Economies of community in local agriculture: farmers in New London, Connecticut, respond to the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the weaknesses of the U.S. national food system, with grocery store shelves emptied in March and April 2020 and COVID outbreaks reported throughout the summer of 2020 at meat processing plants across the country. Fleetingly, Americans turned to local farms to ensure they could access food safely in a time of uncertainty. This paper examines the economies of community that formed around local farms and how direct engagements between consumers and producers in the face of the pandemic deepened these economic structures that often put community well-being above profits. Within a capitalist system that prioritizes efficient mass production, economies of community illustrate that solidarity can improve local food system resilience. Based on qualitative and quantitative research carried out in the summer of 2020 in New London County in southeastern Connecticut, this research draws on ethnographic interviews with small-scale farmers who developed innovative ways to feed some of their community's most vulnerable members. Community economies show that we should not only depend on standardized large-scale farms and giant retail distribution;the American food system needs to continue to cultivate small-scale local production in order to improve resilience and food access. At present, the sustainability of producing and distributing food occurs at the farmer's expense. The government needs to support local food producers so they can continue to play an integral part in community well-being.

School food at home: Brazil's national school food programme (PNAE) during the COVID-19 pandemic

School closures during the COVID-19 pandemic have hindered students' food access, particularly low-income students who rely on schools for their primary daily meals. School food programmes have adapted to pandemic conditions by providing school food at home (SF@H). We conceptually explore the changing geographies of school food during the pandemic by examining adaptations by Brazil's national school food programme (PNAE) and then comparing it to regular school food provision. Our research is informed by 43 interviews with public officials and civil society representatives from all regions of Brazil, ranging from high-level technocrats to frontline responders engaged with school food. Rapid response through national school food policy allowed schools to provide food at home as a pandemic relief effort by creating novel alternative food geographies that keep schools at the heart of agri-food systems. SF@H provide local family farmers with an alternative commercialisation channel to those compromised because of social distancing measures. SF@H also provided students – and, for the first time, their families – with access to food during home-based learning. While this has been important, we find that even when the state provides SF@H as a pandemic relief measure, low-income families are subject to additional burdens that accentuate the inequalities previously ameliorated at schools.Alternate :ResumenEl cierre de escuelas durante la pandemia del COVID-19 ha dificultado el acceso a los alimentos de los estudiantes, en particular de los estudiantes de bajos ingresos que dependen de las escuelas para sus comidas diarias principales. Los programas de alimentación escolar se han adaptado a las condiciones de la pandemia al proporcionar alimentación escolar en el hogar (SF@H). Exploramos conceptualmente las geografías cambiantes de la alimentación escolar durante la pandemia al examinar las adaptaciones del Programa Nacional de Alimentación Escolar (PNAE) de Brasil y luego compararlo con la provisión regular de alimentos escolar. Nuestra investigación se basa en 43 entrevistas con funcionarios públicos y representantes de la sociedad civil de todas las regiones de Brasil, desde tecnócratas de alto nivel hasta personal de primera línea comprometidos con la alimentación escolar. La respuesta rápida a través de la política nacional de alimentación escolar permitió a las escuelas proporcionar alimentos en el hogar como un esfuerzo de alivio a la pandemia mediante la creación de novedosas geografías alimentarias alternativas que mantuvieron a las escuelas en el corazón de los sistemas agroalimentarios. SF@H brinda a los agricultores locales familiares un canal de comercialización alternativo para aquellos comprometidos debido a las medidas de distanciamiento social. SF@H también proporcionó a los estudiantes y, por primera vez, a sus familias, acceso a alimentos durante el aprendizaje en el hogar. Si bien esto ha sido importante, encontramos que incluso cuando el Estado proporciona SF@H como medida de alivio a la pandemia, las familias de bajos ingresos están sujetas a cargas adicionales que acentúan las desigualdades que antes se mejoraban en las escuelas.

