Publisher:

Instytut Rozwoju Wsi i Rolnictwa Polskiej Akademii Nauk

Place of publishing:

Warszawa

Type of object:

Journal/Article

Abstract:

Family farms are one of America’s cultural icons and an important element ofAmerican farming tradition. However, their definition is neither clear-cut nor unambiguous; asindicated by the authors of this article, the role and significance of family farms are differentfor all currently used definitions. Comparing and contemplating the definitions specified bythe USDA and UN-FAO, as well as the concepts put forth by American organizations, e. g. theNational Family Farm Coalition or Family Farm Defenders, the authors point out sizabledifferences in numbers and basic characteristics of family farms. These differences result fromfactors related to scale of production, extent of land ownership and tenancy, as well as varioussocial and regional influences. The two latter categories encompass issues affecting mid-sizedfarms (agriculture of the middle), the significance of income from extra-agricultural labor forthe family farm budget, the role and importance of hired labor, and the characteristics andextent of land tenancy. The authors stress the importance of family farming in maintaining thevitality of local communities and food security in the US along with its role in protectingbiodiversity and the environment. The closing part of the article focuses on addressing USrural policy, which should count protecting family farms among its key goals.

References:

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Family Farm Defenders, 2014: Web site: http://familyfarmers.org/?page_id=2 (Retrieved August 23, 2014).
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MacDonald J., 2014: Family Farming in the United States. USDA-ERS, Amber Waves, March.
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Relation:

Wieś i Rolnictwo

Issue:

1.1 (166.1)

Start page:

45

End page:

57

Resource Identifier:

oai:rcin.org.pl:243076 ; doi:10.53098/wir.2015.1.1.166.1/03 ; 0137-1673 (print); 2657-5213 (on-line)

Source:

click here to follow the link

Language:

en

Language of abstract:

eng

Rights:

Creative Commons Attribution BY 4.0 license

Terms of use:

Copyright-protected material. [CC BY 4.0] May be used within the scope specified in Creative Commons Attribution BY 4.0 license, full text available at:

Digitizing institution:

Institute of Rural and Agricultural Development of the Polish Academy of Sciences

Original in:

Library of the Institute of Rural and Agriculture Development of the PAS

Projects co-financed by:

"Development of scientific journals" program - Ministry of Science and Higher Education (project number RCN/SP/0473/2021/1)

Access:

Open