New farmers in the south of Italy: Capturing the complexity of contemporary strategies and networks

Though obscured by agricultural modernization efforts in the 1950s, peasant and peasant-like farm realities persist. Since the 1990s, Italy, like the rest of Europe, witnessed a wave of re-peasantization-a conceptual framework introduced by rural sociologist Jan Douwe van der Ploeg to mark the emergence of a mode of agriculture that is distinctively more peasant-like. Using a qualitative, field-based two-case design, this study explored this phenomenon in two new entrant farms in Campania and Sicily, in Italy. Each farm's practices and pursued objectives, as well as its social networks were analyzed. Findings revealed that the two farms adopt strategies grounded in the material and immaterial resources of their territories, thus minimizing their dependence on external inputs and expertise. Built social networks support the diversification of their activities, of their market circuits and of their knowledge sources. This study contributes to the documentation of new peasant realities in Italy, while highlighting the importance of contextual specificities for understanding new farming models and farmer identities.

Automated summary

In Italy, there has been a wave of re-peasantization since the 1990s, with new entrant farms adopting strategies based on territorial resources to minimize dependence on external inputs. Built social networks support diversification of activities, market circuits, and knowledge sources for these farms.