Securitized scarcity or insecure abundance? A case study on the strengths and weaknesses of agroecology in southeast Michigan

Abstract

There is growing consensus that agroecology is needed to improve the sustainability, equity, economic viability, and climate resilience of farming. Agroecology is burgeoning in scientific literature and has been practiced by peasants to resist corporate and state oppression for over a century, but case studies of agroecological transformation in the U.S. remain sparse and public funding remains limited. In the heart of the Midwest, this case study provides a narrative of alternative agriculture, illustrating the strengths and weaknesses of agroecology in a landscape and country dominated by agribusiness interests. I interviewed female and Black, Indigenous, and Latina/o farm support actors and small-scale farmers of livestock, cut flowers, diversified vegetables, and agroforestry. From these interviews, I assessed which elements of the FAOs 10 principles of agroecology are being supported and practiced in southeast Michigan. All farmers are increasing diversity, resilience, efficiency, and synergies across their farm on their own. This is aided by co-production of knowledge and investments in the solidarity economy. All principles need to be strengthened, but recycling, responsible governance, and culture and food traditions were the least prevalent agroecological principles among these farmers, with the lattermost principle being limited by the diversity of interviewees. Farmers were not invested in internalizing recycling processes, most notably for seeds and compost, and bottom-up responsible governance was deemed aspirational, not practical. Recommendations include securing the knowledge that is being robustly produced and ensuring agroecology is operationalized through active, reciprocal partnerships between farmers, universities, and farm support actors. Other recommendations include developing a set of local policies, propelled forward by policy councils already established, that address equitable access to land and markets for Black, Indigenous, and Latina/o farmers and development of mid-sized markets. Lastly, recycling of inputs and independence from agribusiness should be strengthened through seed commoning.