The agricultural sector is facing increasing pressure from growing populations, climate change and the degradation of natural resources. To feed the world sustainably, farming family farmers need to be at the forefront of the transformation of agri-food systems.
Research Center (AKÇAM) are conducting a study on family farming with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture
Family farms cover around 70-80 percent of arable land worldwide and produce more than 80 percent of the world’s food by value. More than 90 percent of the world’s 570 million farms are family businesses. The situation in Turkey reflects this global trend.
Recognizing the importance of family farming for agri-food systems, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Ankara University Development Studies Application and Research Center (AKÇAM) are conducting a study on family farming with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry as part of the United Nations Decade of Family Farming (UNDFF).
Discuss the main trends that family farming is likely to face in the future
The study, “Looking to the Future of Family Farming in Turkey”, which started this year, organized local workshops in Nevşehir, Erzurum, Samsun and Antalya to identify the challenges faced by family farms and develop sustainable and inclusive solutions. The local workshops brought together relevant national and international stakeholders from the agriculture and rural development sectors, including family farmers, farmer organizations and NGOs, as well as representatives from the public and private sectors, to identify the situation and conditions of family farms on the ground in Turkey.
On 10 July 2023, a national workshop was organized in Ankara with the participation of relevant key stakeholders to review the results of the above-mentioned local workshops and discuss the main trends that family farming is likely to face in the future.
Speaking at the opening session of the national workshop, Mr. Viorel Gutu, FAO Representative in Turkey and Subregional Coordinator for Central Asia, noted that family farming has received significant global attention since 2014, the UN International Year of Family Farming (IYFF). Emphasizing that family farmers are the backbone of rural economies, Gutu stated that FAO and AKÇAM have contributed to a global response to the challenges faced by family farming through this valuable study, thereby ensuring that the issue is high on the national development agenda towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Source: FAO
