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Essential multiple functions of farms in rural communities and landscapes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2010

Rebecka Milestad ,
Johan Ahnström  and
Johanna Björklund
Rebecka Milestad*
Affiliation:
Department of Urban and Rural Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, PO Box 7012, SE-750 07, Uppsala, Sweden.
Johan Ahnström
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Lund University, Ecology Building, SE-22362 Lund, Sweden.
Johanna Björklund
Affiliation:
Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.
*
*Corresponding author: rebecka.milestad@sol.slu.se
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Abstract

As farms are consolidated into larger operations and small farms close down for economic reasons, rural areas lose ecological, social and economic functions related to farming. Biodiversity and scenic, open-vista landscapes are lost as fields are left unmanaged. Social and economic benefits such as local job opportunities and meeting places disappear. Four Swedish rural communities were examined to increase our understanding of the functions that a diverse agriculture provides and which of these are lost as farms cease operation and overall rural social capital is depleted. Workshops and interviews with village action groups and with farmers were carried out. Both groups identified key functions from farming that are important to the rural community, such as production of food and fiber, businesses and jobs, human services, local security, ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling and biodiversity, and functions pertaining to quality of life. Several ways in which village action groups can support agriculture were identified that current industrial agriculture and even agri-environmental schemes fail to achieve. These include organizing local meeting places, encouraging local processing and consumption and supporting farmers in their work. We conclude that agriculture and village action groups match well in community development and that policies supporting this match would be useful.

Keywords

multifunctional agricultureecosystem servicesvillage action groupsrural developmentSweden
Type
Research Papers
Information
Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems , Volume 26 , Issue 2 , June 2011 , pp. 137 - 148
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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