The Survival Story of Small Farmers--The Opportunity and Challenge of Farmers' Markets on the Mainstream Production-Distribution System
Date Issued
2010
Date
2010
Author(s)
Cheng, Yin-Tzu
Abstract
This in-depth reporting is based on in-depth interviews and mainly focused on small farmers in farmers’ markets. The research tries to proceed with the viewpoints of small farmers to piece together a history of agricultural life for small farmers. In addition, through describing the past, the present, and future prospects of small farmers, the study explores the meaning and position of farmers’ markets in Taiwan.
The study finds that farmers’ markets help small farmers not only in increasing income but also in expanding their social networking. In addition, due to the feedback from customers, small farmers start to realize their social responsibilities and have more confidence in and higher expectations of themselves.
Moreover, centered on farmers’ markets, a distinct agricultural network is gradually formed. The network not only attracts many people who pay attention to agricultural issues to gather in farmers’ markets, but also opens up possibilities of dialogues among different fields.
As a part of the alternative production-distribution system, farmers’ markets should work towards a local network, develop local features, actively establish a league of farmers’ markets, increase the communication and interaction among different farmers’ markets, and integrate the resources and manpower for a more effective use so that farmers’ markets can fight a way through the mainstream production-distribution system and develop toward a sustainable management.
Subjects
Small farmers
Alternative agro-food networks
Agro-food localization
Organic agriculture
Type
thesis
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