Abstract
This paper draws on evidence from a field study of three organic agriculture development projects in Cambodia to look critically at the pursuit of organic agriculture as a rural development strategy in a context of rapid agrarian transition. I find that organic agriculture is a successful strategy for some households to improve the viability of land-based livelihoods as part of broader livelihood strategies, particularly within projects most closely aligned with an agroecological understanding valuing diversity and farmer knowledge. However, there are inherent contradictions in prescribing northern, market driven notions of farming success into the very different cultural and ecological settings of the Global South, and certification requirements, resource constraints and labor requirements can exclude some farmers. I argue that analysis of organic-farming as a rural development strategy needs to understand not just the direct economic returns, for the non-economic aspects, the broader socio-political contexts of uneven agrarian transition, and the ideology and practices of development agencies have a large bearing on the poverty reduction potential of organic farming.
Highlights
Cambodia, like many countries in the Global South, is undergoing a rapid agrarian transition as processes of rural and urban change make farmingbased livelihoods less viable and off-farm options more accessible
I structure this paper in two broad sections: I outline the literature on organic agriculture in the Global South and explain Cambodia’s agrarian transition; I use my empirical research to draw out four themes that can broaden the debate on the potential for organics in the Global South
System of Rice Intensification (SRI) methods are not synonymous with organic agriculture, but appear to work well in organic and low-input systems in Cambodia ( the benefits of SRI are widely debated in the broader literature ((Uphoff, 2004), and these findings suggest that more research into the abilities for SRI methods to reduce labor requirements in organic systems be pursued (Resurreccion, Sajor, & Sophea, 2008))
Summary
Like many countries in the Global South, is undergoing a rapid agrarian transition as processes of rural and urban change make farmingbased livelihoods less viable and off-farm options more accessible. Barham and Callenes (2011) look beyond the farm gate in their study of the importance of organic coffee production in the broader livelihood activities of Nicaraguan smallholders, and find that while organic production has increased, this is a much smaller percentage of household income than migration remittances from the United States. This underlines the importance of understanding the household farm as just one aspect of rural people’s daily life, a perspective well articulated in the sustainable livelihoods approach that recognizes rural people’s diverse occupations, and the increased fluidity of rural/urban livelihoods (Scoones, 2009). Given that agrarian transformations and the ways these are understood by development agencies and farmers have a large impact on farmer experiences of organic agriculture, I sketch out the national and global shifts that are transforming rural life in Cambodia
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