What are the perspectives of family agriculture in a context of agribusiness expansion? Participatory zoning with community representatives of the Plateau Santareno
Quelles sont les perspectives de l'agriculture familiale dans un contexte d'expansion agro-industrielle? Zonage participatif avec des représentants communautaires du Plateau Santareno
Quais as perspectivas da agricultura familiar em um contexto de expansão do agronegócio? Zoneamento participativo com representantes comunitários do Planalto Santareno
Résumé
The Planalto Santareno region includes areas of the municipalities of Santarém, Belterra and Mojuí dos Campos, state of Pará, Brazil, and has emerged as an emblematic case of the conflict between agribusiness and family farming. In this article, we present the forms of interaction between these two production models, based on the results of a Participatory Zoning of Family Farming in the Santareno Plateau, carried out with local actors as part of an effort to co-build an Observatory of Social and Environmental Dynamics in the Amazon. The results show that albeit a relatively homogeneous logic of agribusiness expansion in the Planalto Santareno, family farming configures itself and interacts with agribusiness in various ways in this territory. We argue that this diversity of family farming, characterized by distinct zones, reflects local trajectories that vary according to a series of contextually operating factors, such as occupation history, physical landscape attributes, market access, infrastructure, social organization, proximity with urban centers, among others. Taking this diversity into account, we propose reflections on the relationship between the different production models addressed, pointing out possible strategies for strengthening family farming.