Let us rally behind our small-scale food producers

First of two parts

“SMALL-SCALE producers have a critical role to play in the sustainable transformation of agrifood systems. Contemporary agrifood systems are not able to compensate small-scale producers adequately for their multifunctional contributions, nor recognize them as equal and important participants.”

That is the introduction to chapter 1 of the report “Small-scale producers in sustainable agrifood systems transformation” of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations that was released in September 2022.

And after going through the report, I can declare that it is time for all of us — and I mean all of us and not just the government — to rally behind our small-scale food producers.

So, let me get insights from the five chapters of the report and identify what needs to be done to support our small-scale food producers that in the Philippines is made up largely of smallholder farmers and fishers.

From chapter 1 that was titled after the report, it was pointed out that “the millions of small-scale producers around the world are largely marginalized as food systems actors, with their livelihoods characterized by poverty and vulnerability (van der Ploeg, 2020).”

This is still true in the Philippines with coconut farmers as one good example, as they are usually referred to as being part of the country’s “poorest of the poor.” I am optimistic though that the implementation of the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan (CFIDP) with P75-billion funding and approved by then-president Rodrigo Duterte through Executive Order 172 will lift millions of small-scale coconut farmers from poverty.

Republic Act (RA) 11524, or the “Coconut Farmers and Industry Fund Act,” signed on Feb. 26, 2021 by Duterte authorized the CFIDP.

And before RA 11203, or the “Rice Tariffication Law,” created the various programs now funded by the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF), most Filipino rice farmers were fragmented and hardly had access to technologies. That is slowly changing with the sustained implementation of RCEF programs that has provided billions of pesos worth of farm machines, quality seeds, training, credit support, among others, to millions of Filipino rice farmers.

Among the Department of Agriculture (DA) agencies worth mentioning here are the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization, Philippine Rice Research Institute and the Agricultural Training Institute.

Support small producers to export

However, while chapter 1 blamed “public agricultural policies have mostly focused on larger enterprises oriented toward agricultural exports,” I still believe that small-scale food producers in the Philippines be given more support to increase their harvests, venture into value adding and sell to the export markets. My reason for saying this is there are small-scale food producers in the Philippines who can potentially earn more from exporting their products for as long as it is them who do much of the value adding and avoid exploitative marketing channels.

What I have just said in the preceding paragraph on Filipino food producers seeking the export markets does not deviate from the conclusion of chapter 1 of the FAO report, which is to “incentivize small-scale producers to participate in sustainable forms of food production in ways that enable them to secure fair incomes and human well-being outcomes through their participation.”

Of equal or more importance is giving small-scale food producers the avenues or the channels to give their inputs on how to create sustainable food systems. This can be done through consultations, and facilitating partnerships between big firms and small producers where the latter are treated as genuine partners in the production process.

The second chapter titled “Understanding small-scale producers” still advocates for policymakers to look deeper into the condition of small-scale food producers.

“Understanding small-scale production is not a trivial exercise and can have consequences for how policies and investments are directed and how they impact small-scale producer livelihoods,” the FAO added.

In the Philippines, the role of local government units (LGUs), and state colleges and universities in communicating to national policymakers the condition and needs of small-scale food producers in their areas must be emphasized.

For their part, the Senate and Congress have passed laws that benefit small-scale food producers such as RA 11203 and 11524, and more may be needed.

I am grateful though that the government primarily through the DA, private sector and an increasing number of LGUs are uniting to support small-scale food producers, including micro, small and medium enterprises that are part of the food value chain.

I have already written much about how the Kapatid Angat Lahat Agri Program (Kalap), a project of Go Negosyo led by Jose Maria “Joey” Concepcion 3rd with the private sector, LGUs and concerned national government agencies are integrating small-scale agricultural producers into the value chain, with the primary aim of also increasing their incomes.

Major contributors to food security

For chapter 3 titled “Contributions of small scale producers,” it was emphasized that they contribute a big portion of the world’s food despite possessing lesser land. Specifically, the FAO report said that nearly 510 million farms globally have less than 2 hectares of land but account for only 12 percent of agricultural land. However, these farms produce nearly 35 percent of the world’s food.

“A disproportionate share of the world’s food derives from small-scale production,” the report added.

Toward the end of chapter 3, it was mentioned that small-scale food producers also support the local economy while ensuring food security.

“They support agrifood systems adapted to local agroecologies and local wealth creation and distribution. They meet local needs for food security and food variety and sustain food provision that is agile in responding to changes and disruption,” the FAO report said.

With that statement, we can say that enabling or supporting smallscale food producers to earn more is also key to inclusive growth and progress in the countryside.

I will discuss the last two chapters of the FAO report in the second installment of this column-series.