The most important source of environmental income in the world is agriculture—the goods derived from agroecosystems. Agroecosystems differ from other types of ecosystems because of the high degree to which they have been modified by people. Large-scale agriculture, driven by expensive inputs and technology— fertilizer, pesticides, irrigation, tractors, and harvesters—is responsible for much of world food production and agricultural exports. But small-scale agriculture—the farming that the poor pursue—is the silent giant that supports the great majority of the rural residents in poor nations.

This kind of farming looks much different than large-scale farming. While most farms in developed countries are owned by corporations and dominated by physical rather than human capital, in the developing world farms are still largely family owned and operated. Small-scale farming remains laborintensive and often lacks access to irrigation, fertilizer, or other inputs that raise productivity. The producer and consumer is frequently the same household. Despite the successes of the Green Revolution, this characterization still describes the majority of the agriculture practiced in the world today (FAO 2000b).

Smallholder farmers—those who own less than 5 hectares of land—cultivate lands in several ways: home gardens and small orchards that largely produce subsistence goods for home consumption; cultivation of commodity crops such as cotton or maize; and grazing of family-owned livestock. This can occur on very small parcels—sometimes on quite marginal land—and is often intermixed with other land uses like forestry. The goods which these small-scale “farms” produce can also be sold in local markets, sold to collectives that combine goods for resale, or even exported to other countries. Each of these modes of production plays a role in the household economy of the poor. Perhaps the most common and important benefit of these farms is that, combined with livestock, they meet a large portion of the nutritional requirements of many poor households.

Malawi, where small-scale farmers account for 70 percent of all farm production, provides a window onto the importance of such farming. Nearly eight of ten Malawians farm their own land—most cultivating less than a hectare (Fisher 2004:136). Maize is the staple crop, with cassava, sorghum, groundnuts, and beans also important. Nearly half of all households own chickens, and one-fifth own goats. Together these agricultural assets provide more than half of household income. Income from forests contributes another 30 percent. Only 10 percent of Malawi’s population is engaged in wage employment, highlighting how critical environmental income—and particularly farm income—is to survival (Dorward 2002:9-24).

Understanding the role of small-scale agriculture in poor households requires an appreciation of the interplay between selling crops for cash and consuming them at home.

A study of home gardens in the Bushbuckridge district in South Africa exemplifies this interplay and the substantial contribution that home gardens often have in the livelihoods of the poor. In this district, households grow an average of four to five plant species on their residential plots. Households consume nearly three-quarters of the plants that they grow and sell the rest. The total cash value of all plants sold and consumed at home per year was US$266 per household— a sizable contribution to income in an area with few employment opportunities (High and Shackleton 2000:148, 154). (See Table 2.3 The Value of Home Gardens To Households In Bushbuckridge, South Africa, 1996.)