THE 10 ELEMENTS
OF AGROECOLOGYGUIDING THE TRANSITION
TO SUSTAINABLE FOOD AND
AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMSINTRODUCTION

Today’s food and agricultural systems have succeeded in supplying large volumesof food to global markets. However, high-external input, resource-intensive
agricultural systems have caused massive deforestation, water scarcities,
biodiversity loss, soil depletion and high levels of greenhouse gas emissions.
Despite significant progress in recent times, hunger and extreme poverty persist
as critical global challenges. Even where poverty has been reduced, pervasive
inequalities remain, hindering poverty eradication.
Integral to FAO’s Common Vision for Sustainable Food and Agriculture1,
agroecology is a key part of the global response to this climate of instability,
offering a unique approach to meeting significant increases in our food needs ofthe future while ensuring no one is left behind.
Agroecology is an integrated approach that simultaneously applies ecologicaland social concepts and principles to the design and management of food andagricultural systems. It seeks to optimize the interactions between plants,
animals, humans and the environment while taking into consideration the social
aspects that need to be addressed for a sustainable and fair food system.
Agroecology is not a new invention. It can be identified in scientific literaturesince the 1920s, and has found expression in family farmers’ practices, ingrassroots social movements for sustainability and the public policies of various
countries around the world. More recently, agroecology has entered thediscourse of international and UN institutions.2

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WHAT MAKES AGROECOLOGY DISTINCT?
Agroecology is fundamentally different from other approaches to sustainable
development. It is based on bottom-up and territorial processes, helping to deliver
contextualised solutions to local problems. Agroecological innovations are based on
the co-creation of knowledge, combining science with the traditional, practical andlocal knowledge of producers. By enhancing their autonomy and adaptive capacity,
agroecology empowers producers and communities as key agents of change.
Rather than tweaking the practices of unsustainable agricultural systems,
agroecology seeks to transform food and agricultural systems, addressing theroot causes of problems in an integrated way and providing holistic and long-term
solutions. This includes an explicit focus on social and economic dimensions offood systems. Agroecology places a strong focus on the rights of women, youth andindigenous peoples.

WHAT ARE THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGY?
In guiding countries to transform their food and agricultural systems, to mainstream
sustainable agriculture on a large scale3, and to achieve Zero Hunger and multiple
other SDGs, the following 10 Elements emanated from the FAO regional seminars
on agroecology4:
Diversity; synergies; efficiency; resilience; recycling; co-creation and sharingof knowledge (describing common characteristics of agroecological systems,
foundational practices and innovation approaches)
Human and social values; culture and food traditions (context features)
Responsible governance; circular and solidarity economy (enabling environment)
The 10 Elements of Agroecology are interlinked and interdependent.

WHY ARE THE 10 ELEMENTS USEFUL AND HOW WILL THEY BE USED?
As an analytical tool, the 10 Elements can help countries to operationalise agroecology.
By identifying important properties of agroecological systems and approaches, aswell as key considerations in developing an enabling environment for agroecology, the
10 Elements are a guide for policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders in planning,
managing and evaluating agroecological transitions.

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THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGYDIVERSITYDiversification is key to agroecological transitions to ensure foodsecurity and nutrition while conserving, protecting and enhancing
natural resources.
Agroecological systems are highly diverse. From abiological perspective, agroecological systems optimize
the diversity of species and genetic resources indifferent ways. For example, agroforestry systems
organize crops, shrubs, and trees of different heights
and shapes at different levels or strata, increasing
vertical diversity.
Intercropping combines complementary species toincrease spatial diversity.5 Crop rotations, often
including legumes, increase temporal diversity.6
Crop–livestock systems rely on the diversity of local
breeds adapted to specific environments.7 In theaquatic world, traditional fish polyculture farming,
Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) or
rotational crop-fish systems follow the same principles
to maximising diversity.8
Increasing biodiversity contributes to a rangeof production, socio-economic, nutrition andenvironmental benefits. By planning and managing
diversity, agroecological approaches enhance
the provisioning of ecosystem services, including
pollination and soil health, upon which agricultural
production depends. Diversification can increase
productivity and resource-use efficiency by optimizing
biomass and water harvesting.
Agroecological diversification also strengthens
ecological and socio-economic resilience, including by
creating new market opportunities. For example, cropand animal diversity reduces the risk of failure in theface of climate change.

