Farming diversity
Small-scale family farmers live in environments ranging from mountainous, dry areas to lush, tropical forests. Together, they engage in many kinds of small-scale farming systems. All these systems combined harbour and nurture biodiversity.
They also safeguard the resilience of agro-ecological systems against natural and human-made disasters. This issue explicitly recognises the value of this diversity of landscapes, ways of life, kind of crops and agricultural systems.
LEISA Magazine • 25.1 • March 2009
Table of contents:
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4 - 5written by ILEIA editorial teamThis first jubilee issue deals with a theme that is at the heart of small farmer logic: diversity. it expresses itself in many ways. There are diverse landscapes and ecosystems, diverse ways of life, diverse crops and agricultural systems. Small farms have been naturally benefiting from the diversity in their natural environment. In a recent publication, Miguel Altieri, Professor of Agroecology, makes a clear case for diverse small-scale farming systems. Small farms that combine stable and diverse production, that generate and sustain their own inputs and that have favourable energy ratios and good links to markets, comprise an effective approach to achieving food security, income generation, and environmental conservation.
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6 - 8written by Coen ReijntjesThe small farm sector is of tremendous importance for developing countries. It merits much more support than it has received in recent decades, especially in this time of growing economic and ecological crisis. Research, and the cases in this issue of LEISA Magazine, demonstrates the importance of ecological, economic and social diversity for the improvement of small-scale farming. There are different categories of small farmers, each with their own needs, opportunities and logic. Different strategies are required when supporting them. Recommendations on how to do this have been formulated, but international “crisis managers” still do not listen.
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9 - 10A six-year study in Cuba has shown that increasing a farm’s diversity, for example with a mixed crop-livestock system, increases its overall productivity, energy efficiency and nutrient management. Equally important, it reduces risks, in particular when compared to simplified and homogeneous systems. Mixed systems draw various ideas and lessons from traditional farming systems found in many parts of the world. The Cuban case, at the same time, provides many lessons, especially when regarding the design and management of diverse systems.
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11 - 12written by Hannah Jaenicke , Nick PasiecznikSpreading risks is an essential means to reduce vulnerability, especially for already vulnerable people. Increasing the use of underutilised crops is one of the better buffers to help farmers diversify, and sustain, nutritional, environmental and financial security in times of change.
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12 - 13As an example of the principles described in the previous article, tribal farmers in India are being encouraged to plant underutilised indigenous wild trees on their land. This is in response to the fact that, in recent times, farming systems in central India have become less diversified and natural resources are becoming scarcer. Tribal communities living in remote areas are especially affected. While forest products were previously a major source of income, they are now being overexploited. Promotion of underutilised species can diversify farms, preserve forests and provide opportunities for income.
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14 - 15- LEISA Magazine: 25 years. - How I stay informed: Interview with subscriber Elcy Corrales Roa, Professor in Rural and Regional Development Studies, Colombia - Using LEISA Magazine to promote farmer exchange networks
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16 - 17written by Faris AhmedFarmers in the Yoro and Otoro regions of Honduras have organised themselves into agricultural research teams to improve the diversity and resilience of their farms. Supported by local and international organisations, these farmers have diversified their plant genetic resources and developed hardier varieties that grow well on their soils. Their success in producing improved varieties of maize and beans, and running local seed and gene banks has earned them national and international recognition.
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18 - 19written by Rajendra UpretyRajendra Uprety, an agriculture extension officer in Nepal, came across an article in LEISA Magazine on SRI, the System of Rice Intensification. It was new to him and made him curious. He contacted the author for more information, and then decided to try it out. The results were amazing. Now, eight years later, he has successfully introduced SRI in the region where he works, much to the benefit of the farmers he works with. He was also encouraged to write two articles for LEISA Magazine himself, and to participate in a World Bank competition, which he won!
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20 - 22written by David EdgeIn 1999, Aspen and David Edge bought Semilla Besada, a 12 hectare farm in southern Spain, with the intention of re-establishing its family farming tradition. They faced various challenges: the dryland environment, lack of markets and little social support. However, through using various management and design tools, encouraging diversity on the land and sustainably managing the grazing animals, the family is increasingly able to sustain itself.
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23 - 25written by Luohui Liang , Harold BrookfieldSupporters of small-scale farming claim that it provides livelihoods, and it can also conserve agrodiversity. In an attempt to show this, an international network of scientists joined hands with farmer communities to document agrodiversity. By sharing this knowledge with other farming communities, they showed how it is possible to achieve the twin goals of biodiversity conservation and improving local livelihoods.
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26 - 27We received many more articles about diversity and farming systems than we had space to publish. As we want to draw attention to the range of farming systems found in the world, we have decided to summarise some of the systems, practices and experiences that we found most interesting, and which were not covered in the rest of the magazine. The selection highlights different aspects of diversity: effective use of local biodiversity, a transition process to greater diversity, or simply a unique and interesting system!
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28 - 29written by Kazumi YamaokaRice in Japan has traditionally been grown on terraces built into volcanic slopes. With Green Revolution technology, however, rice fields in the plains became so productive that the terraced systems were threatened. When the Japanese people realised they were losing a valuable natural and cultural resource, farmers gained the support of the local and national governments in joint efforts to preserve the rice terraces as their spiritual home.
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30 - 31written by Miguel Gamboa , Vanaja RamprasadDemand for organic products continues to grow and outstrip the supply. How organic are these products, when they have to be transported over many miles to reach consumers? And how sustainable is organic produce, when it is grown on large farms, leaving less and less room for biodiversity?
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32 - 33written by Abraham Haile Mehari , Frank van SteenbergenSpate irrigation is an ancient form of water harvesting. It is a method of managing unpredictable and potentially destructive flash floods for crop and livestock production. By making water available, it can contribute to increasing the diversity of farming systems where it is found. It is the major source of livelihood for many communities in west Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Despite being the oldest type of irrigation, it is still the least studied, understood and documented.
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34 - 35written by A.H.M. Rezaul Haq , K. Wadud NawazA few years ago, we published an article written by Rezaul Haq, Tapan Kumar and Pritam Ghosh, called “Cultivating wetlands in Bangladesh”. This article looked at the work of a small NGO promoting “soil-less floating agriculture” in the south-western region of Bangladesh. This method was described as being highly productive and ecologically sound, especially considering that large areas of Bangladesh are continuously flooded. Due to the many advantages presented, we decided to ask the authors how their project is doing now.
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36 - 38Researchers and local policy makers acknowledge the values of traditional agricultural systems. But how can these systems be preserved? What kind of support do farmers need to keep developing their systems? Identifying “hot issues” that farmers face in their everyday working lives is a starting point. These can be addressed through governance mechanisms, designed to link politicians with people.
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39 - 39written by Veena Vidyadharan , Manoj Kumar TiwariThough the green revolution enabled India to attain food security, the technologies, subsidies and public support systems failed to address the problems of small-scale dryland agriculture. Diversified farming, being more economically and ecologically resilient, can reduce risk. Integrating livestock, growing a variety of crops and recycling farm produce as Mr Bairwa does, reduces the chance of crop failure. It also makes him less susceptible to price fluctuations.
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44 - 44The European Parliament voted to ban 22 pesticides to protect the health of consumers and farmers. Besides pesticide companies, large-scale farmers in Europe are protesting against the ban because they fear their yields and incomes will fall. Others see it as an important stimulus to develop alternative pest management methods, building on thousands of years of farming experience.
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