Abstract
This paper brings an extended Bourdieusian theoretical framework to the analysis of the life strategies of small farmers in four SEE societies (Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, and Slovenia). Practices and strategies of farming households are situated in two partially overlapping fields, the formal economy and the informal economy. The paper is based on a qualitative analysis of twenty-five interviewed households. It covers the structural conditions of the households’ participation in both fields of ‘play’, an analysis of household capital (economic-agricultural, social and cultural) and an interpretation of practice (i.e. the strategy dimension). The framework is extended to include an exploration of the households’ reflexivity and agency. The findings suggest that various structural limitations impede the households from developing successful practices in the formal field (unless the households have exceptional levels of agency), and that the most common life strategy is food self-provisioning, along with reliance on practices in the informal field enabled by social capital.
Appendix
Table A1
Basic data on interviewed households[43]
Country | Names (Pseudonyms) | No. of household members | Type | The dominant form of agricultural capital | Quantitative display of the dominant forms of agricultural capital |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BiH | Boro and Luca | 2 | Agriculturist | Arable land and machinery | 4 hectares of land; 2 cows, machinery |
BiH | Goran and Daliborka | 3 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 2 hectares of land; 1 cows |
BiH | Zijad and Amela | 4 | Agriculturist, fruit grower | Arable land, orchard | 1 hectare of land |
BiH | Mesud and Lela | 3 | Agriculturist, dairy farmer | Orchard and cattle - cows | 2.5 hectares of land; 5 cows |
BiH | Halid | 4 | Agriculturist and day laborer | Arable land | 4 hectares of land; 1 horse |
BiH | Drago | 3 | Agriculturist, cattle breeder, day laborer | Arable land | 4 hectares of land; 4 cows |
Croatia | Dušanka and Slaven | 3 | Cattle breeder, dairy farmer | Cattle | 30-40 sheep; 3-4 pigs; 2 cows |
Croatia | Miljenko and Ana | 5 | Dairy farmer | Cattle | 6 cows |
Croatia | Juraj and Anica | 5 | Winemaker | Vineyard | 1.5 hectares of vineyard; 0.5 hectare olive trees |
Croatia | Mile and Jana | 2 | Cattle breeder | Cattle | 7 cows |
Croatia | Zdenka and Mišo | 2 | Dairy farmer | Cattle | 60-80 sheep; 7 cows; 1 hectare of land |
Croatia | Tony and Martin | 6 | Winemaker | Vineyard | 2.5 hectares of vineyard |
Serbia | Toma and Ana | 4 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 1 hectare of land; 2 pigs; 8 sheep |
Serbia | Zorica and Goran | 6 | Agriculturist, cattle breeder | Arable land and cattle | 2 hectares of land; 3 goats; 5 sheep |
Serbia | Sasha | 6 | Dairy farmer | Cattle | 7 cows; 2 hectares of land |
Serbia | Ivan and Katarina | 4 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 2 hectares of land; 2 pigs; 50 rabbits |
Serbia | Vesna | 3 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 1 hectare of land; 1 pig; 8 chickens |
Serbia | Marija | 6 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 2 hectares of land; 3 pigs; 5 goats |
Slovenia | Slavoj | 3 | Agriculturist, cattle breeder, winemaker | Arable land, vineyard and cattle | 20 hectares of land; 15 cows/bulls; 4 pigs |
Slovenia | Jožek | 2 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 2 hectares of land; 2 pigs |
Slovenia | Manda | 4 | Agriculturist, winemaker | Arable land and vineyard | 2.5 hectares of land; 1 hectare of vineyard |
Slovenia | Jaka and Julija | 4 | Agriculturist, cattle breeder | Arable land | 12 hectares of land; 1 cows; 10 sheep |
Slovenia | Cilka | 3 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 1 hectare of land; 10 chickens |
Slovenia | Alfonz and Masha | 4 | Agriculturist | Arable land | 1 hectare of land |
Slovenia | Ema | 5 | Agriculturist, cattle breeder | Arable land | 10 hectares of land; 3 cows; 2 pigs |
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