Agricultura familiar: a constituição de um campo: relações de poder e agricultura familiar em São Lourenço do Sul.

Abstract

Since the 90's, a new research agenda proposed the family farm as the object of study throughout the world. In Brazil, these studies are combined with the assertion of that category by a movement driven by social and political factors. The purpose of this research is to analyze the way to make family farm in the organizations created to represent and promote the social, political and economic organization of these groups. The questions guiding this study, looks to understand how actors in different social positions and asymmetric resources, builds the family farm category. The objective of this dissertation is to understand the elements and processes that determinates the power relations between farmers and social mediators in family farm organizations. The empirical context is the case study of family farm organizations fostered by social mediators in São Lourenço do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul. The results of this study demonstrates that the relationship between social mediators and farmers is based on an asymmetry of structural resources that produces unequal power relations, making difficult the egalitarian intentions between these agents.