smallholder farming

Smallholder farming is agriculture practiced on small plots of land, typically by families who work the land themselves.

The precise size varies by region—what counts as small in the American Midwest differs from smallholdings in sub-Saharan Africa or Southeast Asia.

Smallholders often grow food for their own consumption while selling surplus at local markets: Smallholder farming accounts for much of the world's food production.

The term emphasizes scale and family labor rather than commercial agribusiness.