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Developing sustainable agricultural systems for small farmers in Latin America
Author(s) -
Altieri Miguel A.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
natural resources forum
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.646
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1477-8947
pISSN - 0165-0203
DOI - 10.1111/j.1477-8947.2000.tb00935.x
Subject(s) - agroecology , peasant , subsistence agriculture , grassroots , agriculture , food security , business , agroforestry , shifting cultivation , agroecosystem , cropping , natural resource economics , productivity , agricultural economics , geography , economics , economic growth , environmental science , political science , politics , archaeology , law
The great majority of farmers in Latin America are peasants who still farm small plots of land, usually in marginal environments utilizing traditional and subsistence methods. The contribution of the 16 million peasant units to regional food security is however substantial. Research has shown that peasant systems, which mostly rely on local resources and complex cropping patterns, are reasonably productive despite their small land endowments and low use of external inputs. Moreover analysis of NGO‐led agroecological initiatives show that traditional crop and animal systems can be adapted to increase productivity by biologically re‐structuring peasant farms which in turn leads to optimization of key agroecosystem processes (nutrient cycling, organic matter accumulation, biological pest regulation, etc.) and efficient use of labour and local resources. Examples of such grassroots projects are herein described to show that agroecological approaches can offer opportunities to substantially increase food production while preserving the natural resource base and empowering rural communities.