FAMILY FARM

ABSTRACT

A family farm is a farm owned and operated by a family Like other family businesses and real estate, ownership often passes to the next generation by inheritance. It is the basic unit of the mostly agricultural economy of much of human history and continues to be so in developing nations. Alternatives to family farms include those run by agribusiness, colloquially known as factory farms, or by collective farming.

KEY WORDS Family Farm, Modern Agriculture, Development, Tactics

United States legal definition

As defined by USDA regulations to farm loan programs (e.g. those administered by the Farm Service Agency), a family farm is a farm that:

(1)produces agricultural commodities for sale in such quantities so as to be recognized in the community as a farm and not a rural residence;

(2)produces enough income (including off-farm employment) to pay family and farm operating expenses, pay debts, and maintain the property;

(3)is managed by the operator;

(4)has a substantial amount of labor provided by the operator and the operatorrsquo;s family;

(5)may use seasonal labor during peak periods and a reasonable amount of full-time hired labor.

Perceptions of the family farm

In developed countries the family farm is viewed sentimentally, as a lifestyle to be preserved for traditions sake, or as a birthright. It is in these nations very often a political rallying cry against change in agricultural policy, most commonly in France, Japan, and the United States, where rural lifestyles are often regarded as desirable. In these countries, strange bedfellows can often be found arguing for similar measures despite otherwise vast differences in political ideology. For example, Patrick Buchanan and Ralph Nader, both candidates for the office of President of the United States, held rural rallies together and spoke for measures to preserve the so-called family farm. On other economic matters they were seen as generally opposed, but found common ground on this one.

The social roles of family farms are much changed today. Until recently, staying in line with traditional and conservative sociology, the heads of the household were usually the oldest man followed closely by his oldest sons. The wife generally took care of the housework, child rearing, and financial matters pertaining to the farm. However, agricultural activities have taken on many forms and change over time. Agronomy, horticulture, aquaculture, silviculture, and apiculture, along with traditional plants and animals, all make up aspects of todays family farm. Farm wives often need to find work away from the farm to supplement farm income and children sometimes have no interest in farming as their chosen field of work.

Bolder promoters argue that as agriculture has become more efficient with the application of modern management and new technologies in each generation, the idealized classic family farm is now simply obsolete, or more often, unable to compete without the economies of scale available to larger and more modern farms. Advocates argue that family farms in all nations need to be protected, as the basis of rural society and social stability.

Viability of the family farm

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, ninety-eight percent of all farms in the U.S. are family farms. Two percent of farms are not family farms, and those two percent make up fourteen percent of total agricultural output in the United States, although half of them have total sales of less than $50,000 per year. Overall, ninety-one percent of farms in the United States are considered 'small family farms' (with sales of less than $250,000 per year), and those farms produce twenty-seven percent of U.S. agricultural output.

Depending on the type and size of independently owned operation, some limiting factors are:

(1)Economies of scale: Larger farms are able to bargain more competitively, purchase more competitively, profit from economic highs, and weather lows more readily through monetary inertia than smaller farms.

(2)Cost of inputs: fertilizer and other agrichemicals can fluctuate dramatically from season to season, partially based on oil prices, a range of 25% to 200% is common over a few year period.

(3)oil prices: Directly (for farm machinery) and somewhat less directly (long distance transport; production cost of agrichemicals), the cost of oil significantly impacts the year-to-year viability of all mechanized conventional farms.

(4)commodity futures: the predicted price of commidity crops, hogs, grain, etc., can determine ahead of a season what seems economically viable to grow.

(5)technology user agreements: a less publicly known factor, patented GE seed that is widely used for many crops, like cotton and soy, comes with restrictions on use, which can even include who the crop can be sold to.

(6)wholesale infrastructure: A farmer growing larger quantities of a crop than can be sold directly to consumers has to meet a range of criteria for sale into the wholesale market, which include harvest timing and graded quality, and may also include variety, therefore, the market channel really determines most aspects of the farm decisionmaking.

(7)availability of financing: Larger farms today often rely on lines of credit, typically from banks, to purchase the agrichemicals, and other supplies needed for each growing year. These lines are heavily affected by almost all of the other constraining factors.

(8)government economic intervention: In some countries, notably the US and EU, government subsidies to farmers, intended to mitigate the impact on domestic farmers of economic and political activities in other areas of the economy, can be a significant source of farm income.