Improving Governance of Tenure in Policy and Practice: Agrarian and Environmental Transition in the Mekong Region and Its Impacts on Sustainability Analyzed through the ‘Tenure-Scape' Approach

Land relations in the Mekong Region are marked by the densely populated and intensively cultivated lowlands and the more extensive settlement and cultivation areas in the uplands. Land-use changes in the lowlands and uplands are interlinked and are a key process of agrarian and environmental transition. The ‘tenure-scape' approach is introduced as a qualitative analysis combining integrated landscape approaches, governance and rights-based approaches, while underlining the centrality of legitimate tenure rights, limitations and obligations. This approach is used to analyze the impact of the Green Revolution and the global commodity boom, in particular the growth of rubber and coffee, on sustainability in the Mekong countries, i.e., Cambodia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar and Viet Nam. The way forward points to the use of the elements of the ‘tenure-scape' approach to re-valuate the potential contribution of smallholder farmers to the wider physical and societal landscape. The ultimate goal is to go from transition to transformation toward a more secure, equitable future for those at risk of being excluded from effective access to, use of, and control over land, fisheries, forests and water resources, which are providing the basis for their livelihoods if the concession model of land-based investments were to be continued.

‘With agroecology, we can defend ourselves': examining campesino resilience and economic solidarity during pandemic-era economic shock in Guatemala

The global spread of Covid-19 led to travel and market restrictions that impacted Guatemala's rural food systems. This distinct economic shock directly affected campesinos, or small-scale farmers who depend on subsistence and commercial food production. Some Guatemalan farmer organizations have been promoting agroecology for decades in efforts to strengthen rural livelihoods and food sovereignty, defend Indigenous rights, and adapt to climate change, and agroecology is positioned as a tool for resilience to various shocks. We consider the neoliberal cooptation of the concept of resilience, and its usefulness in preserving alternative and previous (Indigenous) practices. Data from surveys and semi-structured interviews with farmers and leaders at eight organizations that promote agroecology suggests that prior engagement with a farmer organization, enacted through both agroecological practices and social networks, contributes to campesino resilience to the pandemic's economic shock at the farm level, with regards to production and consumption. This study illustrates the range and diversity of strategies taken up by campesinos during the pandemic, and considers the importance of social networks for collective actions that increase current and future economic solidarity in campesino communities.

Micro and small farms – element from the model for revitalizing of rural areas

The structural defining elements of the socio-economic model for the sustainability of rural development are closely related to the revitalization of the activities, processes and results of the functioning of economic units/actors in rural areas. We have used a double matrix socio-economic model that has the aim to determine what role do the micro and small farms have in socio-economic environment in Bulgaria, as well as how implementation of EU politics and national legislation affect them. Bulgarian agriculture has experienced major structural changes as a result of the restoration of ownership of agricultural land and in recent years, CAP policy the green deal, combined with COVID19 and the war in Ukraine has influenced heavily the processes happening to small and micro farms in Bulgaria and their role/place in agriculture. © 2022, Agricultural Academy, Bulgaria. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 Responses and Pivots in the Piedmont Region of North Carolina: A Call for Policy Reforms for Small Farmers

While the United States prioritizes agricultural legislation and assistance, policies passed both federally and locally are not always developed with small-scale farms in mind. This inequity became apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. By identifying how aid money was distributed during times of crisis, we were able to see how small-scale farms are supported through words rather than action. We examine small-scale farmers prior to and during the pandemic in the North Carolina Piedmont region. We focus on the role small-scale farmers and farmers markets play in a local agro-food system through a political economy perspective and highlight some of the challenges, barriers, and responses during the pandemic, including access to farm aid. In addition, we identify strategies for how small-scale farmers persisted during unprecedented times, especially during COVID-19.

