Exploring the Contribution of Public Policies to the Scaling Up of Agroecology in Peru
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Published
12-08-2025
Cesar Manuel Llanos Puga
Joost Dessein
Jonas Adriaensens
https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1640-8102
Abstract
This article evaluates the combined contribution of Peruvian public policies to laying a foundation for scaling up agroecology. Through qualitative content analysis, the study explores Peruvian public policies and identifies the conditions they foster or fail to support, which may respectively facilitate or hinder the scaling up of agroecology in the country. Results show that, although agroecology gained limited institutional recognition in Peru in 2021, public policies remain largely focused on economic growth, agribusiness development, and market integration. While some measures support ecological practices and acknowledge cultural and social aspects, these are often framed within goals of productivity and profitability or directed toward organic agriculture, thereby hindering the comprehensive scaling up of agroecology. Nevertheless, the research identifies openings in public policy, such as efforts to strengthen governance structures among smallholder and family farmers, legitimize rural communities' rights, and recognize diverse knowledge systems, that present opportunities for grassroots agroecological initiatives to expand. The study concludes that for agroecology to meaningfully scale up in Peru, public policy must shift from an economic-centric model to one that fosters ecologically sound, culturally grounded, and socially just farming systems, with greater autonomy for local producers from global markets.
How to Cite
“Exploring the Contribution of Public Policies to the Scaling Up of Agroecology in Peru” (2025) The International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food, 31(2), pp. 63–90. doi:10.48416/ijsaf.v31i2.657.
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Keywords
agroecology, public policy, Peru, content analysis
References
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Altieri M and Toledo V (2011) The agroecological revolution in Latin America: rescuing nature, ensuring food sovereignty and empowering peasants. Journal of Peasant Studies 38(3): 587-612. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2011.582947.
Alvarado F, Siura S and Manrique A (2017) Peru: agroecological movement history 1980–2015. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 41(3-4): 366-379. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2017.1287148.
Ardisana E, Gaínza B, Torres A and Fosado O (2018) Agriculture in South America: The ecological footprint and the future of agricultural production. Chakiñan de Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades 5: 90-101. https://doi.org/10.37135/chk.002.05.06.
Barrios E, Gemmil-Herren B, Bicksler A, Siliprandi E, Brathwaite R, Moller S, Batello C and Tittonell P (2020) The 10 Elements of Agroecology: enabling transitions towards sustainable agriculture and food systems through visual narratives. Ecosystems and People 16(1): 230-247. http://10.1080/26395916.2020.1808705.
Castillo M (2021) La Agricultura Peruana, Situación Post COVID-19 y Perspectivas. FES. https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/peru/18971.pdf.
CEPLAN (Centro Nacional de Planeamiento Estratégico) (2016) Guía metodológica de la fase institucional del proceso de planeamiento estratégico. CEPLAN. https://www2.congreso.gob.pe/sicr/cendocbib/con4_uibd.nsf/1B5CBF6A9EF7667605257F6F005B1740/%24FILE/guia_metodologica_fase_institucional_ceplan-web_.pdf.
CEPLAN (Centro Nacional de Planeamiento Estratégico) (2023) Guía de Políticas Nacionales. CEPLAN. https://www.mesadeconcertacion.org.pe/storage/documentos/2023-05-02/rs-pcd-030-2023-anexo-actualizacion-guia-pol-nac.pdf.
Chamochumbi W and Capoen E (2022) Transiciones y escalamiento de la agroecología en Perú y Bolivia: breves apuntes y reflexiones de algunos casos para el debate. Eclosio. https://www.eclosio.ong/es/publication/transiciones-y-escalamiento-de-la-agroecologia-en-peru-y-bolivia-breves-apuntes-y-reflexiones-de-algunos-casos-para-el-debate/.
Creswell J (2018) Research Design. Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. California: SAGE Publications Inc.
De La Cruz M and Dessein J (2021) Beyond institutional bricolage: An ‘intertwining approach’ to understanding the transition towards agroecology in Peru. Ecological Economics 187: 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107091.
ECLAC, FAO and IICA (2021) The Outlook for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Americas: A Perspective on Latin America and the Caribbean 2021-2022. ECLAC FAO IICA. https://repositorio.iica.int/bitstream/handle/11324/8214/BVE19040295i.pdf?sequence=2.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) (2018) The 10 Elements of Agroecology. Guiding the transition to sustainable food and agricultural systems. https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/I9037EN/.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) (2022) El Perú es el país con la Inseguridad Alimentaria más alta de Suramérica. Retrieved on May 2023 from https://www.fao.org/peru/noticias/detail-events/es/c/1603081/.
Giraldo O and Rosset P (2016) La agroecología en una encrucijada: entre la institucionalidad y los movimientos sociales. Guaju 2(1): 14-37.
