Agroecology and the Struggle for Food Sovereignty ... - Yale University

urban/rural and producer/consumer relations and food systems
115
Urban/Rural and Producer/Consumer
Relations and Food Systems
Report by Alder Keleman
This session addressed the challenges of maintaining the economic and social
viability of small-scale agricultural production in the context of increasing
agricultural industrialization and the “rural exodus” from farming regions to urban
centers. Discussion centered on strategies for making small-scale production
economically competitive with industrial agriculture, and tactics to involve young
people in farming. However, the conversation also reflected practitioners’ convictions
that movements to support small-scale agriculture must not be limited to the
economic and the technological, but must also be political. While participants agreed
on the significance of political action, they also acknowledged the importance of
approaching politics in a way that creates lasting change, rather than simply recreating
existing power structures.
Examples of strategies for supporting small-scale agriculture were offered by
Sérgio Lopes from RECA in Acre, Brazil; Alberto Gómez Flores from UNORCA in
Mexico; and Catherine Murphy from FLACSO in Cuba. Emphasizing the need to
make small-scale producers’ products economically competitive with the products of
larger industrial interests, Lopes asserted that, in the experience of RECA, it has been
indispensable to “learn the rules of capitalism.” For his organization, which runs a
packaging and marketing plant for the products grown by its producers, this learning
process has entailed building the capacity to comply with the same hygienic standards
that large-scale producers are required to follow. Central to this process, Lopes
related, has been RECA’s desire to go beyond niche markets for rainforest products
and its commitment to making RECA’s socially responsible, organic, high-quality
products accessible to the average consumer. The success of organizations like RECA,
he asserted, should not be due to niche market-based charity, but underpinned by
quality-based competitiveness in larger market arenas.
Gómez’s comments seconded many of Lopes’ themes. Drawing from UNORCA’s
experience in Mexico, Gómez discussed how farmers can come together in networks
to put together a diverse package of marketable agricultural goods. In this strategy,
production remains farmers’ primary task, but a focus on integrating production
activities with business savvy also becomes central. This tactic eliminates
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