Small Commercial Farms Research Articles

Halloumi: exporting to retain traditional food products

This case study considers what marketing action the producers of halloumi in the Republic of Cyprus ought to take to secure their domestic and export markets. Halloumi is promoted as the national branded product of Cyprus. Its manufacture in Cyprus is mainly undertaken by large dairy producers, but a substantial part of production still remains with small commercial enterprises and farms. Consumption in the Republic is mediated through tourism that acts both to increase consumption and as a conduit to create export demand. The current structure of support for, and supply of milk for the cheese in general, and halloumi in particular, will change when Cyprus enters the EU in 2004.

COMPARATIVE TRENDS IN LAND-USE UNDER DIFFERENT LEVELS OF POPULATION DENSITY: THE CASE OF GUTU DISTRICT IN ZIMBABWE

ABSTRACT Four land tenure categories in Zimbabwe's Gutu district of Masvingo Province, comprising communal areas, resettlement areas, small and large-scale commercial farms, were selected to investigate the environmental impact of resource exploitation under different population densities. Results indicate that although high population density has initiated environmental degradation in the form of deforestation, decline in grazing resources and increased erosion, similar trends have also emerged under low population densities. With the main environmental problems arising from under-landing in communal areas, over-landing in commercial farms and unsatisfactory land-use practices in resettlement areas under the aegis of soft-state policies incapable of enforcing appropriate conservation methods, the need to re-examine land-use under different tenure systems is an overdue prerequisite.

Multifamily farms and America's farm structure: A new perspective on an old issue

AbstractThis study examined the extent and nature of multifamily farms in Iowa. Based on a random sample phone survey conducted in 1997, it was found that over one-fourth (26%) of Iowa's farms would be classified as multifamily farms. Multifamily farms showed significant differences from their single-family farm counterparts in several areas. They tended to have younger operators and larger operations, and the operators were more likely to consider farming as their principal occupation. In addition, they had more diverse operations and generated larger farm and family incomes. The farms were further classified based on their annual sales. As expected, non-commercial farms (sales less than $50,000) had the lowest percentage of multifamily farms (21%). Smallcommercial farms with sales from $50,000 to $250,000 were 30% multifamily, while large-commercial farms were 35% multifamily. The study also addressed whether or not policy restrictions based on age and income would discriminate against farms due to the multifamily farm phenomenon. A logit regression analysis was performed to determine if a multifamily structure was significant in predicting whether or not a farm was small. The results showed that multifamily relations were not a significant predictor. A growing phenomenon in U.S. agriculture, namely the multifamily farm, was examined. A significant percentage of Iowa farms was found to be multifamily. There were many differences between multifamily and single-family farms, but these differences did not display any predictive power. More research is needed in order to understand multifamily farms, a structure that will likely continue to grow and influence U.S. agriculture and outreach programs.

The intensification of traditional agriculture among Yucatec Maya Farmers: Facing up to the dilemma of livelihood sustainability

This article discusses the change among Yucatec Maya farmers from traditional shifting milpa agriculture to intensive horticultural production for the Mexican market. The process of agricultural intensification among this group of peasant farmers has involved movement toward an increasingly sedentary form of production which has heightened reliance on the use of chemicals with negative consequences for the environment. The research, which focuses on the pressure on producers to abandon more sustainable forms of cultural controls against crop loss in favor of modern chemical controls, raises the issue of the transferability of sustainable traditional technology to small commercial farmers in the tropics. More specifically, the article draws attention to the sometimes overlooked issue of economic, as well as environmental, sustainability in discussions on agricultural development and resource management.

Research Review of Consumer and Small Farm Horticulture

Abstract Those responsible for publicly sponsored agricultural research are frequently accused of serving only the interests of large-scale commercial agriculture and the agri-business and agri-chemical industries. Instead of denying this charge, spokesmen for federal and state research institutions often express the opinion that we must concentrate our limited research resources on the primary source of our impressive food and fiber production, which is large-scale agriculture. This kind of rhetoric has nurtured the impression that very little agricultural research is applicable to small farm or garden enterprises, because administrators of agricultural research do not consider these enterprises important. It seemed to us, therefore, that the first requirement in assessing the research and research needs of consumer horticulture was to ascertain the numerical importance of the likely beneficiaries of small farm research and the potential contribution to human welfare of such research. We chose to consider research for all small agricultural enterprises, because the same technology should apply to small, intensively cultivated plots whether they are home gardens, small commercial farms with high value crops, or subsistence farms.

Women and Small Farm Revival: The Division of Labor and Decision-Making on Maine's Organic Farms

Reacting to the intensified contradictions of the capitalist food system, many agrarian activists seek to revitalize family labor farms, to make agriculture ecologically sustainable, to renew the social and economic life of rural communities, and to create an unalienated labor process. While the agrarian movement is fragmented along lines of ideology, issue priorities and tactics, it is fundamentally in the populist tradition. This problematic of neo-populism, with its contradictory progressive and petty bourgeois tendencies, provides the context for an analysis of production relations on Maine's organic farms. The division of labor and decision-making authority on these farms is shown to conform closely to the age-old pattern of male dominance. Evidence from a survey of small commercial organic farms suggests that most women face a "double," and some a "triple burden" of farm, household and off-farm labor; that their work is more proletarian than that of males; and that their contributions to the family's means of subsistence and capital accumulation are not systematically correlated with participation in farm decisions. These preliminary findings are not sufficient to argue that small organic farms are patriarchal or that women (and children and wage workers) are exploited. But that thesis is consistent with the data, suggesting that farms in the new agrarian movement are not likely to be a force for transformation of the relations of dominance and subordination that characterize both capitalism and petty commodity production.

Determinants of Lender Response to Short-Term Credit Needs of Small Commercial Farmers

Credit availability and use have been identified as crucial factors affecting success or failure for many farm operations [1, 2]. The increased level of uncertainty affecting agriculture in the 1970s has intensified the importance of credit use by farmers. Indeed, maintaining financial liquidity often is cited as a strategy to counter increasing farm risks [6, 12]. Farmers view credit as a crucial variable and, as shown by Barry and Baker [3], farmer borrowing patterns can be related to the level of unused credit those farmers maintain.

Possibilities for Increasing Production and Incomes on Small Commercial Farms, Southern Piedmont Area, North Carolina

Possibilities for Increasing Production and Incomes on Small Commercial Farms, Southern Piedmont Area, North Carolina