SOCIO-ECONOMIC ESSENCE OF THE AGROECOLOGICAL CONCEPT OF AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AND FOOD PROVISION

Abstract

The internationally recognized need to transition to sustainable agri-food systems that provide a net positive impact on nutrition, the environment and livelihoods has led to the renewal of the concept of agroecology as a theoretical and methodological approach, supported by a socio-economic dimension and aimed at increasing the sustainability of agriculture. This methodological approach is based on the principles of justice and human rights, focused on minimizing negative externalities for rural societies and natural systems in the process of agricultural and food production.

The agroecological concept in its modernized sense is a combination of science, production practices and social movements for justice and sustainable development, aimed at the fundamental transformation of agri-food systems in the interests of society and for adaptation to climate change. Modern agroecological practices are not a “return to the past”, but the application of science-driven, systemic approaches to agricultural production, aimed at mitigating destructive impacts on nature and society in combination with time-tested traditional farming methods that work within the framework of natural and social processes. The result of farming on agroecological principles is a change not only in production, but also in social production relations, the significant consequences of which are the regrouping of produced wealth and the restoration of social control over the distribution of benefits from the production and trade in agricultural products and food.

The future of Ukrainian agriculture will largely depend on whether, in the process of restoring its production and export potential, it will be possible to foster the formation of nationally rooted agrarian and rural development resulting in the country’s capability to ensure food production on a sustainable basis in the medium and long term and successfully integrate into the EU. The agricultural sector today is not only about production and export, but also about environmental sustainability, public health and economic inclusion. Agroecological transition guarantees the achievement of these goals.