DIVERSITY

Mixed grazing by different species of ruminants reduces
health risks from parasitism, while diverse local species
or breeds have greater abilities to survive, produce andmaintain reproduction levels in harsh environments.
In turn, having a variety of income sources fromdifferentiated and new markets, including diverse
products, local food processing and agritourism, helps
to stabilize household incomes.
Consuming a diverse range of cereals, pulses, fruits,
vegetables, and animal-source products contributes
to improved nutritional outcomes. Moreover, thegenetic diversity of different varieties, breeds andspecies is important in contributing macronutrients,
micronutrients and other bioactive compounds tohuman diets. For example, in Micronesia, reintroducing
an underutilized traditional variety of orange-fleshedbanana with 50 times more beta-carotene than the
widely available commercial white-fleshed banana
proved instrumental in improving health and nutrition.9
At the global level, three cereal crops provide close to
50 percent of all calories consumed,10 while the genetic
diversity of crops, livestock, aquatic animals and trees
continues to be rapidly lost.
Agroecology can help reverse these trends by managing
and conserving agro-biodiversity, and responding to
the increasing demand for a diversity of products thatare eco-friendly. One such example is ‘fish-friendly’
rice produced from irrigated, rainfed and deepwater
rice ecosystems, which values the diversity of aquatic
species and their importance for rural livelihoods.11

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CO-CREATION AND
SHARING OF KNOWLEDGE
Agricultural innovations respond better to local challenges when
they are co-created through participatory processes.
CO-CREATION AND
SHARING OF KNOWLEDGE

Agroecology depends on context-specific knowledge.
It does not offer fixed prescriptions – rather,agroecological practices are tailored to fit theenvironmental, social, economic, cultural and politicalcontext. The co-creation and sharing of knowledge
plays a central role in the process of developing andimplementing agroecological innovations to address
challenges across food systems including adaptation toclimate change.

Education – both formal and non-formal – plays afundamental role in sharing agroecological innovations
resulting from co-creation processes. For example,
for more than 30 years, the horizontal campesino acampesino movement has played a pivotal role insharing agroecological knowledge, connecting hundredsof thousands of producers in Latin America.12 In
contrast, top-down models of technology transfer have
had limited success.

Through the co-creation process, agroecology blends
traditional and indigenous knowledge, producers’ andtraders’ practical knowledge, and global scientificknowledge.

Promoting participatory processes and institutionalinnovations that build mutual trust enables theco-creation and sharing of knowledge, contributing torelevant and inclusive agroecology transition processes.

Producer’s knowledge of agricultural biodiversity andmanagement experience for specific contexts as well as
their knowledge related to markets and institutions are
absolutely central in this process.

DIVERSITY
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SHARINGOF
OF KNOWLEDGE
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THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGYSYNERGIESBuilding synergies enhances key functions across food systems,
supporting production and multiple ecosystem services.
SYNERGIES

Agroecology pays careful attention to the design ofdiversified systems that selectively combine annual
and perennial crops, livestock and aquatic animals,
trees, soils, water and other components on farms andagricultural landscapes to enhance synergies in thecontext of an increasingly changing climate.
Building synergies in food systems delivers multiple
benefits. By optimizing biological synergies,
agroecological practices enhance ecological functions,leading to greater resource-use efficiency and resilience.
For example, globally, biological nitrogen fixation bypulses in intercropping systems or rotations generates
close to USD 10 million savings in nitrogen fertilizers
every year,13 while contributing to soil health, climatechange mitigation and adaptation. Furthermore,
about 15 percent of the nitrogen applied to crops
comes from livestock manure, highlighting synergies
resulting from crop–livestock integration.14 In Asia,
integrated rice systems combine rice cultivation withthe generation of other products such as fish, ducks andtrees. By maximising synergies, integrated rice systems
significantly improve yields, dietary diversity, weed
control, soil structure and fertility, as well as providing
biodiversity habitat and pest control.15

At the landscape level, synchronization of productive
activities in time and space is necessary to enhancesynergies. Soil erosion control using Calliandra
hedgerows is common in integrated agroecologicalsystems in the East African Highlands.16 In this example,
the management practice of periodic pruning reduces
tree competition with crops grown between hedgerows
and at the same time provides feed for animals, creatingsynergies between the different components. Pastoralismand extensive livestock grazing systems manage complex
interactions between people, multi-species herds andvariable environmental conditions, building resilienceand contributing to ecosystem services such as seeddispersal, habitat preservation and soil fertility.17,18
While agroecological approaches strive to maximise
synergies, trade-offs also occur in natural and humansystems. For example, the allocation of resource useor access rights often involve trade-offs. To promotesynergies within the wider food system, and best manage
trade-offs, agroecology emphasizes the importance ofpartnerships, cooperation and responsible governance,
involving different actors at multiple scales.

