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Moderated e-mail conference on small farms and food security

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Tue, 11 Oct 2016 12:50:45 +0000
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I am Mahesh Chander, Principal Scientist with Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and currently, Head, Div of Extension Education at ICAR- Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, India. My job responsibilities include post-graduate teaching, research and field extension activities for livestock development. I consider this as one good opportunity to take part in this FAO moderated e-mail conference on "Exploring the contribution of small farms to achieving food security and improved nutrition”. 



We often encounter landless livestock keepers and share croppers, who don’t own land but contribute to food production substantially. My question, thus, relate to defining small farms.



Food is provided not only by the land-owning family farmers, but millions of share croppers and landless livestock owners in countries like India contribute to food production. While land owners may be enjoying the rights on land like collaterals and choice on what to and what not to produce, the share croppers work in the field, actually producing food with their own hands but without much decision making opportunities. Where do such food producers stand in defining the categories of farmers? Is there a way to measure their contributions or policies to enhance productivity of such systems? Since they don’t own land, credit institutions don’t consider them for loans to expand their production activities more creatively or on business pattern. Is there a way to help out this category of farmers or to enhance their productivity? There have been some studies on share cropping and landless livestock keeping including by the forest dwelling communities. If we consider such systems important from the point of view of food production and even employment generation, should there be some policies to formally recognize them as food producers worth taking note of while shaping right policies? I would like to hear from participants on their experiences about these vulnerable contributors to food.

 

Mahesh Chander

Principal Scientist & Head, 

Div of Extension Education 

ICAR- Indian Veterinary Research Institute, 

Izatnagar-243122 (UP)-243122 

India

E-mail: mchanderivri (at) gmail.com

Mob: +91 9411087833

+91581 2302391

www.ivri.nic.in



[Share cropping is a system of agricultural production where a landowner allows a share cropper to use the land in return for a share of the crop (or its proceeds) produced on the land...Moderator]



[To contribute to this conference, send your message to [log in to unmask] For further information, see http://www.fao.org/nr/research-extension-systems/res-home/news/detail/en/c/434322/ ].



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