Degrowing alternative agriculture: institutions and aspirations as sustainability metrics for small farmers in Bosnia and India

Abstract

Much sustainable development in agri-food systems is predicated upon increasing the production of agricultural commodities amid changing climates, political organization, and markets. While this growth in exports is critical for the expansion of alternative production supply chains like certified organic commodities markets, the long-term success of alternative agriculture development programs in helping farmers achieve a range of rural aspirations depends not on sociotechnical fixes for specific ecological problems, but on the creative and performative reorganizations of labor and value in farm spaces. Degrowth, a political-economic theory of reorganizing production to achieve socio-ecological sustainability over the long term, provides a framework to evaluate the lasting impact of alternative agricultural development or persistent smallholder farming beyond the production or sale of agricultural commodities. This paper draws on research with organic cotton and coffee farmers in India, as well as a brief case study with small-scale heritage farmers in Bosnia, to argue that sustainability, broadly conceived, must account for factors beyond resource-efficiency or yields. Small-scale organic farming in India and household allotments in Bosnia will never outperform agri-food commodities producers with respect to profits, yields, or sustained growth. However, a degrowth perspective suggests that these are the wrong metrics for sustainability. Efforts that keep farmers in place and with local autonomy are best positioned to ensure that small-scale farmers can continue to manage agricultural landscapes over the long term.