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EFFICIENCY
Innovative agroecological practices produce moreusing less external resources.
EFFICIENCY

Increased resource-use efficiency is an emergent
property of agroecological systems that carefully planand manage diversity to create synergies between
different system components. For example, a key
efficiency challenge is that less than 50 percent
of nitrogen fertilizer added globally to cropland isconverted into harvested products and the rest is
lost to the environment causing major environmental
problems.19
Agroecological systems improve the use of natural
resources, especially those that are abundant andfree, such as solar radiation, atmospheric carbon andnitrogen.
By enhancing biological processes and recycling
biomass, nutrients and water, producers are able touse fewer external resources, reducing costs and thenegative environmental impacts of their use.

Ultimately, reducing dependency on external resources
empowers producers by increasing their autonomy andresilience to natural or economic shocks.
One way to measure the efficiency of integrated
systems is by using Land Equivalent Ratios (LER).20
LER compares the yields from growing two or morecomponents (e.g. crops, trees, animals) together withyields from growing the same components individually.
Integrated agroecological systems frequently
demonstrate higher LERs.
Agroecology thus promotes agricultural systems
with the necessary biological, socio-economic andinstitutional diversity and alignment in time and space
to support greater efficiency.

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THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGYRECYCLING
More recycling means agricultural production with lower
economic and environmental costs.
RECYCLING

Waste is a human concept – it does not exist innatural ecosystems. By imitating natural ecosystems,
agroecological practices support biological processes
that drive the recycling of nutrients, biomass and water
within production systems, thereby increasing resourceuse efficiency and minimizing waste and pollution.

Nutrient cycling accounts for 51 percent of theeconomic value of all non-provisioning ecosystemservices, and integrating livestock plays a large role inthis.22 Similarly, in rice–fish systems, aquatic animals
help to fertilize the rice crop and reduce pests, reducing
the need for external fertilizer or pesticide inputs.

Recycling can take place at both farm-scale and withinlandscapes, through diversification and building ofsynergies between different components and activities.
For example, agroforestry systems that include deep
rooting trees can capture nutrients lost beyond theroots of annual crops.21 Crop–livestock systems promote
recycling of organic materials by using manure forcomposting or directly as fertilizer, and crop residues
and by-products as livestock feed.

Recycling delivers multiple benefits by closing nutrient
cycles and reducing waste that translates into lower
dependency on external resources, increasing theautonomy of producers and reducing their vulnerability
to market and climate shocks. Recycling organic
materials and by-products offers great potential for
agroecological innovations.

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RESILIENCE
Enhanced resilience of people, communities and ecosystems
is key to sustainable food and agricultural systems.
RESILIENCE

Diversified agroecological systems are more resilient– they have a greater capacity to recover fromdisturbances including extreme weather events such as
drought, floods or hurricanes, and to resist pest anddisease attack.

On a landscape scale, diversified agricultural landscapes
have a greater potential to contribute to pest anddisease control functions.24

Following Hurricane Mitch in Central America in 1998,
biodiverse farms including agroforestry, contour farming
and cover cropping retained 20–40 percent more
topsoil, suffered less erosion and experienced lower
economic losses than neighbouring farms practicing
conventional monocultures.23
By maintaining a functional balance, agroecologicalsystems are better able to resist pest and diseaseattack. Agroecological practices recover the biologicalcomplexity of agricultural systems and promote thenecessary community of interacting organisms to selfregulate pest outbreaks.

Agroecological approaches can equally enhancesocio-economic resilience. Through diversification andintegration, producers reduce their vulnerability shoulda single crop, livestock species or other commodity fail.
By reducing dependence on external inputs,
agroecology can reduce producers’ vulnerability
to economic risk. Enhancing ecological and socioeconomic resilience go hand-in-hand – after all,humans are an integral part of ecosystems.