Developing agribusiness of vegetables and seasonal fruits for strengthening economy of smallholder farmer households post the 2018 earthquakes and pandemic Covid-19 era in upland North Lombok West Nusa Tenggara

The general objective of the research were to analyse the acceleration of economic recovery and food security of smalllholder farmer househols post the 2018 earthquake and COVID-19 pandemic era through empowering farmer groups of dry land horticulture agribusiness based. The specific objective was determining and analysing the effect of the Pentha-helix approach, sinergy among Higher Education Institution, Local Government, Agricultural Extension officer, Bank and private enterprise in empowering farmers. It's mission were Better Farming, Better Business and Better Living. It was the longitudinal action research by implementing Participatory Action Research. The data was recoded from farmers target groups and 60 smallholder farmers in three villages nearby the pilot project village. The cross classification between food expenditure and sufficiency of energy consumption was used to measure the degree of food security of household. It's concluded that developing agribusiness of upland horticulture has high potential for reinforcement of economic recovery of smalholder farmer's household post the 2018 earthquakes and during pandemic COVID-19 era. Implementing Triple Helix and Pentahelix approach have a possitive impact for strenghtening and recovering economy of smalholders farmers households. They were in enough food category which depicted by 85.50% degree of energy consumption. Food scurity based on distribution of household food need was in the category of low expenditure of food (less than 60%). Food scurity of household based on cross combination between the dergree of energy consumption and the proportion of food expenditure were 61% of them were resistance to food scurity, 30.85% of household were vulnerable of food scurity, and 6.20% of households were troubled of food scurity and 61.25% of them were lack of food. They realize that North Lombok region is a tourism destination, so that they have high instrinsik motivation for growing vegetable crops and seasonal fruits. Therefore, supplying high economic value of vegetables and fruits, quality insurance and friendly environment of vegetables and fruits are needed to be sustained through implementing the penta helix approch.

Socioeconomic Characteristics Associated with Farming Practices, Food Safety and Security in the Production of Fresh Produce—A Case Study including Small-Scale Farmers in KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa)

Farmer practices may influence the microbial quality and safety of fresh produce. The increasing demands to create ready-to-eat (RTE) fresh produce while providing potential niche markets for smallholder farmers might be contributing to increased numbers of fresh produce-associated foodborne disease outbreaks. This study determined the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics and farmer hygiene practices of farmers using open-ended questionnaires and key informant interviews. Additionally, the relationships between farmer socioeconomic characteristics and hygiene practices were statistically analyzed. The semi-organic smallholder farmer population and the farmworkers of the organic farm were female-dominated. Tertiary education was a predominant characteristic in the organic and semi-conventional workforces. While the semi-organic and semi-conventional farms relied on a combination of ‘store-bought’ synthetic and composted organic fertilizers, the organic farm owner only used composted organic fertilizer. The irrigation water sources varied amongst the farm types. However, most of the semi-organic farmers did not pre-treat irrigation water prior to use. The irrigation water source and fertilizer type selected by farmers varied and might affect the microbial quality and safety of fresh produce. Socioeconomic factors such as gender and education may influence farmer hygiene practices. These characteristics should therefore be considered when planning farmer support interventions.

‘Smarter food’ needed to end global hunger by 2030

Not only can agricultural science and research help bolster the nutritional value of staple crops, but it can also produce hardier varieties that can withstand pests and disease, meaning more produce surviving to harvest and providing additional income as a buffer. Since 2013, quality potato seed, improved crop management and value chain approaches have helped more than two million smallholder farmers in Africa and Asia. [...]making the right crops available for changing climates and cultural environments, and improving the availability of resilient, adapted varieties relies on protecting a back catalogue of genetic material to safeguard different features of different crops. The economic benefits of conservation are clear: gene banks like CIP’s contributed almost three-quarters of the $1 billion generated by the Victoria potato variety alone in Uganda between 1991 and 2016, which is just one indication of the potential economic value of conservation and utilisation of genetic materials.

Q&A: Objective science news needed now more than ever

Speed read Smallholder farmers ‘absolutely critical’ in food security fight Invasive species biggest threat to biodiversity after habitat loss CABI programmes to focus on prediction, prevention The need for objective coverage of science is greater now than ever before, according to Daniel Elger, who took over last month as the chief executive of the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI, the parent organisation of SciDev.Net). If women farmers have access to the same resources as men, among smallholder farmers in particular, that would immediately reduce the number of hungry people worldwide by 150 million or so, which gives you an idea of some of the important social dimensions beyond food production. See PDF] When we think about the science base of the organisation now, we think about both natural sciences and social sciences, because so much of what we are trying to do is to achieve impact not only at the level of farmers being able to grow more crops and improve their productivity, but embedding that in positive broader social change, particularly in some of the really important, cross-cutting themes — climate, gender equity, and other themes that are crucial to our member countries.