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家庭农场

Lee, Jennifer Dukes U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Economic Research Service New York

摘 要

家庭农场是由一个家庭拥有和经营的农场，就像其他家族企业和房地产一样，所有权通常通过继承传给下一代。在人类历史的大部分时间里，农业是农业经济的基本单位，在发展中国家也继续如此。家庭农场的替代品包括由农业综合企业经营的农场，俗称工厂化农场或集体农场。

关键词 家庭农场/现代农业/发展/策略

1美国法律定义

根据美国农业部对农业贷款项目的规定(例如由农业服务机构管理的贷款项目)，家庭农场是指:

(一)生产供销售的农产品，数量足以在社会上被认定为农场而不是农村户口的;

(二)有足够的收入(包括非农就业收入)支付家庭和农场经营费用、偿债和维护财产;

（三）由经营者管理;

(四)有经营者及其家属提供的大量劳动的;

(五)可以在高峰时期使用季节性劳动和合理数量的全日制用工。

2 家庭农场的看法

在发达国家，家庭农场被视为感情用事，是一种为了传统而保留的生活方式，或者是一种与生俱来的权利。在这些国家，这往往是反对改变农业政策的政治口号，最常见的是在法国、日本和美国，那里的农村生活方式往往被认为是可取的。在这些国家，尽管政治意识形态存在巨大差异，但经常可以发现一些奇怪的同床异枕的人主张采取类似的措施。例如，美国总统候选人帕特里克·布坎南(Patrick Buchanan)和拉尔夫·纳德(Ralph Nader)一起在农村举行集会，呼吁采取措施保护所谓的家庭农场。在其他经济问题上，他们普遍持反对意见，但在这个问题上却找到了共同点。

家庭农场的社会角色在今天发生了很大的变化。直到最近，按照传统和保守的社会学，户主通常是年龄最大的男人，紧随其后的是他的长子。妻子通常负责家务、抚养孩子和与农场有关的经济事务。然而，农业活动有许多形式，并随时间而变化。农学、园艺学、水产养殖、林业、养蜂业以及传统的动植物都构成了今天家庭农场的各个方面。农妇通常需要离开农场去找工作来补充农场收入，而孩子们有时对自己选择的工作领域并不感兴趣。

更大胆的倡导者认为，随着现代管理和新技术在每一代人身上的应用，农业变得更加高效，理想化的传统家庭农场现在只是过时了，或者更经常地，如果没有规模更大、更现代化的农场所具备的规模经济，就无法竞争。支持者认为，所有国家的家庭农场都需要得到保护，作为农村社会和社会稳定的基础。

3 家庭农场的可行性

根据美国农业部的数据，美国98%的农场是家庭农场。百分之二的农场不是家庭农场，这百分之二的农场占美国农业总产出的百分之十四，虽然其中一半的农场每年的总销售额不到5万美元。总的来说，美国91%的农场被认为是“小型家庭农场”(年销售额低于25万美元)，这些农场生产的农产品占美国农业总产出的27%。

根据自主经营的类型和规模，有以下限制因素:

1. 规模经济:与规模较小的农场相比，规模较大的农场能够更有竞争力地讨价还价，更有竞争力地购买，更容易从经济高点获利，更容易通过货币惯性从天气低点获利。
2. 投入成本:化肥和其他农用化学品的投入成本会随着季节的变化而剧烈波动，部分原因是受石油价格的影响，在几年的时间里，化肥和其他农用化学品的投入成本通常在25%到200%之间波动。
3. 油价:直接(用于农机)和稍低直接(长途运输);(农业生产成本)，石油成本显著影响到所有机械化常规农场的年复一年的生存能力。
4. 商品期货:预测的商品粮、生猪、粮食等价格，可以在一个季节之前决定什么作物在经济上是可行的。

(5)技术用户协议:一个不太为人所知的因素是通用电气的专利种子，它被广泛应用于棉花和大豆等许多作物，但它的使用受到限制，甚至可能包括这种作物可以卖给谁。

（6）大规模基础设施:一个农民种植大量的作物可以直接卖给消费者必须符合一系列标准到批发市场出售,其中包括收获时间和质量分级,并可能还包括品种,因此,市场渠道真的决定了农业决策的大多数方面。

(7)融资渠道:如今规模较大的农场往往依赖信贷额度(通常来自银行)来购买农业化学品，以及每年生产所需的其他物资。这些线受到几乎所有其他限制因素的严重影响。

(8)政府经济干预:在一些国家，特别是美国和欧盟，政府向农民提供补贴，旨在减轻经济其他领域的经济和政治活动对国内农民的影响，可以成为农业收入的一个重要来源。当干旱或“疯牛病”等危机冲击农业部门时，政府也依赖纾困。在很大程度上，这种情况是由于大规模的全球市场农场别无选择，只能参与其中。

(9)政府和行业监管:范围广泛的配额、营销委员会和管理农业的立法施加了复杂的限制，往往需要大量的资源才能驾驭。例如，在小型农业方面，在许多司法管辖区，对牲畜、奶制品和鸡蛋的销售有严格的限制或禁止。这些压力来自方方面面:食品安全、环境、行业营销。

(10)房地产价格:世界各地城市中心的增长，以及由此导致的城市扩张，导致位于中心地带的农田价格飙升，同时减少了当地支持农业所需的基础设施，给许多农民带来了巨大的压力，迫使他们出售土地。