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THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGYHUMAN AND SOCIAL VALUES
Protecting and improving rural livelihoods, equity and social well-being
is essential for sustainable food and agricultural systems.
HUMAN ANDSOCIAL VALUESAgroecology places a strong emphasis on human andsocial values, such as dignity, equity, inclusion andjustice all contributing to the improved livelihoods
dimension of the SDGs. It puts the aspirations andneeds of those who produce, distribute and consume
food at the heart of food systems. By building
autonomy and adaptive capacities to manage theiragro-ecosystems, agroecological approaches empower
people and communities to overcome poverty, hunger
and malnutrition, while promoting human rights, such as
the right to food, and stewardship of the environment sothat future generations can also live in prosperity.
Agroecology seeks to address gender inequalities bycreating opportunities for women. Globally, womenmake up almost half of the agricultural workforce. They
also play a vital role in household food security, dietary
diversity and health, as well as in the conservation andsustainable use of biological diversity. In spite of this,women remain economically marginalised and vulnerable
to violations of their rights, while their contributions
often remain unrecognized.25

Agroecology can help rural women in family farming
agriculture to develop higher levels of autonomy
by building knowledge, through collective action
and creating opportunities for commercialization.
Agroecology can open spaces for women to become moreautonomous and empower them at household, community
levels and beyond – for instance, through participationin producer groups. Women’s participation is essential
for agroecology and women are frequently the leaders ofagroecology projects.
In many places around the world, rural youth face acrisis of employment. Agroecology provides a promisingsolution as a source of decent jobs. Agroecology is basedon a different way of agricultural production that is
knowledge intensive, environmentally friendly, socially
responsible, innovative, and which depends on skilled
labour. Meanwhile, rural youth around the world possess
energy, creativity and a desire to positively change theirworld. What they need is support and opportunities.
As a bottom-up, grassroots paradigm for sustainable
rural development, agroecology empowers people tobecome their own agents of change.

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9CULTURE AND FOOD TRADITIONS
By supporting healthy, diversified and culturally appropriate diets,
agroecology contributes to food security and nutrition while
maintaining the health of ecosystems.
Agriculture and food are core components of human
heritage. Hence, culture and food traditions play acentral role in society and in shaping human behaviour.
However, in many instances, our current food systems
have created a disconnection between food habits
and culture. This disconnection has contributed to asituation where hunger and obesity exist side by side,in a world that produces enough food to feed its entire
population.
Almost 800 million people worldwide are chronicallyhungry and 2 billion suffer micronutrient deficiencies.26
Meanwhile, there has been a rampant rise in obesityand diet-related diseases; 1.9 billion people are
overweight or obese and non-communicable diseases(cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes) are thenumber one cause of global mortality.27
To address the imbalances in our food systems
and move towards a zero hunger world, increasing
production alone is not sufficient.

CULTURE AND
FOOD TRADITIONSAgroecology plays an important role in re-balancing
tradition and modern food habits, bringing them
together in a harmonious way that promotes healthy
food production and consumption, supporting the rightto adequate food. In this way, agroecology seeks tocultivate a healthy relationship between people and food.
Cultural identity and sense of place are often closely
tied to landscapes and food systems. As people andecosystems have evolved together, cultural practices
and indigenous and traditional knowledge offer awealth of experience that can inspire agroecologicalsolutions. For example, India is home to an estimated
50 000 indigenous varieties of rice28 – bred overcenturies for their specific taste, nutrition and pestresistance properties, and their adaptability to a rangeof conditions. Culinary traditions are built aroundthese different varieties, making use of their different
properties. Taking this accumulated body of traditional
knowledge as a guide, agroecology can help realise thepotential of territories to sustain their peoples.

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THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGYRESPONSIBLE GOVERNANCE
Sustainable food and agriculture requires responsible andeffective governance mechanisms at different scales – from local
to national to global.
Agroecology calls for responsible and effective
governance to support the transition to sustainable
food and agricultural systems. Transparent, accountable
and inclusive governance mechanisms are necessary tocreate an enabling environment that supports producers
to transform their systems following agroecologicalconcepts and practices. Successful examples include
school feeding and public procurement programmes,
market regulations allowing for branding ofdifferentiated agroecological produce, and subsidies
and incentives for ecosystem services.
Land and natural resources governance is a primeexample. The majority of the world’s rural poor andvulnerable populations heavily rely on terrestrial andaquatic biodiversity and ecosystem services for theirlivelihoods, yet lack secure access to these resources.

