More than money
Agriculture has a fundamental role to play in supporting and shaping our present-day societies. It has far greater value to humans than the market price for the final produce: Agriculture could potentially form the basis for strong rural communities and their economic activities, provide healthy food and maintain ecosystem services such as clean air and water, recycling of nutrients, and the maintenance of biodiversity and attractive landscapes.
In this issue of LEISA Magazine we have tried to bring together examples of how people have been able to create a richer and more sustainable livelihood through wise use of their natural resources and the available opportunities. Strengthening their communities has often proven to be an essential part of this process.
LEISA Magazine • 21.2 • June 2005
Table of contents:
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4 - 5written by ILEIA editorial teamAgriculture has a fundamental role to play in supporting and shaping our present-day societies. It has far greater value to humans than the market price for the final produce: Agriculture could potentially form the basis for strong rural communities and their economic activities, provide healthy food and maintain ecosystem services such as clean air and water, recycling of nutrients, and the maintenance of biodiversity and attractive landscapes. In this issue of LEISA Magazine we have tried to bring together examples of how people have been able to create a richer and more sustainable livelihood through wise use of their natural resources and the available opportunities. Strengthening their communities has often proven to be an essential part of this process.
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6 - 9written by Jelson T Garcia , Lindsey MulkinsIn 1984 the Oray family in the Philippines decided to change their farming practices. They wanted to achieve food security for the family, to control of the entire production process and make optimal use of the natural resources available to them. The process turned out to be lengthy and difficult, but by using the family’s own resources and the support of local organizations, the Oray family managed to transform its farm from a sugarcane monoculture into an integrated and diversified farm with a variety of animal and plant components. This change has made it possible for the family to meet their needs and has made life less risky than it used to be.
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10 - 11written by José Juárez VarelaIn 1979, small-scale coffee farmers of Chiapas decided to join forces to strengthen their communities and to improve their living conditions. They founded the Unión de Ejidos de la Selva, which gradually developed from a social pressure group into an organization with an own development model that builds on the principles of self-sufficiency, cultural traditions and identity, development of local products and direct marketing links with consumers. The Union now exports organic coffee to USA, Canada and Europe. With the help of a strategic partner, Vínculo y Desarrollo, it has also started promoting the concept of coffee shops with its own brand name: Café La Selva, making it possible to market the coffee at more competitive prices and to generate more benefits for the members.
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12 - 13written by Tracy PerkinsHorta e Arte is the largest organic vegetable seller and distributor in Brazil. What makes it special is that it works with small-scale farmers. Over the years, Horta e Arte has provided farmers with technical assistance on organic farming. It has also provided the commercial and administrative infrastructure necessary for effective marketing and sales. Organic vegetables produced by small-scale farmers are now sold in supermarkets in the major cities of Brazil, and the farmers are reaping the financial and ecological benefits.
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14 - 15written by Lena WiethegerIn 1999 the Export Promotion of Organic Products from Africa (EPOPA) programme started assisting small-scale coffee farmers in northern Tanzania to produce organic coffee for export. Organic certification was seen as a way to provide financial, social and environmental benefits. An extension programme was launched with the objective to improve agronomic practices as well as post-harvest activities. As a result, yields increased, the quality of the coffee improved and organic farmers could sell their product at a 50 percent higher price than their conventional neighbours. But benefits have not come equally to all farmers: Those with more land and many coffee trees benefited more from the premium prices than farmers with few trees, who still struggle to make a living from coffee. Alternative sources of income may still be required for farmers with little land and few coffee trees.
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16 - 17written by Laura Sayre.Jeff Klinge, a US farmer, got interested in organic farming when he realized that the increased returns from organic produce would enable him to keep farming fulltime and still make a decent living, something which was not possible with conventional farming. By comparing their expenses and returns with those of Klinge’s brother’s farm nearby, the Klinge family clearly showed that net profits of organic farming were much higher than those of conventional farming. However, the current government policy, based on federal subsidies, supports and promotes conventional farming. Faced with the social and environmental effects of conventional agriculture, Klinge is trying to get political support for a change in policy that supports and promotes good stewardship and discourages an agricultural system that thrives on federal incomes.
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18 - 19Most slash-and-burn farmers in Honduras can not cultivate their plots for more than two years. After that, the fertility is gone, the plots are invaded by weeds and they have to look for new land – thereby causing rapid deforestation. To address these problems, extensive research was carried out to understand the changes in nutrient availability, in particular phosphorus, related to slash-and-burn agriculture. With this understanding, an alley-cropping system based on the tree Inga edulis was developed to enable continuous crop production. The results of this cropping system show that the soil fertility can be maintained, that weeds are suppressed and that it is possible to grow crops on a continuous basis. In addition, the trees contribute to meeting fuelwood needs.
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20 - 20written by Peter MoersThe Honduran COMAL network, comprising over forty farmers associations and NGOs, tries to strengthen the local economy by purchasing basic consumer goods from farmers at a fair price and distributing them through hundreds of community shops reaching thousands of families. Strohalm, a Dutch organization assists COMAL in making local production chains longer and replace imported items with locally produced goods. An attempt is made to better integrate the local agro-industry chains for coffee and sugar production in order to keep scarce money circulating through the local economy for as long as possible, benefiting both producers and consumers.
