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Subnational distribution of average farm size and smallholder contributions to global food production

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Subnational distribution of average farm size and smallholder contributions to global food production
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Smallholder farming is the most prevalent form of agriculture in the world, supports many of the planet's most vulnerable populations, and coexists with some of its most diverse and threatened landscapes. However, there is little information about the location of small farms, making it difficult both to estimate their numbers and to implement effective agricultural, development, and land use policies. Here, we present a map of mean agricultural area, classified by the amount of land per farming household, at subnational resolutions across three key global regions using a novel integration of household microdata and agricultural landscape data. This approach provides a subnational estimate of the number, average size, and contribution of farms across much of the developing world. By our estimates, 918 subnational units in 83 countries in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, and South and East Asia average less than five hectares of agricultural land per farming household. These smallholder-dominated systems are home to more than 380 million farming households, make up roughly 30% of the agricultural land and produce more than 70% of the food calories produced in these regions, and are responsible for more than half of the food calories produced globally, as well as more than half of global production of several major food crops. Smallholder systems in these three regions direct a greater percentage of calories produced toward direct human consumption, with 70% of calories produced in these units consumed as food, compared to 55% globally. Our approach provides the ability to disaggregate farming populations from non-farming populations, providing a more accurate picture of farming households on the landscape than has previously been available. These data meet a critical need, as improved understanding of the prevalence and distribution of smallholder farming is essential for effective policy development for food security, poverty reduction, and conservation agendas.
NiederspannungsnetzWindparkKonfektionsgrößeErwärmung <Meteorologie>VideotechnikComputeranimation
NiederspannungsnetzKonzentrator <Nachrichtentechnik>Besprechung/Interview
Erwärmung <Meteorologie>WindparkKonfektionsgrößeNiederspannungsnetzNiederspannungsnetzKonzentrator <Nachrichtentechnik>
Erwärmung <Meteorologie>Sonnenenergie
Cocktailparty-EffektRegler
KleinwaffeAntennendiversity
Durchführung <Elektrotechnik>Klangeffekt
KlangeffektDurchführung <Elektrotechnik>
Klangeffekt
SchneckengetriebeTunerBesprechung/Interview
Tropischer Wirbelsturm
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Puma <Panzer>
VerpackungVeränderlicher SternKernstrahlungISO <Astronomie>
KopfstützeComputeranimation
FeuerwaffeComte AC-4 Gentleman
Erwärmung <Meteorologie>MessungBesprechung/Interview
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ErderErwärmung <Meteorologie>NiederspannungsnetzErdefunkstelleNanotechnologie
ErderMessung
SchiffsklassifikationThermalisierungFlussdiagramm
NanotechnologieDiagramm
NanotechnologieBesprechung/Interview
Erwärmung <Meteorologie>GasdichteNanotechnologieMessung
RauschunterdrückungSatzspiegel
Kleinwaffe
ProfilwalzenBesprechung/Interview
ErsatzteilBesprechung/Interview
KlangeffektDurchführung <Elektrotechnik>
Atomistik
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Transkript: Englisch(automatisch erzeugt)
My name is Leah Samberg, and I'm a scientist at the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota. My colleagues and I have put together a new map estimating the distribution and concentration of small farms in a lot of the world, as well as the contribution of smallholder farming regions to global food production.
Small farms are getting a lot of attention because it turns out there are a lot of them, likely nearly 500 million, and they control half the world's farmland, produce more than half the world's food, and are home to many of the world's poorest and most vulnerable people. Small farms are often really good farms, meeting diverse ecological and nutritional needs, and can be very productive.
And investments in small farms are expected to help meet sustainable development goals relating to poverty, nutrition, hunger, and environmental sustainability. But despite their importance and all that interest, it turns out we don't really know where all these small farms are. Good data on small farms are hard to come by, and even the word small means different things in different places.
What we are doing that is new is using household census data from dozens of countries to identify and map farming populations. Here's how it works. The Minnesota Population Center has compiled census data from dozens of countries. We use these data to find out what people do for a living. For example, are you a farmer?
We then count up all the households headed by farmers, look at the amount of available farmland, and calculate the average amount of farmland for each farming household, which we call the mean agricultural area. Places with a small mean agricultural area, an average of 5 hectares or less per farming household, we think have a lot of small farms. The map we created looks like this.
In the 83 countries in our analysis, including some which we modeled, we identified about 900 sub-national units as having a lot of small farms. These are red or orange on the map. These areas are farmed by about 383 million households. We then looked at what is being grown in those smallholder dance areas.
The Earthstat database compiled by our colleagues shows the distribution and productivity of nearly 200 crops all around the world. We use these data to determine that the smallholder units on our map produce a large proportion of many globally important crops. For example, more than 75% of all rice, groundnuts, and oil column.
Since we're interested in food security, we also looked at how these smallholder areas stack up in terms of production of food that people eat. We find that these units of high density smallholder farming are responsible for more than half of the global production of food calories. We also find that regions with a small mean agricultural area and lots of small farms
use a greater percentage of the crops produced directly for food, rather than for animal feed, fuel, or other uses, than do regions with larger farms. Our approach provides the ability to disaggregate farming populations from non-farming populations, providing a more accurate picture of farming households on the landscape than has previously been available.
Small farms cover so much of the world and feed so many people that more information about them is crucial for effective policy development for food security, poverty reduction, and environmental conservation.