RESPONSIBLE
GOVERNANCE

Agroecology depends on equitable access to land andnatural resources – a key to social justice, but also inproviding incentives for the long-term investmentsthat are necessary to protect soil, biodiversity andecosystem services.
Agroecology is best supported by responsible
governance mechanisms at different scales. Many
countries have already developed national level
legislation, policies and programmes that reward
agricultural management that enhances biodiversity
and the provision of ecosystem services. Territorial,landscape and community level governance, such as
traditional and customary governance models, is also
extremely important to foster cooperation between
stakeholders, maximising synergies while reducing or
managing trade-offs.

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CIRCULAR AND
SOLIDARITY ECONOMY
Circular and solidarity economies that reconnect producers andconsumers provide innovative solutions for living within our planetary
boundaries while ensuring the social foundation for inclusive andsustainable development.

CIRCULAR AND
SOLIDARITY ECONOMY

Agroecology seeks to reconnect producers andconsumers through a circular and solidarity economy
that prioritizes local markets and supports local
economic development by creating virtuous cycles.

denomination of origin labelling, community supported
agriculture and e-commerce schemes. These innovative
markets respond to a growing demand from consumers
for healthier diets.

Agroecological approaches promote fair solutions basedon local needs, resources and capacities, creating more
equitable and sustainable markets. Strengthening shortfood circuits can increase the incomes of food producers
while maintaining a fair price for consumers. These
include new innovative markets,29,30 alongside more
traditional territorial markets, where most smallholders
market their products.

Re-designing food systems based on the principles
of circular economy can help address the global foodwaste challenge by making food value chains shorterand more resource-efficient. Currently, one third of all
food produced is lost or wasted, failing to contribute tofood security and nutrition, while exacerbating pressure
on natural resources.31

Social and institutional innovations play a keyrole in encouraging agroecological production andconsumption. Examples of innovations that help
link producers and consumers include participatory
guarantee schemes, local producer’s markets,

The energy used to produce food that is lost or wasted
is approximately 10 percent of the world’s total energy
consumption,32 while the food waste footprint isequivalent to 3.5 Gt CO2 of greenhouse gas emissions
per year.33

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THE 10 ELEMENTS OF AGROECOLOGYENDNOTES
1

2

3

4

5

FAO’s Common Vision for Sustainable Food and Agriculture balances thesocial, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability acrossagricultural landscape and seascape mosaics. It outlines general principles
for sustainable food and agricultural systems that are highly productive,
economically viable and environmentally sound, contributing to equity andsocial justice. The five FAO principles for Sustainable Food and Agriculture
are: 1) improving efficiency in the use of resources; 2) conserving,protecting and enhancing natural ecosystems; 3) protecting and improving
rural livelihoods, equity and social well-being; 4) enhancing the resilienceof people, communities and ecosystems; 5) promoting good governance ofboth natural and human systems.
Examples include: the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge,
Science and Technology for Development, which called for an increase andstrengthening of agroecological sciences in 2008; the 2011 Report on
Agroecology and the right to food, presented by the Special Rapporteur on
the right to food to the UN Human Rights Council; the Ecological Organic
Agriculture Initiative of the African Union and the Community of Latin
American and Caribbean States (CELAC) that have promoted agroecologicalpractices and policies at regional level; the Ecosystem Approach (including
pillars of ecological wellbeing, human wellbeing, and governance), endorsedby the Convention on Biological Diversity and applied by FAO through its
Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries and Aquaculture since 2000.
Brazil’s Fome Zero programme provides a telling example. Fome Zero proved
instrumental in reducing extreme poverty (from 17.5 percent in 2003 to lessthan 3 percent in 2013) and eradicating hunger. The programme involved alarge number of policy and development instruments, including support foragroecological food production and consumption (Instituto Brasileiro deGeografia e Estatística. 2013. Pesquisa nacional por amostra de domicílio:segurança alimentar (available at: www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/
populacao/).
The 10 Elements of Agroecology were developed through a synthesis process.
They are based on the seminal scientific literature on agroecology – inparticular, Altieri’s (1995) five principles of agroecology and Gliessman’s(2015) five levels of agroecological transitions. This scientific foundation
was complemented by discussions held in workshop settings during FAO’s
multi-actor regional meetings on agroecology from 2015 to 2017, which
incorporated civil society values on agroecology, and subsequently,
several rounds of revision by international and FAO experts. Altieri, M.A.
1995. Agroecology: The Science of Sustainable Agriculture. CRC Press.
Gliessman, S.R. 2015. Agroecology: The Ecology of Sustainable Food Systems.
3rd Edition. Boca Raton, FL, USA, CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group.
Prabhu, R., Barrios, E., Bayala, J., Diby, L., Donovan, J., Gyau, A.,
Graudal, L., Jamnadass, R., Kahia, J., Kehlenbeck, K., Kindt, R., Kouame,C., McMullin, S., van Noordwijk, M., Shepherd, K., Sinclair, F., Vaast,P., Vågen, T.-G. & Xu, J. 2015. Agroforestry: realizing the promise of anagroecological approach. In: FAO. Agroecology for Food Security and Nutrition:
Proceedings of the FAO International Symposium, pp. 201-224. Rome.