Gliessman S (2011) Agroecology and Food System Change. Journal of Sustainable Agriculture 35: 345-349. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10440046.2011.562029.
Gómez L, Ríos L and Eschenhagen M (2017) Propuesta de unos principios generales para la ciencia de la agroecología: una reflexión. Revista Lasallista de Investigación 14(2): 212-219. http://10.22507/rli.v14n2a20.
González M, Petersen P, Garrido F and Roberto F (2021) Introducción a la Agroecología Política. Buenos Aires: CLACSO.
Gray, D. (2004). Doing research in the real world. London: SAGE.
Hall D and Steiner R (2020) Policy content analysis: Qualitative method for analyzing sub-national insect pollinator legislation. MethodsX, 7: 1-7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2018.12.026.
IDS (Institute of Development Studies) (2013) Practice Paper in Brief 13. Learning about Qualitative Document Analysis. https://www.ids.ac.uk/publications/learning-about-qualitative-documentanalysis/
Javier S (2020) El papel de la agricultura en la Transformación Socio-Ecológica de América Latina. FES. https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/mexiko/16550.pdf.
LaRota-Aguilera M, Delgadillo-Vargas O and Tello E (2022) Sociometabolic research in Latin America: A review on advances and knowledge gaps in agroecological trends and rural perspectives. Ecological Economics 193: 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107310.
Le Coq J, Sabourin E, Bonin M, Freguin–Gresh S, Marzin J, Niederle P, Patrouilleau M and Vásquez L (2019) Public policies supporting agroecology in Latin America: lessons and perspectives. In Cote F, Poirier-Magona E, Perret S, Roudier P, Rapidel B and Thirion M (eds.) The agroecological transition of agricultural systems in the Global South. Quae, pp.313-325.
Leff E (2002) Agroecologia e saber ambiental. Agroecologia e Desenvolvimento Rural Sustentável 3(1): 36-51.
Loconto A and Fouilleux E (2019) Defining agroecology: Exploring the circulation of knowledge in FAO’s Global Dialogue. The International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food 25(2): 116-137. https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02915834v1
Mason R, White A, Bucini G, Anderzén J, Méndez V and Merril S (2021) The evolving landscape of agroecological research. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 45(4): 551-591. https://doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2020.1845275.
MIDAGRI (Ministerio de Agricultura y Desarrollo Agrario) (2021) Política Nacional Agraria 2021-2030. Available at https://busquedas.elperuano.pe/dispositivo/NL/1975873-14 (accessed 7 October 2024).
Moore M, Riddell D and Vocisano D (2015) Scaling Out, Scaling Up, Scaling Deep. Strategies of Non-profits in Advancing Systemic Social Innovation. The Journal of Corporate Citizenship 58: 67-84. http://www.jstor.org/stable/jcorpciti.58.67
Nicol P (2020) Pathways to Scaling Agroecology in the City Region: Scaling out, Scaling up and Scaling deep through Community-Led Trade. Sustainability 12(19). https://doi.org/10.3390/su12197842
Parmentier S (2014) Scaling-up Agroecological Approaches: What, Why and How? Oxfam-Solidarity. Available at http://www.oxfamsol.be (accessed 8 April 2025).
PRODUCE (Ministerio de la Producción) (2013) Metodología para el Alineamiento de Políticas de Desarrollo Productivo: Monitoreo y Evaluación. PRODUCE. https://www.produce.gob.pe/documentos/mype-industria/digedepro/libro-lineamiento-de-politicas.pdf.
Quispe Y, Locatelli B, Vallet A and Blas R (2022) Agroecología para la seguridad alimentaria y frente al cambio climático en Perú. Economía Agraria y Recursos Naturales, 22(1): 5-29. https://doi.org/10.7201/earn.2022.01.01.
Rosset P, Pinheiro L, Val V and McCune N (2022) Critical Latin American agroecology as a regionalism from below. Globalizations 19(4): 635-652. https://doi.org/10.1080/14747731.2021.1923353.
SENASA (Servicio Nacional de Sanidad Agraria) (2023) Informe del Plan de Monitoreo de Contaminantes en Alimentos Agropecuarios Primarios y Piensos, Año 2022. Lima: SENASA. https://cdn.www.gob.pe/uploads/document/file/4422002/Informe%20Plan%20Monitoreo%202022.pdf.
Soliz L (2022) Desafíos actuales de la agroecología en Sudamérica. IPDRS. https://ipdrs.org/images/impresos/archivos/Desafios-actuales-de-la-agroecologia-Tacsa1.pdf.
