"Se o campo não planta, a cidade não janta": as políticas públicas para a agricultura familiar e o fortalecimento à soberania alimentar

Abstract

The present monograph aims to analyze the development of public policies of Family Farming as an instrument for guaranteeing Food Sovereignty in Brazil. Since the colonial period, Brazil's food production model has been agro-export, which has contributed to economic dependence of central capitalist countries. Agribusiness had its genesis in the process of the conservative modernization of agriculture under the dictatorial military governments, and consolidated itself as a model of capitalist agriculture and the production of commodities for export. However, despite the Brazilian economy revolving around the success of this model, it brought profound consequences for the people of the countryside: increased concentration of land; intensification of social inequalities and rural poverty; exploitation of natural resources; intensification of violence in the countryside; excessive use of pesticides; expropriation of the rural population; among others. In the context of the re-democratization of the 1980s and the organization and struggles for rights unleashed by social movements, public policies for Family Farming emerged, starting with the formation of Rural Settlements. This model is based on traditional agriculture, family working relationships and the distribution of land through Agrarian Reform. Family farming stands out for its preservation of the environment and its agro-ecological cultivation. In addition, it is primarily responsible for supplying food to the Brazilian population, playing a fundamental role in guaranteeing Food Security and Sovereignty. The methodology used in this work was qualitative research, based on documentary analysis and a literature review. The method used to analyze the data was critical-dialectical, in order to grasp reality and the social issues that guide the object from a historical and totality perspective. The conclusion is that family farming is extremely important for building sustainable development, in which production, people and natural resources coexist in balance and harmony. Finally, it is possible to highlight its commitment to Food Security and Sovereignty, given the production of healthy food and the non interest in achieving high levels of profit, but in feeding the population nationally, helping to eradicate hunger and social inequalities.