Subsistence Farming- Types & Examples
Introduction
Subsistence farming is that form of farming in which nearly all of the crops or livestock raised are used to maintain the farmer and the farmer’s family. It means farmers grow food crops to meet the needs of themselves and their families; little or nothing is produced for sale or trade.
In subsistence agriculture, farm output is subjected to survival and is mostly for local requirements with little or no surplus. Agriculture planning is made principally with the view towards what will be families’ need during the subsequent year, and secondarily toward market prices.
Subsistence agriculture was predominant in Asian continent especially India and later emerged in various parts of the developing countries. Earlier it was the dominant mode of food production in the world until commercialization took place widely. Presently this farming existed in part of Africa, Southeast Asia, and parts of South and Central America, is an extension of primitive foraging practiced by early civilizations.
Historically, most early farmers engaged in some form of subsistence farming to survive. As the domestication of certain plants and animals evolved, population densities rose and intensive farming methods developed, the movement towards commercial farming and industrialization became more prominent.
Key points are:
- A system where production is primarily for household use rather than commercial sale.
- Farmers depend on family labor and traditional techniques.
- Surplus, if any, is minimal and often exchanged locally.
Examples in India
- Practiced widely in rainfed regions of Bihar, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and North-East India.
- Common in tribal areas where shifting cultivation (jhum) is a form of subsistence farming.
- Dryland regions often rely on millets, pulses, and oilseeds for family consumption.
Key Features
- Small landholdings: Usually fragmented plots.
- Traditional tools: Wooden ploughs, sickles, bullock carts.
- Low productivity: Limited use of fertilizers, irrigation, or HYV seeds.
- Diverse cropping: Farmers grow cereals, pulses, vegetables together to meet varied household needs.
- Risk-prone: Highly dependent on monsoon rainfall.
Types of Subsistence Farming
- Shifting cultivation– Here land is rotated but crop is fixed. In this type of agriculture, a patch of forest land is cleared by a combination of felling and burning, and crops are grown. After 2–3 years the fertility of the soil begins to decline, the land is abandoned and the farmer moves to clear a fresh piece of land elsewhere in the forest as the process continues. While the land is left fallow the forest regrows in the cleared area and soil fertility and biomass is restored. After a decade or more, the farmer may return to the first piece of land.
Shifting cultivation is also called dredd in India, ladang in Indonesia, milpa in Central America and Mexico and jhumming in Northeast India. Practiced in northern state of India, Jharkhand, M.P, and hilly areas. - Primitive farming- This type of farming is done on self-sufficient basis, and farmers grow food only for themselves and their families. Some small surpluses may be either exchanged by barter or sold for cash. The resultant economy is thus static with little chance for improvement, but there is a high degree of rural independence because farmers are not tied to landlords or to trading centres. This form of agriculture is widely practiced by many tribes of the tropics, especially in Africa, in tropical South and Central America, and in South-East Asia.
- Nomadic farming- In this type of farming people migrate along with their animals from one place to another in search of fodder for their animals. Generally, they rear cattle, sheep, goats, camels and/or yaks for milk, skin, meat and wool. This way of life is common in parts of central and western Asia, India, east and southwest Africa and northern Eurasia.
Examples are the nomadic Bhotiyas and Gujjars of the Himalayas. They carry their belongings, such as tents, etc., on the backs of donkeys, horses, and camels. In mountainous regions, like Tibet and the Andes, yak and llama are reared. Reindeer are the livestock in arctic and sub-arctic areas. Sheep, goats, and camels are common animals, and cattle and horses are also important.
Merits
- Ensures food security at household level
- Promotes self-reliance and reduces dependence on markets.
- Maintains traditional knowledge and biodiversity.
- Low input costs compared to commercial farming.
Demerits
- Low yield and poor economic returns.
- No surplus for trade, limiting rural income.
- Backward technology and lack of modernization.
- Vulnerable to climate shocks (droughts, floods).
- Leads to poverty cycles in rural areas.
Future Prospects
- Historically and currently a difficult way of life, subsistence farming is considered by many a backward lifestyle that should be transformed into industrialized communities and commercial farming throughout the world in order to overcome problems of poverty and famine.
- Subsistence agriculture can be used as a poverty alleviation strategy, specifically as a safety net for food-price shocks and for food security. Poor countries are limited in fiscal and institutional resources that would allow them to contain rises in domestic prices as well as to manage social assistance programs, which is often because they are using policy tools that are intended for middle- and high-income countries. Low-income countries tend to have populations in which 80% of poor are in rural areas and more than 90% of rural households have access to land, yet a majority of these rural poor have insufficient access to food.
- Subsistence agriculture can be used in low-income countries as a part of policy responses to a food crisis in the short and medium term and provide a safety net for the poor in these countries.
Comparison with Commercial Farming
- Commercial farming is market-oriented, uses large-scale farms, and relies on modern machinery, while purpose of subsistence farming is household consumption and uses small plot and traditional tools.
- productivity in commercial farming is high, significant income while risk is lower. On the other hand, low productivity, high risk (monsoon dependent) and minimal income in subsistence farming.
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