Steglich M, Beutler T, Kativu S, Favi S, Kawira C, Grasi C, Maalim A, Kallee D, Osho-Adbulgafar N, Kasali O and Schaaf J (2022) Agroecology and Rural Development: Acting in the Global North – with and for the Global South. SLE. 1st edition. https://edoc.hu-berlin.de/bitstream/handle/18452/25885/SLE290E_Agroecology_and_Rural_Development.pdf?sequence=1.
Valdivia-Díaz M and Le Coq J (2021) Hacia una hoja de ruta para el escalamiento de la Agroecología en Perú: Un análisis de las políticas, programas y factores limitantes actuales. CCAFS and CIAT.
Van der Ploeg J, Barjolle D, Bruil J, Brunori G, Costa L, Dessein J, Drag Z, Fink-Kessler A, Gasselin P, de Molina M, Gorlach K, Jürgens K, Kinsella J, Kirwan J, Knickel K, Lucas V, Marsden T, Maye D, Migliorini P, Milone P, Noe E, Nowak P, Parrott N, Peeters A, Rossi A, Schermer M, Ventura F, Visser M and Wezel A (2019) The economic potential of agroecology: Empirical evidence from Europe. Journal of Rural Studies. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2019.09.003.
Villafuerte J (2017) Sembrando agroecología en campesinos indígenas y afrodescendientes de Colombia, Ecuador y Perú. Letras Verdes. Revista Latinoamericana de Estudios Socioambientales, 22: 97-119. http://dx.doi.org/10.17141/letrasverdes.22.2017.2726.
Wezel A, Gemmil B, Bezner R, Barrios E, Rodrigues A and Sinclair F (2020) Agroecological principles and elements and their implications for transitioning to sustainable food systems. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 40: 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-020-00646-z.
Wijeratna A (2018) Agroecology: Scaling-up, scaling-out. Actionaid. Available at: https://actionaid.org/publications/2018/agroecology-scaling-scaling-out (accessed 9 April 2025).
Wong L (2008) Data Analysis in Qualitative Research: A brief guide to using NVivo. Malaysian Family Physician, 3(1): 14-20.
Zamora G, Anchieta J and Hentz A (2022) The Peruvian agroecological movement 1980-2015 and the creation of the General Directorate of Agricultural Development and Agroecology. Agroecossistemas, 14(2): 67 – 86. http://dx.doi.org/10.18542/ragros.v14i2.11598.
Altieri M and Toledo V (2011) The agroecological revolution in Latin America: rescuing nature, ensuring food sovereignty and empowering peasants. Journal of Peasant Studies 38(3): 587-612. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2011.582947.
Alvarado F, Siura S and Manrique A (2017) Peru: agroecological movement history 1980–2015. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 41(3-4): 366-379. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2017.1287148.
Ardisana E, Gaínza B, Torres A and Fosado O (2018) Agriculture in South America: The ecological footprint and the future of agricultural production. Chakiñan de Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades 5: 90-101. https://doi.org/10.37135/chk.002.05.06.
Barrios E, Gemmil-Herren B, Bicksler A, Siliprandi E, Brathwaite R, Moller S, Batello C and Tittonell P (2020) The 10 Elements of Agroecology: enabling transitions towards sustainable agriculture and food systems through visual narratives. Ecosystems and People 16(1): 230-247. http://10.1080/26395916.2020.1808705.
Castillo M (2021) La Agricultura Peruana, Situación Post COVID-19 y Perspectivas. FES. https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/peru/18971.pdf.
CEPLAN (Centro Nacional de Planeamiento Estratégico) (2016) Guía metodológica de la fase institucional del proceso de planeamiento estratégico. CEPLAN. https://www2.congreso.gob.pe/sicr/cendocbib/con4_uibd.nsf/1B5CBF6A9EF7667605257F6F005B1740/%24FILE/guia_metodologica_fase_institucional_ceplan-web_.pdf.
CEPLAN (Centro Nacional de Planeamiento Estratégico) (2023) Guía de Políticas Nacionales. CEPLAN. https://www.mesadeconcertacion.org.pe/storage/documentos/2023-05-02/rs-pcd-030-2023-anexo-actualizacion-guia-pol-nac.pdf.
Chamochumbi W and Capoen E (2022) Transiciones y escalamiento de la agroecología en Perú y Bolivia: breves apuntes y reflexiones de algunos casos para el debate. Eclosio. https://www.eclosio.ong/es/publication/transiciones-y-escalamiento-de-la-agroecologia-en-peru-y-bolivia-breves-apuntes-y-reflexiones-de-algunos-casos-para-el-debate/.
Creswell J (2018) Research Design. Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. California: SAGE Publications Inc.
De La Cruz M and Dessein J (2021) Beyond institutional bricolage: An ‘intertwining approach’ to understanding the transition towards agroecology in Peru. Ecological Economics 187: 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107091.
