Meeting on International Year of Family Farming

Talking Points

Sharon Brennen-Haylock

 

Meeting on International Year of Family Farming

 

Mission of the Netherlands to the UN – New York

Thursday 18 December 2014

 

Amb Van Oosterom, many thanks to you and your colleagues for making this discussion possible today and for your continued commitment to the fight for food security and nutrition

 

Friends I join the Amb in thanking you for your presence, support and dedication to these issues.

 

I will be as brief as possible to share a few findings – some of the high notes- of the IYFF, in order to allow time for dialogue, in what I hope will be a lively and fruitful discussion with our friends, Rebecca, Ian and Sarah, who have taken time away from their farms to join us and to help improve our understanding of the needs of family farmers!

 

The official closing ceremony of the IYFF took place 27 November in Rome.  Even though IYFF has closed, the work continues!  It has been a rich year, replete with activities at the global, regional and sub-regional levels, resulting in improved understanding.

 

 

 

 

We have learned that:

 

• Family Farming is central to a sustainable and food secure future – this is one of the main achievements of the IYFF

 

• It has helped to mobilize strong political support for family farmers, and we see this already reflected in the proposed goals for the new development agenda post 2015.  We need to continue to support this sector that produces most of the food worldwide, by having the strongest possible language in the post 2015 outcome.

 

• There are nearly 500 million family farmers all over the world; they contribute over 56% of the world’s agricultural production and in some regions almost 80%. They represent between 60% and 85 % of the agricultural land in all of the world’s regions, except for South America, where they work on 18 percent of agricultural land.  Family farms produce 80 % of food worldwide.

 

• It is about transmitting knowledge from generation to generation benefitting families and communities.

 

• It is about respecting and valuing local tradition, customs and culture.

 

• It is about improving nutrition and providing healthier diets based on fresh food, fruits and vegetables.

 

• It is about linking production to families, to schools, to communities. It is about territorial development.

 

•  It is a group in which the important role of women is not always recognized and supported as it should be.

 

• It is a group that suffers when the youth are forced from rural areas because of lack of opportunities.

 

• No one size fits all, they are a very diverse group composed of small, medium and large-scale farmers, and also fisher-folk, forest people, indigenous communities and many others.

 

• FF is about sustainability. Nothing comes closer to the sustainable development paradigm in food systems than family farming.

 

• FF is a model that meets all requirements of sustainability as it encompasses the three pillars of sustainable development, that is, the economic, cultural and environmental dimensions. Family farms can create unique employment opportunities in rural areas while preserving traditions and natural resources. 

 

• Family farms are not only economically viable but also are the guardians of environmental sustainability-- they use and manage environmental resources, land and water, in a responsible way, keeping their lands fertile for future generations. They are relevant for natural resource management, rural heritage including traditional knowledge preservation and local economies.

 

What is needed moving forward?

 

• The Year has been a success, but let not forget that family farmers also have many challenges.

 

• Family farmers should be provided with an enabling policy environment, that takes into account their diverse nature and allows them to contribute to local and global food security objectives.

 

• Such a policy environment will enhance efforts and attract investments to make rural lifestyles more attractive, including improving rural infrastructure, facilitating access to credit and supporting agro-tourism and organic farming.

 

• The contribution of women needs to become visible - literacy and training, as well as improving the collection of data on women; the Data 2X initiative launched by former Secretary Clinton is a step in this direction. As was said at the event recently at Bloomberg Philanthropies “we cannot manage effectively if we do not measure.”

 

• Government policies and strategies are needed to more effectively target and support rural youth.

 

• We need to look beyond production and acknowledge family farms as transmitters of knowledge and central allies in providing healthier diets, including through strong local food systems that link farms to schools and communities.

 

• Inclusive dialogue is important for family farmers, we have to continue bringing together family farmers and their organizations, government representatives, civil society, private sector, academia and development agencies to take stock of progress thus far and identify key areas of work and international collaboration related to family farming beyond 2014.

 

• Partnerships are important for family farmers to survive.  Some of the challenges faced by smallholder farming can be resolved through strong cooperative enterprises and innovative and inclusive producer organizations, and we need to ensure appropriate recognition of cooperatives and producer organizations in the new development agenda.

 

• The recent 2^nd International Conference on Nutrition held on 19 -21 November in Rome in recommendation 9 calls for strengthening local food production and processing, especially by smallholder and family farmers, giving special attention to women’s empowerment, while recognizing that efficient and effective trade is key to achieving nutrition objectives.

 

• We need further development of the key analyses and indicators to assess better the status and trends of different types of family farming, including issues related to access to markets.

 

• Family farming is firmly integrated in the FAO Strategic Framework and should be fully incorporated into the Post-2015 Development Agenda.