Tendências para a Agricultura Familiar no Sul do Brasil.

Family farming has increased its importance in the Brazilian economy in recent years, and is responsible for more than a third of the Gross National Product (PNB) in agriculture, generating income and quality of life for farmers. Even so, in the last decades in rural areas, the rural exodus has been increasing, mainly of young people and women family farmers. In this context, the study aims to analyze through a survey carried out in the southern states of Brazil, which are the main economic, cultural and socio-environmental changes in recent years and who and how will farmers be in the coming decades. Analyzes were carried out on the socioeconomic, cultural and environmental profile and condition of 320 rural families, and on secondary agricultural data from the Southern States. As for the succession in rural activities, the results revealed that factors related to low income and insufficient public policies make it difficult to keep young people and women in agriculture, in addition, the possibility of studying what is very positive opens up other opportunities and the size factor of properties is still very limiting in family farming activities. Agroecology proved to be important for most young farmers. The results also pointed out, roughly speaking, three types of farmers who will be present in rural areas in the coming decades, namely: the consolidated and technified ones, the agroecologists who participate in fairs and take care of food security and sovereignty, and those who lease their land and soon retire [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]