Build diverse food systems for post-COVID-19 world

The spread of COVID-19 across the globe has led to never-before-experienced lockdown situations – which in turn are having a significant impact across agricultural systems – threatening food security for increasing numbers of people around the world. [...]the stark reality is that around half a billion smallholder farmers, who help produce almost 80 per cent of the food consumed in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa are not immune to the impacts of this crisis. Local, national and global food supply chains will falter if farmers cannot access inputs or supplies necessary for efficient production, get into their fields to sow their crops, fertilize appropriately, manage pest and weed problems, harvest perishable products such as fruits and vegetables, or participate in markets because of lockdowns.

Creating Food Value Chain Transformations through Regional Food Hubs: A Review Article

This article synthesizes the evidence on food value chains (FVCs) and regional food hubs (RFHs) through a systematic literature review and suggests future research directions based on the gaps identified in the review. The number of publications on FVCs and RFHs is increasing, indicating that these topics are gaining interest among scholars from different countries and disciplines. Bibliometric analysis and preferred reporting items for systematic review and a meta-analysis (PRISMA) flow chart are used to identify the data from Scopus. The results show that FVCs are an innovative solution to improve the skills and capacity of smallholder farmers through collaborative networks that can match the functions of RFHs. RFHs connect local producers and customers by operating a business based on social entrepreneurship and ecological approaches to increase local economic viability and the sustainability of agriculture products. FVCs and RFHs are designed to respond to supply chain insecurity with value-based approaches in order to achieve sustainable nutrition for the local community. Further research on FVCs and RFHs emphasizes that the business model of regional development in developing countries can improve food security sustainability based on social entrepreneurship, and emphasizes the environmental aspect that it can use to support the sustainability of developing countries local food.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the economy of oil palm smallholder's household income

Purpose>This study aimed to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the oil palm smallholders' income, which includes both on-farm and off-farm resources.Design/methodology/approach>This study used a simultaneous equations system for arranging the oil palm household economic model.Findings>The results showed that the negative effect of demand disruption (decreasing of household income) is more than supply disruption (production declining). Declining household income due to COVID-19 caused farmer households to have no access to both basic need and other goods.Research limitations/implications>The samples for before-pandemic data differed from the situation during COVID-19 in both the location and the person due to technical constraints in research sites.Originality/value>The main contribution of this study was providing an empirical understanding of how the COVID-19 pandemic influences the economic behavior of the most vulnerable entities in the Indonesian palm oil industry (oil palm smallholder farmers' households). This study would provide baseline information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy of oil palm smallholder's household income.

Dissenting Bodies, Disruptive Pandemic: Farmers' Protest and Women's Participation in Mass Mobilisation in India

While authoritarian states promoting neoliberal forms of governance have taken advantage of COVID-19 to weaken the foundations of civil society, there has also been a significant rise in contemporary struggles for a more democratic society during and around the pandemic. From December 2019 to November 2021, India has seen a significant number of protests. The timeline of collective resistance against the state and its divisive, violent and neoliberal agenda represents a critical juncture in Indian politics. This paper focuses on the farmers' protests that started from last November and recently ended in a stunning, hard-earned victory. In a sector that is overwhelmingly male-dominated and deeply patriarchal, women farmers have come out on the streets protesting the controversial Farm Laws hastily passed by the Indian government in September 2019 that threatened to corporatize farming and increase exploitation and marginalisation of small farmers. What is most interesting about the farmers' protests is large-scale participation of women across caste, class, occupational, and religious divide which has changed the composition and dynamics of collective resistance and demonstrate how organised and collective resistance can become symbols of solidarity and intersectional dissent. The paper will examine the role of gender and female agency in protests by female occupying bodies in physical spaces particularly when under the pretext of COVID -19 crisis management the state has severely pushed back against citizens right to dissent and fight for justice. The farmer's protest has brought to the fore women's role in mass mobilisations. Women's participation in the protest has tremendous significance for women's movement for justice, equality and rights and can pose a real challenge to the return of the 'Strong State'.

