Family agricultural holdings in Bulgaria case study in horticulture

An agricultural holding is an economic unit of agricultural production under single management and comprises all the livestock kept and all the land used, wholly or partly, for agricultural production purposes, without regard to title, legal form or size. Management may be exercised in the following ways: singly, by an individual or household; jointly, by two or more individuals or households; by a clan or tribe; or by a juridical person such as a corporation, cooperative or government agency. (FAO. 1995. Programme for the World Census of Agriculture 2000, p. 28. FAO Statistical Development Series No. 5. Rome.) Family farming includes all family-based agricultural activities, and it is linked to several areas of rural development. Family farming is a means of organizing agricultural, forestry, fisheries, pastoral and aquaculture production which is managed and operated by a family and predominantly reliant on family labour, including both women’s and men’s. Both in developing and developed countries, family farming is the predominant form of agriculture in the food production sector. At national level, there are a number of factors that are key for a successful development of family farming, such as: agro-ecological conditions and territorial characteristics; policy environment; access to markets; access to land and natural resources; access to technology and extension services; access to finance; demographic, economic and socio-cultural conditions; availability of specialized education among others. Farming is one of the main employment sectors in Bulgaria’s rural areas. 32% of the jobs are in the farming sector. The activities adding value to the production, like processing, direct marketing etc. are not well developed. The number of enterprises and industries operating in other sectors is very low. The small-scale farms are the main group that has an important role for the development of the agricultural and rural area in Bulgaria. This family business is officially engaged in one member of the family farm and required employment power by all others members. The small-scale farmers with agricultural education are very small. This type of farmers has mostly practical agricultural knowledge and experience and funds their investment costs with their own financial resources. This paper presents an exploration of the influence of "family" on structural changes in agriculture in Bulgaria in vegetable and mushroom production. The agri-food sector in Bulgaria is a key component of the national economy, accounting for over 9.8% of gross added value and approximately 21.7% of employment (MAF, 2014), as in the rural areas the percentages are higher (MAF, 2014). The sector is geographically dispersed with a dualistic structure characterized by a few big farms and a large number of small ones (91% of the farms in the country operate less than 5 ha of land, which results in cultivating 5.2% of the total utilized agricultural area and giving 8.7% of total production volume). Also, it is recognized that horizontal and vertical networks within the food supply chain in Bulgaria are weak. Farmer participation in farmer’s groups and producer organizations is very limited. Most of them, particularly in the 212 fruit and vegetables sub-sector, do not have preliminary negotiations and/or contracts with, processors, etc. The direct sales of agricultural and food products and local product marketing are in the initial phase and still need to be developed, as do the necessary preconditions, such as market and transport infrastructure, appropriate legislative.