What is a Family Farm?
A family farm is not defined by size, but rather by the fact that
the family provides the vast majority of the labor and management
decisions. For example, farmers within the National Family Farm
Coalition operate a large variety of farms—some farm a couple
of acres while others farm thousands of acres. The common goal
of family farmers is farm sustainability—both economically
and environmentally.
On a family farm, the family takes the risks, makes the decisions
and should receive the economic gains. In order to remain economically
viable, farmers must be able to earn a decent living from their
farming operations to support their families and contribute to
the rural economy. From purchasing equipment to direct marketing,
family farmers play a major role in contributing to rural communities’ economic viability.
Current farm policy, however, promotes environmental destruction
and the loss of economic fairness and freedom. This policy forces
family farmers to exploit their land by producing more to partially
compensate for lower returns which contributes to the economic
decline of the family farm system. This also leads to farm consolidation,
foreclosures and more industrialized agriculture resulting in
further concentration of economic and political power within faceless
and unaccountable multinational corporations.
A thriving, sustainable family farm system will only be possible
if supported by government policy that encourages widespread ownership
of land and restores competition to the buying, exporting, packing
and processing industries in all commodities. Furthermore, policy
needs to ensure that farm products’ prices reflect all costs,
both internal and external, striving for economic justice throughout
the farm and food system.
