Deep Roots

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Image: Bioversity International/Camilla Zanzanaini

Women harvesting groundnuts in Ghana. The nuts are eaten or sold and the leaves, shoots and roots are fed to the goats and produce a rich manure

natural resources that can be used to manage resources and

biodiversity sustainably, efficiently and profitably.

Rather than debate definitions and the current lack of data

on the number, amount and types of foods produced by family

farms, and documentation of their production and resource

management practices, Bioversity International focuses on

the distinctive features of family farming that contribute to

food security by using and sustainably managing agricultural

biodiversity. What emerges is the comparative advantage of

family farmers in producing a diverse range of foods that are

high in nutritional value, are locally available, and fetch good

prices when marketed.

Furthermore the presence of the family on the land and

its long-term interaction with the landscape creates both

knowledge and demand for more efficient and judicious use

of agrochemicals and pesticides, and longer-term perspec-

tives for sustainable use of resources. A farm household will

manage several crops, livestock breeds or agrobiological

resources in a variety of growing conditions to meet a multi-

plicity of needs, in a full cycle from planting, production,

processing, consumption and marketing. This generates a

rich body of knowledge of diversity of crops, breeds and

varieties that are used to create options, minimize risk and

develop new products.

Family farms identify new varieties, neglected species and

cultivars, and domesticate new species to cope with climate

change and create new opportunities. Less water, increas-

ing unpredictability in weather and rainfall, hotter growing

conditions and more extreme weather events, migration and

increases in pests and diseases are already in evidence in all

major regions. Global staple crops like maize, rice, wheat and

high-value food exports are already at risk from the impacts

of climate change. These, however, are not the only crops that

feature on family farms. Alongside these staples are roots and

tubers, horticultural crops including squashes, gourds and vine

crops, leafy green vegetables and fruits. There are also distinc-

tive varieties of pulses including peas and pigeon peas, cowpeas,

lima or butter beans, and many of the neglected but nutritious

cereals and pseudo-cereals like millets, fonio, quinoa, and local

varieties of maize consumed fresh or in grain.

The diverse range of crops, varieties and livestock in a

small family farm is an important factor in fighting hunger

Diversity can increase the resilience

of agricultural landscapes

Forty days after Hurricane Ike hit Cuba in 2008, researchers

conducted a farm survey in the provinces of Holguin and Las Tunas

and found that diversified farms exhibited losses of 50 per cent

compared to 90 or 100 per cent in neighbouring monocultures.

Likewise, agroecologically managed farms showed a faster

productive recovery (80-90 per cent 40 days after the hurricane)

than monoculture farms.

This ability to recuperate and suffer less

damage in the face of natural disasters demonstrates how diversity

can increase the resilience of agricultural landscapes.

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