Tag: agricultural

Organic farming myths and reality

Nicolas Lampkin
Summary Organic farming represents a promising, if still imperfect, approach to improving the sustainability, quality and health impacts of agriculture. Production standards have become highly codified and regulated to protect consumers and enable producers to benefit from specialist markets. Certified organic farming is now widely adopted in many countries. While the regulations make the concept appear unduly rigid to some, the underlying scientifically-based, agro-ecological understandin…

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New Horizons for Small-scale Farming in East Africa

Paul L Woomer
Summary Small-scale farming in East Africa is in transition from a subsistence to a market-based agriculture, as households recognize that many of their needs cannot be satisfied directly from the land. This is the latest phase in a passage from pastoral migration through tribal settlement, colonial domination, national independence and economic stagnation and recovery. Smallholders are responding to rising aspirations through participation in self-help and producer organisations to …

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