20世纪以来，发达国家的人民集体采取了大多数步骤，走上了这条道路。个别农民选择了连续不断的新技术浪潮，高兴地“用马换拖拉机”，增加了他们的债务和生产能力。这反过来又需要更大、更遥远的市场，以及更沉重、更复杂的融资。公众愿意购买日益商品化、加工、运输和相对便宜的食品。越来越多元化的供应新鲜的可用性,未硫化的,unpreserved产生和肉在所有季节(桔子1月、7月刚杀了引导,新鲜猪肉而不是盐,熏,或potassium-impregnated火腿)打开一个全新的美食和前所未有的健康饮食,数以百万计的消费者以前从未享受过这样的生产。这些能力也带来了前所未有的各种加工食品的市场，如玉米糖浆和漂白面粉。对于家庭农场来说，这种新技术和日益复杂的营销策略带来了前所未有的新挑战，并不是所有的家庭农户都能够有效地应对市场条件的变化。

4 二十一世纪的家庭农场

近几十年来，数以百万计的家庭农场消失了，其中大多数是否存在“田园诗般的”生活，这是有争议的。20世纪初，北美的平均农场每英亩产出的食物比现在少得多。一个可能的结论是，在上世纪中叶的一段时间里，大量农场通过利用迅速涌现的新技术、市场和以增长为导向的理念，获得了暂时的舒适地位。随着经济增长和“生产效率”的不断提高，这种状况开始明显逆转，至少在上世纪70年代是这样。自1920年以来，美国的农场数量和生活在这片土地上的农户数量每十年就会减少一次。这在一定程度上是规模经济和竞争压力的作用。在某种程度上，这可能被视为一种迹象，表明“家庭农业”以其原始的、现实的形式只是简单的艰苦劳动，社会和文化机会有限，作为一种职业和一种“生活方式”与城市和郊区的机会竞争激烈。

在当前形势下，独立的“家庭农民”要想重新获得任何形式的实际经济独立，似乎有必要对整个食品行业进行重组。此外，考虑到已倒闭家庭农场的极端数量，这与其说是拯救或保护家庭农场的问题，不如说是利用剩余的知识、专门知识和农场作为“新家庭农场”的框架。一个严重的问题,然而,是整个食品系统是否应该“重组”为了保存失败或者神话理想,还是世界的人口,现在接近70亿人,将持续恢复劳动密集型农业和当地的妈妈和流行的营销实践。然而，答案很难立即被认为是显而易见的，特别是因为这70亿人口中的许多人可能会发现，他们更喜欢种植粮食，而不是目前的城市下层阶级的选择，如数据输入、食品服务和电话营销。

作为“家庭农场”发展的一个例子，北达科他州的历史具有启发性。虽然这些农场在19世纪70年代最初被开发为巨大的“富矿农场”，但后来被分割并出售成较小的产业，而该州的其他部分则被划分为四分之一(160英亩(0.65平方公里))的农场。到20世纪20年代和30年代，该州主要由个人和家庭耕种。国家享受了民粹主义的繁荣在20世纪早期,随着farmer-controlled议会获得控制农产品的市场营销和销售,放在国家资助的合作社,使较小的生产商为了逃避的铁路和工业化食品商人。这些政策早就被废弃了。2007年，北达科他州的大部分农田仍为个人所有。自1933年全州范围的选民倡议以来，企业拥有农田一直是非法的。然而，北达科他州的农业规模并不是混合农业的家庭手把手操作。北达科他州典型的旱地小麦农场占地几千英亩，设备规模与之相当。这些农场的产品被装配在120节车厢的火车上，作为国际贸易流的一部分运往遥远的市场

像这样的农场，通常是由15块、20块或更多的宅基地组成的四分之一的土地，其中一度包含着“家庭农场”，这可以从无数的废弃农场、鬼城、废弃的乡村教堂和墓地中看到，这些都是为了纪念一个早已消失的更大的农村人口。

在北达科他州，数以千计的被遗弃或被摧毁的农场和其他农村人口减少的证据，包括许多现在空置和恶化的宅基地，这些宅基地在20世纪70年代曾是繁荣的家庭农场，与21世纪浪漫的“家庭农场”概念形成了对比。

5 当地的食品和有机运动

在过去的几十年里，人们对有机食品和自由放养食品的兴趣又复活了。消费者的比例开始质疑工业化农业的可行性实践和转向有机食品销售产品在家庭农场不仅包括肉类和生产也是诸如小麦胚芽面包和天然碱液肥皂(相对于漂白的白面包和基于石油的洗涤剂酒吧)。其他人直接从家庭农场购买这些产品。“新家庭农场”为一些地区提供了一个替代市场，提供了一系列传统和自然生产的产品。

这样的“有机”和“放养”农业是可以实现的，因为大量富裕的城市和郊区消费者愿意为“当地生产的产品”和“人道对待动物”的理想支付溢价。有时，这些农场是业余爱好或兼职企业，或由其他来源的财富支持。可行农场的规模足以支持现代家庭，其收入水平与城市和郊区中上层阶级家庭相当，这些农场往往是大规模经营，无论在面积上还是在资本需求上都是如此。这些家庭拥有和以技术和经济传统方式经营的农场生产面向国内和国际市场而不是面向当地市场的作物和动物产品。在评估这种复杂的经济形势时，重要的是考虑到这些农场的所有收入来源;例如，美国政府每年提供的数百万美元的农业补贴。随着燃料价格的上涨，运往国内和国际市场的食品价格已经在上涨。

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