The structural heterogeneity of family farming in Brazil

Abstract

Regional and productive inequality may stem from the agricultural modernization process, in which some agents are able to incorporate and absorb technological content, while others are excluded, not only from the innovative organizational environment, but also from learning processes and the dissemination of new production techniques and knowledge. This paper analyses family farming, by making comparisons in regional terms and by groups of producers using high, medium and low technology. It also calculates the productive inequality index (Gini coefficient of gross income) of the north, north-east, centre-west, south-east and south regions. In view of the regional differentiation, the size of enterprises and the various levels of technological growth, public policies should focus on reducing the disparities that hamper the dissemination of new knowledge and productivity growth among economic agents, leading to greater productive inclusion.