6

FAO. 2011. Save and Grow – A policymaker’s guide to the sustainable
intensification of smallholder crop production. Rome.

7

FAO. 2014. Ecosystem Services Provided by Livestock Species and Breeds, with
Special Consideration to the Contributions of Small-Scale Livestock Keepers
and Pastoralists. Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
Background Study Paper No. 66, Rev. 1 (available at: www.fao.org/3/aat598e.pdf).

8

9

10

Ridler, N., Wowchuk, M., Robinson, B., Barrington, K., Chopin, T.,
Robinson, S., Page, F., Reid, G., Szemerda, M., Sewuster, J. & BoyneTravis, S. 2007. Integrated Multi − Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA): A potential
strategic choice for farmers. Aquaculture Economics & Management,
11: 99-110.
FAO. 2010. Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity: Directions and Solutions for
Policy, Research and Action. Rome.
FAO. 2017. Sustainable Agriculture for Biodiversity – Biodiversity for
Sustainable Agriculture. Rome.

11

Halwart, M. & Bartley, D.M. 2007. Aquatic biodiversity in rice-based
ecosystems, pp. 181-199. In: Jarvis, D., Padoch, C. & D. Cooper (eds.),
Managing biodiversity in agricultural ecosystems. British Columbia Press.
492p.

12

Holt-Giménez, E. 2008. Campesino a campesino: Voces de Latinoamérica
Movimiento Campesino para la Agricultura Sustentable. SIMAS: Managua.

13

FAO. 2016. Soils and Pulses: Symbiosis for life. Rome.

14

FAO. 2017. Sustainable Agriculture for Biodiversity – Biodiversity for
Sustainable Agriculture. Rome.

15

FAO. 2016. Scaling-up integrated rice-fish systems – Tapping ancient Chinese
know-how. South-South Cooperation (available at: www.fao.org/3/a-i4289e.
pdf).

16

Angima, S.D., Stott, D.E., O’Neill, M.K., Ong, C.K. & Weesies, G.A. 2003.
Soil erosion prediction using RUSLE for central Kenya highland conditions.
Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 97: 295-308.

17

Krätli, S. & Shareika, N. 2010. Living off uncertainty: the intelligent animal
production of dryland pastoralists. Eur. J. Dev. Res., 22: 605-622.

18

FAO. 2014. Ecosystem Services Provided by Livestock Species and Breeds, with
Special Consideration to the Contributions of Small-Scale Livestock Keepers
and Pastoralists. Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
Background Study Paper No. 66, Rev. 1 (available at: www.fao.org/3/aat598e.pdf).

19

Ladha, J.K., Pathak, H., Krupnik, T.J., Six, J. & van Kessel, C. 2005.
Efficiency of fertilizer nitrogen in cereal production: retrospects andprospects. Advances in Agronomy, 87: 85-156.

20

Mead, R. & Willey, R.W. 1980. The Concept of a ‘Land Equivalent Ratio’ andadvantages in yields from Intercropping. Experimental Agriculture, 16(3):217-228.

21

Buresh, R.J., Rowe, E.C., Livesley, S.J., Cadisch, G. & Mafongoya, P.
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