Impact of the COVID-19 health crisis on small farms and prospects for a sustainable food system in Tunisia

Covid-19 had a negative effect economically and socially in Tunisia, as illustrated by the highest mortality rate recorded in Africa in March 2020 and the economic growth rate estimated at -9.3% by the Central Bank of Tunisia in 2020. The main cause of this situation is the quarantine and the sudden halt of several activities resulting in the drop in domestic demand and the loss of Tunisia's main trading partners. The agricultural sector, and particularly small and family farms, forced to align with the quarantine measures since March 2020, have suffered the full impact of Covid-19. Indeed, the pandemic crisis put a strain on food supply chains: a complex network of interactions involving farmers, agricultural inputs, processing plants, retailers, and others. This study proposes to analyze the impact of the sanitary crisis, and of the national lockdown measures imposed since March 22, 2020, on small farms in the most vulnerable rural areas of Tunisia and on the functioning of small local chains. A survey based on the approach of the Participatory Systemic Rapid Diagnosis (PSRD) was conducted during the month of June 2020 just after 2 months of containment, with a sample of 240 farmers operating in local channels and distributed from north to south of Tunisia on 6 governorates the poorest and most vulnerable, according to the economic development indicator and poverty line. The results of this survey have shown that the health crisis has resulted in major disruptions to agricultural activities mainly at the level of supply chains of raw materials (treatment products, fertilizers, seeds, animal feed, ... etc.), and marketing channels due to the closure of weekly markets (leafy vegetables, small livestock, ... etc.). This dysfunction of the production system and local agricultural sectors has not only had an impact on farmers' incomes, which have dropped significantly compared to a normal year, but has also disrupted the functioning of the entire food system at the local level. Consequently, the need for a new model of production, processing, and marketing of food products is necessary.

Public Food Procurement: A Transformative Instrument for Sustainable Food Systems

A key characteristic of public food procurement is that it offers the opportunity to determine the way food is procured in addition to what type of food is purchased (local, diverse, nutritious, healthy, culturally appropriate, etc.), from whom (smallholder farmers, small and medium food enterprises, women, youth, and/or other vulnerable groups), and from which type of production (from agroecology or organic or other modes of agricultural production that ensure environmental sustainability as well as biodiversity). The outcomes framework highlighted multilevel governance, a sustainable food supply system, and healthy and sustainable food services as the main action areas for a sustainable food procurement strategy, along with six transversal features: long-term commitment, investment, evaluation, communication, gender, and a holistic approach. Elena Pagliarino, Elena Santanera, and Greta Falavigna of the Italian Research Institute on Sustainable Economic Growth discuss a case study of an Italian school where researchers examined the extent to which parents were willing to participate in food procurement decisions, as well as their ability to predict what foods children would pick at school lunch and their willingness to support sustainable food choices made by the school.

Drivers of farmers' success during the first wave of COVID-19

The paper deals with the analysis of the sources of competitiveness in the group of small farmers during the first wave of COVID-19. The aim is to reveal the drivers of farmer's success under introduced institutional measures. In particular, the paper addresses the following research questions: Does the group of small farmers catch up the opportunity to enhance their business? What are the sources of farmers' success? The results show that almost two third of interviewees were affected by the first wave of COVID-19 in the production and sale. The farmers faced problems with delivery of inputs, hiring labour inputs, increased sanitary requirements, limited or functionless some marketing channels and the ban on foreign trade. On the other hand, the analysis revealed that the costumers increased their demand on local and higher quality food. Moreover, farmers introduced several business innovations, such as the introduction of online payment methods and online technologies in the sale. Furthermore, they were pushed to speed up the prepared investments projects. These activities helped to increase the sales during the first wave of the COVID-19 and might represent drivers of success in their future business.

