South America

This paper (PDF) by Hivos and IIED shares results of research carried out together with women vendors in dining areas of markets in La Paz, Bolivia, guided by interest and concerns of the vendors themselves. Bolivian people’s diets have changed significantly in recent years due to urbanisation, increased purchasing power, and changes in consumer preferences. »

These four reports highlight opportunities and challenges for research on food and nutrition security and agriculture in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe. An overarching lesson is that science, technology and innovation are key in agricultural development and food and nutrition security. »

This study provides a business case for a landscape approach to sustainable beef production in Brazil. Cattle ranch São Marcelo is seeking to support the increase in production of sustainable, zero-deforestation, traceable beef in order to meet customer demand for such products. »

In this issue of the Urban Agriculture Magazine the central theme is community involvement in urban food planning. Urban agriculture and food systems are gaining the attention of planners and policy makers across the global south and north. While this emerging planning and policy attention is laudable, it must build on decades of community-led efforts to rebuild urban agriculture and community food systems. Failure to build on these on-the ground practices run the risk of developing policy that is uninformed and disconnected from the lived experiences of people in communities. »

This paper by the International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG) present an evaluation of the public policies in Brazil that are aimed at promoting family farming. Brazil has become a good example of public policies aimed at combating poverty and fostering rural development, or, in other words, promoting family farming. The country has even ‘exported’ some of its policies, notably the Programa Bolsa Família and the Programa de Aquisição de Alimentos (PAA—Food Acquisition Programme). »