Purchasing foods produced on organic, small and local farms: A mixed method analysis of New England consumers

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 267-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Berlin ◽  
W. Lockeretz ◽  
R. Bell
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
New England ◽  
Rural Economy ◽  
Food System ◽  
Mail Survey ◽  
Rural Landscape ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Consumer Values ◽  
Method Analysis

AbstractResearch focused on consumer behavior and attitudes toward organic, small-scale and locally produced foods can help organic producers understand consumer values, and in turn develop production and marketing approaches that match these values. This research on New England area food shoppers included focus groups, individual interviews, and a mail survey, all of which helped us to identify relationships between organic food buying and consumers' views of the food system. Comments made in focus groups and individual interviews revealed a frequent blending of the concepts of local, small-scale and organic, and their associated benefits. Subsequent mail surveys identified similar tendencies, although respondents made some distinctions among the reasons why they bought food from the three farm categories. When there were differences, respondents tended to attribute greater importance to reasons to buy from local farms, as compared to organic or small farms. The six questions for which the differences across farm categories had the lowest P-values were related to the environment, rural economy, rural landscape, farmers, product freshness and product taste. However, freshness, taste, nutritional quality and safety were some of the most compelling reasons that were attributed to all three farm categories. The challenge for the small, local and organic producer will be to continue to hold the consumer's attention as the general perception of organic farming shifts to a more industrialized model.

Farm woodlots in northern New England, USA: Characteristics, management, and contributions to the whole farm system

2007 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.F. Egan
Keyword(s):  
New England ◽  
Mail Survey ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Management Plan ◽  
Rural Landscape ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Northern New England ◽  
Forest Stewardship ◽  
Stewardship Behavior ◽  
Farm System

AbstractFarms and forests dominate the rural landscape of the northern New England states of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, among the most heavily forested states in the US. However, we know little about the stewardship of farm woodlots and their contributions to the whole farm system, despite region-wide increases in farm forest acreage. Using a mail survey, this study found that almost half of respondents had a written management plan for their forestland, most of which had been written by a forester, and approximately three-quarters took an active role in the management of their woodlots. Farm woodlot harvesting and management contributed over 7% of total farm income. Variables such as respondent's state of residence, age, education and type of farm were investigated in order to better understand farmers’ forest stewardship behavior. Implications for effective outreach to farm forest owners are offered.

Organic Futures

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Connor J Fitzmaurice ◽  
Brian J. Gareau
Keyword(s):  
New England ◽  
Food System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Grocery Store ◽  
Farmers Markets ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Small Communities ◽  
Critical Scholarship ◽  
Organic Farmers ◽  
Difficult Terrain

Walking through nearly any grocery store, contemporary American consumers are bound to encounter organic food. At any of the myriad of farmers’ markets that have sprung up in cities and small communities across the United States, shoppers can expect to see claims about the provenance and farming practices employed to grow everything from prized heirloom tomatoes to seemingly mundane heads of garlic. But behind the scenes, critical scholarship has shown that organic farming increasingly resembles the industrial food system organic pioneers set out to challenge. Faced with the pressures of the modern agricultural economy many farmers have conventionalized, intensifying how they farm in the face of tremendous competition and cost. Beyond the organic labels, emblazoned on products at the supermarket and the glistening bushel baskets arrayed in market stalls, are farmers, many of whom are trying to do their best to achieve sustainability in today’s food system. This book offers a glimpse into this world, through an ethnography of a small New England farm and the people who work in its fields. It sheds light on how small-scale farmers navigate the difficult terrain between ideals of sustainability and the economic realities of contemporary farming. Using new theories of economic sociology, this book moves beyond the current debates about the conventionalization of organic agriculture. Instead, it takes a relational approach to organic practices—investigating the complex ways market pressures, moral and emotional attachments, privilege, and personal relationships intersect to shape the everyday experiences of agriculture for today’s organic farmers and their consumers.

scholarly journals Can practice educators be a ‘bridge’ between the academy and the practicum?

