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International Year of Family Farming…Family farms represent 80 per cent of all farm holdings – UN
The 2014 International Year of Family Farming (IYFF) aims to raise the profile of family and smallholder farming by focusing world attention on its significant role in eradicating hunger and poverty, providing food security and nutrition, improving livelihoods, managing natural resources, protecting the environment, and achieving sustainable development, in particular in rural areas.
The United Nations launched the International Year of Family Farming (2014) in an effort to highlight the potential family farming in eradicating hunger, preserving natural resources and promoting sustainable development.
There are an estimated 500 million family farms.
There are an estimated 500 million family farms – those that rely primarily on family members for labour and management – across the developed and developing world, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
These farms produce the food that feed billions of people, the agency noted in a news release, adding that in many developing countries, family farms represent up to 80 per cent of all farm holdings.
“With the global population expected to reach 9.6 billion by 2050, family farmers and ranchers have a great challenge before them to be able to feed and clothe people around the world,” said National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson.
“Production and conservation practices must be geared towards improving the productivity of the land in a sustainable fashion. With more mouths to feed and strained natural resources, it is now more important than ever to invest in conservation practices that help farmers adapt to a changing climate.”
The goal of the 2014 IYFF is to reposition family farming at the centre of agricultural, environmental and social policies in the national agendas by identifying gaps and opportunities to promote a shift towards a more equal and balanced development. The 2014 IYFF will promote broad discussion and cooperation at the national, regional and global levels to increase awareness and understanding of the challenges faced by smallholders and help identify efficient ways to support family farmers.
What is Family Farming?
Family farming includes all family-based agricultural activities, and it is linked to several areas of rural development. Family farming 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.
Both in developing and developed countries, family farming is the predominant form of agriculture in the food production sector.
At the national level, there are a number of factors that are key for a successful development of family farming, such as: agro-ecological conditions and territorial characteristics; policy environment; access to markets; access to land and natural resources; access to technology and extension services; access to finance; demographic, economic and socio-cultural conditions and availability of specialized education among others.
Family farming has an important socio-economic, environmental and cultural role.
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