ABSTRACT
The loss of farms, the growth of large-scale farming, the decline of small farms as producers of food and fiber products, and periodic food "crises" have alarmed many citizens and policy makers. The relationship between the variables and characteristics of families and farms need to be researched prior to setting any boundaries on smallness of scale or part-time operation. Most American farm families live on small and part-time farms, and their needs are great. Also, small and part-time farm families produce an important share of many commodities, and their share could be increased. The very existence of small and part-time farm families strengthens the resilience of United States agriculture in economic resource and market crises to which large-scale farms are vulnerable. The social networks sustaining part-time farmers comprise an even more complex structure because of their relationships with nonfarm industries and services. Also important is the extent to which small farmers have resisted or failed to develop effective economic organizations.
