Supporting Farming Families in Argentina

Many smallholder farmers in El Chaco, Argentina, struggle to be productive due to outdated agricultural techniques and limited access to credit, training and new technologies.

Some have to supplement their income with state benefits and lack support on social and medical issues.

LDC’s project with the Louis Dreyfus Foundation and Fundación “Aquí Es” aims to support the local farming community by providing:

• Microcredit that allows producers to start, or improve existing, production;
• Technical support and training related to agricultural production;
• Supervision and advice to farmers, during practical learning in the field; and
• Support on social and medical issues, through local doctors, nurses and nutritionists.

Each farmer received guidance on how to record production results, and the 76% of producers actively recording these can now define sales prices for their produce and calculate profits.

Farming families also received first aid training, information about breast cancer prevention and support with family conflicts mediation. Single mothers and pregnant adolescents were offered additional medical and psychological support. Children with motor developmental and mental disabilities were diagnosed and received disability certificates.

The project also trained the families on nutrition practices and cooking with local ingredients. As a result, the families adopted more balanced diets, cooking more with their produce.

Read more in the Louis Dreyfus Foundation’s 2020 Activity Report.