2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 62-78
Author(s):  
Martyn Higgins
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Ethical Approval ◽  
Intermediary Role ◽  
Undergraduate Programme ◽  
The University

Debates exist about the separation of the academy and the practicum. The purpose of this study is to explore how its findings may contribute to this discussion. The unique pedagogies of the university and practice are explored and consideration is given to whether practice educators hold an intermediary role. A qualitative study of an undergraduate programme in England using thematic analysis was undertaken once ethical approval was given. Individual interviews and focus groups were used. A total of 48 participants were interviewed at two different points in time (2008 and 2011-2012). Although this is a limited small scale study not susceptible to generalisation it may be able to provide an analytic generalisation, which may be replicable with further studies.The findings indicated practice educators struggled to act as a bridge because the academy and the practicum have conflicting and competing signature pedagogies. The contribution of this study is to the contemporary discussion on the SWRB changes and models such as Frontline.

scholarly journals The Role of Agriculture and Non-Farm Economy in Addressing Food Insecurity in Ethiopia: A Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 3874
Author(s):  
Komikouma Apelike Wobuibe Neglo ◽  
Tnsue Gebrekidan ◽  
Kaiyu Lyu
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Human Development ◽  
Rural Economy ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Green Revolution ◽  
Rural Landscape ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Macroeconomic Factors ◽  
Farm Sector

In Ethiopia, famine and extreme poverty are a result of insufficient food relief, poor macroeconomic factors, climate shocks, undiversified livelihoods based on low productivity in rain-fed agriculture, coupled with institutional incapacity. To serve as a context, this paper provides a comprehensive review of the conceptual framework of human development and capability paradigm to food security. In addition, it highlights evidence and a comparative analysis of the Asian green revolution experience, and places emphasis on sustainable and intersectoral growth through agricultural transformation and promotion of rural non-farm economy agenda to reverse the trends of protracted food crises in Ethiopia. Rapid, science-led, and employment-intensive agricultural growth, accompanied by the promotion of the rural non-farm sector, is of great importance to the rural economy. These will bring about farm sector competitiveness and enhanced productivity, environmental outcomes, acceleration of human development, new opportunities provided to the small-scale food producers, and desirable changes to the rural landscape. The study further introduces a brief analysis of the prominent role of social protection instruments in strengthening food entitlements and basic capabilities, including individual agencies. It suggests that actualizing sustainable food security and hastening human development under Ethiopia’s exclusive settings require the recognition of the rural economic heterogeneity as well as holistic and pragmatic policies, which promote sustainable and inclusive growth.

Rural Development and Employment through Skill Development

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Purnendu Kumar Patra
Keyword(s):  
Rural Economy ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Rural Landscape ◽  
Current Status ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Unskilled Labor ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Proper Training ◽  
Alternative Means ◽  
Civil Laws

India has around 600,000 villages with around 64% of its 1.3 billion people living in them. It is absurd to imagine growth without the country-side growing as fast as India's towns and cities. This nation has one of the largest pools of unskilled labor waiting to be trained and utilized. In the absence of proper training, awareness and motivation, it is commonplace for the rural unemployed youth to adopt alternative means of livelihood, many of which are shunned by civil laws. Through this paper the author wishes to throw some light on the importance of Skill Development programs, their current status, the gap that exists between the demand and supply of skilled labor and how employability of rural youth is enhanced by imparting skill oriented training to them. Finally, the paper also emphasizes on how skilled and employable youth contribute to overall development of a rural economy in particular and the nation in general. Data has been gathered from reliable secondary sources. On assumed lines, it was also concluded that the need of the hour for India is to aggressively pursue innovative government programs like Skill India and Make in India so that by the turn of the decade, close to half of the projected eligible population could be employed in various state-run schemes, private organizations. Entrepreneurship is also an outcome of innovative skill development that has immense potential for employment and thus, development of the rural landscape. The paper limits itself to the schemes launched by the respective state governments and central governments thus leaving room for improvement as far as measures taken by privately owned organizations and NGOs are concerned.

scholarly journals Assessing impacts of COVID-19 on aquatic food system and small-scale fisheries in Bangladesh

Marine Policy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 126 ◽  
pp. 104422
Author(s):  
Atiqur Rahman Sunny ◽  
Sharif Ahmed Sazzad ◽  
Shamsul Haque Prodhan ◽  
Md. Ashrafuzzaman ◽  
Gopal Chandra Datta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food System ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Small Scale Fisheries ◽  
Aquatic Food

scholarly journals Building Bio-Districts or Eco-Regions: Participative Processes Supported by Focal Groups

Agriculture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 511
Author(s):  
Raquel S. Dias ◽  
Daniela V.T.A. Costa ◽  
Helena E. Correia ◽  
Cristina A. Costa
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Organic Farming ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Food System ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Agricultural Activities ◽  
Family Farmers ◽  
Governance Model ◽  
Environmental Component

