Amaranth farming: Rural sustainable livelihood of the future?

Araceli Bjarklev, Tyge Kjær, Bente Kjærgård

    Publikation: Bidrag til bog/antologi/rapportKonferenceabstrakt i proceedingsForskning

    Abstract

    Though amaranth has been studied intensively for its exceptional nutritional properties, little has been reported about its capacity for fighting poverty, securing food supplies, turning migrations, or its impact on the environment and the prospect for mprovement of living conditions of those farmers cultivating amaranth. This paper ddresses possibilities and limitations that Mexican small-scale farmers are facing to enhance sustainable livelihoods in the amaranth value chain. The study reveals that amaranth, as an alternative crop and livelihood, is perhaps one of the most complete endogenous natural resources that small-scale farmers have to combat the abovementioned problems. The study identified several local and regional barriers for increasing the level of farming, production, processing and consumption. A striking and paradoxical limitation is the monopolization practices developed by some of the associations in relation to knowledge and technology transfer, seeds distribution and contact to potential national and foreign buyers.

    OriginalsprogEngelsk
    TitelCultivate the future : book of abstracts : 16th IFOAM Organic World Congress, Modena, Italy 16-20 June '08
    Antal sider1
    ForlagIFOAM
    Publikationsdato2008
    Sider143
    ISBN (Trykt)978-3-940946-03-4
    StatusUdgivet - 2008
    BegivenhedIFOAM Organic World Congress - Modena, Italien
    Varighed: 16 jun. 200820 jun. 2008
    Konferencens nummer: 16

    Konference

    KonferenceIFOAM Organic World Congress
    Nummer16
    Land/OmrådeItalien
    ByModena
    Periode16/06/200820/06/2008

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