and tecnology;
5.Land Grabbing – strong pression for land;
6.The State and Policies – there is still a role to play !

18. Family Farming – main threaths
1.Sub- Saharan Africa :
Access to land;
Just 20% of arable land suitable for cultivation;
Gender inequalities.
2.Asia and the Pacif :
To warrant food sovereignty
3.Near Easth and North Africa :
War and political instability

19. Family Farming – main threaths
1.Europa and central Asia:
Price squeeze and increasing competition;
2.North America:
Demographic transition;
3.Latin America and the Caribbean:
Pressure on resources – land and biodiversity

20. 5. How to Support and Foster Family Farming?

21. What can be done to support and foster FFs ? GUIDELINES - ENABLERS
1.Policies and public support must better understand the diversity of FF and deal with it at local, regional and globally;
2.Innovation and Tecnology- produce more with less - agregate value and sustainable intensification
3. Poverty and FF – overcome strutuctural vulnerabilities

22. What can be done to support and foster FFs POLICIES
1.Markets – not to much neither to less !!;
2.Strenght social capital and cooperation;
3.Support Gender and Generation – farmers for the future
4.To conect FF to national and global rural development strategy

23. Gracias por su atención !! Sergio Schneider – schneide@ufrgs.br