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21 - 21written by Michael Hooper , Menka ParekhFor many years, crippling debts forced villagers living on the borders of Thailand’s Khao Yai National Park to resort to poaching, illegal logging and land encroachment. Money-lenders would charge very high interest rates and take farmers’ land and property if they could not pay back their loans. The local CBIRD centre realized that something had to be done; it helped the people of Sub Tai village establish an innovative credit cooperative, the Sub Tai Environmental Protection Society (EPS), which provides loans for ecologically beneficial and income generating activities if they do not poach or log illegally. Since the initiation of the EPS, Sub Tai community has escaped from debt, doubled its income as a group, and reduced illegal deforestation by 75%. The beneficiaries are now able to turn to mainstream private credit providers as their credit worthiness has improved. This experience shows how creative microfinance can support both livelihoods and biodiversity.
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22 - 23written by Joachim Schröder , AGRO ACTION ALLEMANDEWhen drought hit the Dogon people of Mali a few years ago, a German NGO initiated a seed aid programme that, in stead of being based on the import of foreign seed, depended on the re-distribution of locally-adapted seed. A number of difficulties had to be solved, however, such as the inexistence of an emergency seed distribution system, farmers’ reluctance to acknowledge lack of seed and a taboo on trading local varieties commercially. The local seed aid programme proved successful. This was the direct result of involving local structures and actors; and of the leading role they played in the organization of seed collection and distribution, and the management of a voucher system introduced to overcome the taboo of selling seed.
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23 - 23written by SEARICEIn an effort to restore farmers´ inherent right to save, use, exchange and sell seeds, SEARICE supports the establishment of community seed banks in the Philippines.
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24 - 25Cambodian’s civil wars have seriously affected the country’s agro-biodiversity and the farmers’ traditional knowledge in this field. The PEDIGREA project aims at conserving on-farm agro-biodiversity conservation and in Cambodia it focuses on vegetable diversity. It tries to link the preservation of genetic diversity to markets. Using a FFS approach that includes participatory plant breeding, farmers are encouraged to select varieties, improve them through crossbreeding and store their seed. Strategies to improve farmers’ marketing opportunities are also being developed. In one location, the result of the FFS has been the establishment of a farmer research group to produce and manage seed resources and diversity, as well as a marketing group to coordinate the pooling of vegetable production area and information. This way farmers have been encouraged to think not only of yield potential but also of marketing potential.
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26 - 27Through Farmer Field Schools on Integrated Nutrient Management, farmers in Uganda managed to increase their capacity to analyze their farming systems and to apply practices that ensure good soil management. But the experience created a wider impact as well; it catalyzed the formation of community-based organizations. These organizations have led to the development of stronger and more cooperative relationships within the community, and the financial contributions made by the members have made it possible to buy improved seeds and farm inputs – without expensive credits. Through the organization, it has also become possible to establish relationships with other organizations to the benefit of the whole farmer community.
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28 - 29Small-scale vegetable farmers in Vietnam often depend on the use of hazardous pesticides to maintain intensive vegetable production. However, following several food poisoning scandals in the country, consumers as well as the government are becoming increasingly aware of food safety problems and the damage caused by pesticide residues. This has led to an increased interest in producing “safe” vegetables and the formation of “safe” vegetable farmers’ cooperatives. The cooperatives mainly sell their produce to intermediaries and company canteens. Member farmers stand a good chance of getting a higher price for their “healthier” products. This is a promising development, but much more coordination between farmers, assemblers, wholesalers and retailers is still needed to increase the demand for safe vegetables at all levels in society.
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29 - 29written by John Andrew Siame (Dr.)When the Zambian government removed subsidies for agricultural inputs a decade ago, the price of inorganic fertilizers increased sharply. As a result, many small-scale farmers resumed traditional crop fertilization practices including the use of termite mound soil. The chemical and physical properties of termite soil improve crop growth, especially on the poor soils in Southern Zambia. Maize yields were 33% higher than they had been when inorganic fertilizers were used and the positive effects were long lasting. This shows that termite soil is a viable option for farmers who cannot afford to buy inorganic fertilizers.
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30 - 31written by Rajendra UpretyAverage rice yields in Morang district in Nepal are low because farmers use older-generation seeds and cultivation practices are not optimal. Having read about the success of SRI (= System of Rice Intensification) in other countries, the author decided to try this technology on his farm, with excellent results. This encouraged several other farmers to plant their regular season rice crop using the SRI system. They found that SRI rice needed less time to mature than conventional rice, and that all but one SRI crops yielded at least twice as much grain as traditionally grown rice.
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36 - 36written by David BoermaWorldwide, valuable agro-ecosystems and landscapes have been created, shaped and maintained by generations of farmers and herders. These agri “cultural” systems testify to millennia of highly interdependent co-evolution of human societies with their natural environments, and they are increasingly being recognized as a major resource for food security, poverty alleviation, and community resilience. However, many factors threaten the sustainability of these agricultural heritage systems and for that reason FAO has developed the GIAHS initiative to help safeguarding these systems. A key concern of the initiative is to allow these systems to adapt to the changing surroundings and to strengthen their capacity to provide for peoples’ livelihoods.
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