Encountering a conundrum
Agriculture and food system change and rural transformation in the Global South
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 24213170 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Birendra Singh (0009-0002-9079-1450, Erasmus University Rotterdam) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-19 |
| Publication date | 2026-10-05 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Reviews in Anthropology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0093-8157 • E-ISSN: 1556-3014 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00938157.2026.2741345 |
| OpenAlex | W7220436537 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 38 |
Agriculture and food systems in the Global South are undergoing significant social and technological changes, forming a complex ecosystem of actors, commodities, practices, technologies, and institutions. These changes, primarily aimed at increasing agricultural production and modernizing food chains, are often deemed essential for food-system sustainability and urban food security. However, the ways in which these changes affect the economies and ecologies of rural spaces—the sites of food production where much of the Global South’s population lives—remain insufficiently studied. This paper revisits ongoing changes in India’s agriculture and food system in relation to broader trends across the Global South and conceptualizes them as three interconnected waves of change. The impacts of these waves on socio-economic life in villages are mixed, rendering rural transformation a complex and evolving process. The paper argues that, while these changes have increased food production and diversified livelihood opportunities, they have also reproduced the existing inequalities and climate vulnerabilities. They do so by exerting pressure on natural resources, creating a precariat through the casualization of labor, and accelerating capital accumulation within the village economy. Thus, the ongoing changes have produced a “conundrum” in the Global South: the pressure to ensure availability of affordable food for a growing population while preserving ecological resources and mitigating existing inequalities.
agricultural change · food system transformation · Food systems · Global South · Rural development · rural transformation · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Rural Development and Agriculture · Rural development and sustainability
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| Highly cited | No |
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