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A survey of farms and farm households in three different areas of Sweden makes it possible to study the position of family farms, as compared to other farm types. Based on patterns of labour use and sources of income, a theoretically grounded farm typology is suggested. Such a typology is offered as an alternative to arbitrary criteria in terms of acreage, turnover or total labour, which can never be generalized, nor used in longitudinal or comparative studies. The sample illustrates the striking similarities in social set-up between the intensive agriculture in the plains of southern Sweden and that in the northern parts of the country. The role of family and non-family labour, as well as the role of non-farm work and sources of income in the three study areas are analysed.

Background: In spite of considerable rice production gains over the past 50 years, Sub-Saharan Africa is becoming increasingly dependent on rice imports as demand is outpacing domestic supply. The serious economic and social strains caused by this have urged national leaders to address production deficits. The aim of this article is to analyse and discuss the drivers behind recent changes in rice production in Africa South of the Sahara, focusing on Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania and Mozambique. Considering the period 2002-2008, we model production performance and changes in production amongst 317 rice-growing households using multilevel and longitudinal data. We evaluate and discuss the role of three key processes: the role of commercial drivers, farm technology and macro-level conditions. Results:We show that until 2002, production was driven by a combination of the three key processes considered, while during the period 2002-2008, production increases were primarily associated with area expansion and commercial drivers. This suggests that production lately has been more driven by processes of extensification than intensification. We also note that in none of the periods considered, the share of the state budget allocated to agriculture had a significant effect on production and that recent developments do not give any obvious support for an Asianstyle state-driven Green Revolution in rice in Sub-Saharan Africa. Conclusions:The role of commercialization in explaining changes in production suggests that policies strengthening food staple markets in the sub-continent hold great potential for driving rice production in the near future. Due to the scarcity of available land, the possibilities of further growth in the rice sector are limited without an intensification of production. Hence, farmers also need to access new farm technology, and positive development of rice production would in turn contribute to an improvement of food security.

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This chapter examines major changes in smallholder production during a period of both relatively rapid overall economic growth on the continent and a dramatic increase in global food prices affecting farm households. In addition, it contributes empirically to debates which have been running on a number of themes, for example on farm size, the role of staple crop production and of non-farm household incomes. This chapter draws on the two cross-section samples generated by the first and second research projects--Afrint I and Afrint II.