Small-holdings and sustainable family farming in Galicia and Ireland: A comparative Case Study.

Resumo

Small-holdings and Minifundios were considered as miniature farms, unable to secure basic sustenance for all the members of the family unit and, ultimately, a source of many evils. This research consists of theoretical and empirical sections. The theoretical part focuses on the analysis of specialized bibliography on minifundismo and family farming. We try to present the theoretical background that allows us to provide new ideas about minifundios and family farms. The empirical part focuses on examining different cases in Galicia and Ireland. We attempt to produce a brief comparative diagnosis of the changes and continuities that cooperative family farming has experienced considering that farm censuses statistics systematically ignore the social and cultural contexts of families that live and work on farms. Our intention is to stress the idea that family farming in Galicia and Ireland is a cultural expression and a life-style that goes beyond capitalist industrial farming. It is a type of farming in itself that has both negative and also positive characteristics.