Impact de la crise sanitaire Covid-19 sur les petites exploitations agricoles et perspectives pour un système alimentaire durable en Tunisie

Covid-19 had a negative effect economically and socially in Tunisia, as illustrated by the highest mortality rate recorded in Africa in March 2020 and the economic growth rate estimated at-9.3% by the Central Bank of Tunisia in 2020. The main cause of this situation is the quarantine and the sudden halt of several activities resulting in the drop in domestic demand and the loss of Tunisia’s main trading partners. The agricultural sector, and particularly small and family farms, forced to align with the quarantine measures since March 2020, have suffered the full impact of Covid-19. Indeed, the pandemic crisis put a strain on food supply chains: a complex network of interactions involving farmers, agricultural inputs, processing plants, retailers, and others. This study proposes to analyze the impact of the sanitary crisis, and of the national lock-down measures imposed since March 22, 2020, on small farms in the most vulnerable rural areas of Tunisia and on the functioning of small local chains. A survey based on the approach of the Participatory Systemic Rapid Diagnosis (PSRD) was conducted during the month of June 2020 just after 2 months of containment, with a sample of 240 farmers operating in local channels and distributed from north to south of Tunisia on 6 governorates the poorest and most vulnerable, according to the economic development indicator and poverty line. The results of this survey have shown that the health crisis has resulted in major disruptions to agricultural activities mainly at the level of supply chains of raw materials (treatment products, fertilizers, seeds, animal feed, … etc.), and marketing channels due to the closure of weekly markets (leafy vegetables, small livestock, … etc.). This dysfunction of the production system and local agricultural sectors has not only had an impact on farmers’ incomes, which have dropped significantly compared to a normal year, but has also disrupted the functioning of the entire food system at the local level. Consequently, the need for a new model of production, processing, and marketing of food products is necessary. © 2022, Bononia University Press. All rights reserved.

What Affects the Livelihood Risk Coping Preferences of Smallholder Farmers? A Case Study from the Eastern Margin of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China

As the smallest livelihood unit in rural areas, farmers often face multiple risks. Rational responses to livelihood risks not only prevent households from falling into poverty, but also improve the sustainability of family livelihoods. This is essential to the sustainable development of rural areas. This paper takes the region located in the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in China as an example, using household survey data to analyze farmers’ livelihood risk coping strategies and their key factors through a binary logistic model. The results show that 92.80% of farmers face the shock of multiple livelihood risks. The main livelihood risks of farmers are family capacity building risk, health risk and social risk. When faced with multiple livelihood risks, farmers have the strongest preference to give priority to health risks, followed by family capacity building risks and social risks. Among them, farmers’ health risk coping preferences are stronger in farming areas than those in purely pastoral and farming-pastoral areas. There are differences in the factors for farmers’ preferences for coping with different livelihood risks. Human capital is a key factor for health risk coping preferences. Human capital and social capital are key factors for social risk coping preferences. Social capital is a key factor for family capacity building risk coping preferences. Finally, this paper puts forward countermeasures and suggestions to provide reference for farmers rationally coping with livelihood risks.

IoT as a Backbone of Intelligent Homestead Automation

The concepts of smart agriculture, with the aim of highly automated industrial mass production leaning towards self-farming, can be scaled down to the level of small farms and homesteads, with the use of more affordable electronic components and open-source software. The backbone of smart agriculture, in both cases, is the Internet of Things (IoT). Single-board computers (SBCs) such as a Raspberry Pi, working under Linux or Windows IoT operating systems, make affordable platform for smart devices with modular architecture, suitable for automation of various tasks by using machine learning (ML), artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision (CV). Similarly, the Arduino microcontroller enables the building of nodes in the IoT network, capable of reading various physical values, wirelessly sending them to other computers for processing and furthermore, controlling electronic elements and machines in the physical world based on the received data. This review gives a limited overview of currently available technologies for smart automation of industrial agricultural production and of alternative, smaller-scale projects applicable in homesteads, based on Arduino and Raspberry Pi hardware, as well as a draft proposal of an integrated homestead automation system based on the IoT.