Over the years, rural areas have faced a number of problems and difficulties, such as an increase in the average age of the population, desertification, loss of employment and the abandonment of rural and agricultural activities, which have led to the emergence of new initiatives aimed at revitalizing these territories from a social, economic and environmental perspective, such as the successful Bio-districts or Eco-regions (e.g., Bio-district of Cilento). Understanding and establishing a proper framework for each territory based on agroecology and participatory methodologies is still a challenge. In this sense, based on the analysis of two European examples—Cilento, Italy and São Pedro do Sul, Portugal—we described each of the building processes and defined a set of drivers that might constitute guiding principles to serve as a basis for the creation of Bio-districts or Eco-regions. The drivers’ matrix identified was discussed in three focus groups carried out in Portugal in 2020. Such drivers included a technical and environmental component (the quality of the environment and landscape, the food system and the implementation of organic farming and agroecological practices), a social and economic component (valorization of the farmers, products and territories and a set of different stakeholders—farmers, consumers, schools, tourism entities and restaurants, local authorities) and a political component (the governance model). Most participants agreed that the recognition of a Bio-district or Eco-region should be informal, bottom-up, with farmers as the main pillar, with a fair and representative participation, namely family farmers.

scholarly journals The Challenges of Intersectionality in the Lives of Older Adults Living in Rural Areas with Limited Financial Resources

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233372142110093
Author(s):  
Adrienne Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Study Population ◽  
Southern Georgia ◽  
Multiplicative Effects ◽  
Limit Access

The objective of this study was to use intersectionality to better understand the challenges of having the combined statuses of being an older adult, living in a rural area and having limited financial resources. Eight focus groups and 38 individual interviews were conducted in southern Georgia. Participants included program participants and staff, community members, and community leaders. Thematic analysis was done using verbatim transcripts from focus groups and interviews. Results demonstrate that the multiplicative and intersecting statuses of the study population create challenges in the areas of transportation, health care, food, and housing. The challenges of these intersectional statuses limit access to services in ways that each individual status did not, thereby compounding challenges. While previous literature describes the challenges of one or two of these statuses, this work explores the multiplicative effects of the combination of the three statuses using intersectionality. Programmatic and policy recommendations and implications are discussed.

Reflections on Ecological and Environmental Construction of New Rural Program in Underdeveloped Areas

2011 ◽  
Vol 368-373 ◽  
pp. 3602-3606
Author(s):  
Ze Xin Li ◽  
Min Chen
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Rural Economy ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Ecological Environment ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Environment Protection ◽  
Underdeveloped Areas ◽  
Rural Program ◽  
Rural Construction ◽  
New Rural Construction

Underdeveloped rural areas have good but very vulnerable ecological environment, so the environment protection should be given priority in new rural construction. Based on the problems that rural areas have faced in ecological environment, some thoughts are given in this paper on ecological and environmental: ①To solve the conflicts between the development of rural economy and ecological environment protection, the development of eco-industry can be a key solution. ② For the point that people of underdeveloped areas live in scattered and small scale groups, which leads to difficulty in facility arrangements, some proposals are put forward on the construction of living environment in underdeveloped new rural areas.

Transborder interactions in the sawmill industry of Chaudière-Appalaches, Québec: A survey analysis

2003 ◽  
Vol 79 (5) ◽  
pp. 936-947
Author(s):  
Debra Straussfogel ◽  
Theodore Howard ◽  
Sylvain Masse ◽  
Difei Zhang
Keyword(s):  
New England ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Mail Survey ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Business Success ◽  
Survey Analysis ◽  
The Us ◽  
Sawmill Industry ◽  
Northern New England ◽  
National Boundaries

The objectives of this mail survey of sawmills in the Chaudière-Appalaches region of southern Québec were (1) to establish the level of transborder interaction of these sawmills, with regard to wood sources and final markets; (2) to discover their perceptions of local versus international economic and business factors with regard to their business success; and (3) to examine the role and importance of the size of the sawmills in Chaudière-Appalaches relative to the nature of their engagement in either raw material import from or finished product export to the US. Our results demonstrate that a transborder forest economy exists and that the conception of "local" in transboundary regions must be flexible enough to permit resource management strategies, that, to some extent, ignore national boundaries. Key words: sawmill industry, transborder interaction, Chaudière-Appalaches, Québec, Northern New England

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