ECLAC, FAO and IICA (2021) The Outlook for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Americas: A Perspective on Latin America and the Caribbean 2021-2022. ECLAC FAO IICA. https://repositorio.iica.int/bitstream/handle/11324/8214/BVE19040295i.pdf?sequence=2.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) (2018) The 10 Elements of Agroecology. Guiding the transition to sustainable food and agricultural systems. https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/I9037EN/.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) (2022) El Perú es el país con la Inseguridad Alimentaria más alta de Suramérica. Retrieved on May 2023 from https://www.fao.org/peru/noticias/detail-events/es/c/1603081/.
Giraldo O and Rosset P (2016) La agroecología en una encrucijada: entre la institucionalidad y los movimientos sociales. Guaju 2(1): 14-37.
Gliessman S (2011) Agroecology and Food System Change. Journal of Sustainable Agriculture 35: 345-349. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10440046.2011.562029.
Gómez L, Ríos L and Eschenhagen M (2017) Propuesta de unos principios generales para la ciencia de la agroecología: una reflexión. Revista Lasallista de Investigación 14(2): 212-219. http://10.22507/rli.v14n2a20.
González M, Petersen P, Garrido F and Roberto F (2021) Introducción a la Agroecología Política. Buenos Aires: CLACSO.
Gray, D. (2004). Doing research in the real world. London: SAGE.
Hall D and Steiner R (2020) Policy content analysis: Qualitative method for analyzing sub-national insect pollinator legislation. MethodsX, 7: 1-7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2018.12.026.
IDS (Institute of Development Studies) (2013) Practice Paper in Brief 13. Learning about Qualitative Document Analysis. https://www.ids.ac.uk/publications/learning-about-qualitative-documentanalysis/
Javier S (2020) El papel de la agricultura en la Transformación Socio-Ecológica de América Latina. FES. https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/mexiko/16550.pdf.
LaRota-Aguilera M, Delgadillo-Vargas O and Tello E (2022) Sociometabolic research in Latin America: A review on advances and knowledge gaps in agroecological trends and rural perspectives. Ecological Economics 193: 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107310.
Le Coq J, Sabourin E, Bonin M, Freguin–Gresh S, Marzin J, Niederle P, Patrouilleau M and Vásquez L (2019) Public policies supporting agroecology in Latin America: lessons and perspectives. In Cote F, Poirier-Magona E, Perret S, Roudier P, Rapidel B and Thirion M (eds.) The agroecological transition of agricultural systems in the Global South. Quae, pp.313-325.
Leff E (2002) Agroecologia e saber ambiental. Agroecologia e Desenvolvimento Rural Sustentável 3(1): 36-51.
Loconto A and Fouilleux E (2019) Defining agroecology: Exploring the circulation of knowledge in FAO’s Global Dialogue. The International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food 25(2): 116-137. https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02915834v1
Mason R, White A, Bucini G, Anderzén J, Méndez V and Merril S (2021) The evolving landscape of agroecological research. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 45(4): 551-591. https://doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2020.1845275.
MIDAGRI (Ministerio de Agricultura y Desarrollo Agrario) (2021) Política Nacional Agraria 2021-2030. Available at https://busquedas.elperuano.pe/dispositivo/NL/1975873-14 (accessed 7 October 2024).
Moore M, Riddell D and Vocisano D (2015) Scaling Out, Scaling Up, Scaling Deep. Strategies of Non-profits in Advancing Systemic Social Innovation. The Journal of Corporate Citizenship 58: 67-84. http://www.jstor.org/stable/jcorpciti.58.67
Nicol P (2020) Pathways to Scaling Agroecology in the City Region: Scaling out, Scaling up and Scaling deep through Community-Led Trade. Sustainability 12(19). https://doi.org/10.3390/su12197842
Parmentier S (2014) Scaling-up Agroecological Approaches: What, Why and How? Oxfam-Solidarity. Available at http://www.oxfamsol.be (accessed 8 April 2025).
PRODUCE (Ministerio de la Producción) (2013) Metodología para el Alineamiento de Políticas de Desarrollo Productivo: Monitoreo y Evaluación. PRODUCE. https://www.produce.gob.pe/documentos/mype-industria/digedepro/libro-lineamiento-de-politicas.pdf.
Quispe Y, Locatelli B, Vallet A and Blas R (2022) Agroecología para la seguridad alimentaria y frente al cambio climático en Perú. Economía Agraria y Recursos Naturales, 22(1): 5-29. https://doi.org/10.7201/earn.2022.01.01.
Rosset P, Pinheiro L, Val V and McCune N (2022) Critical Latin American agroecology as a regionalism from below. Globalizations 19(4): 635-652. https://doi.org/10.1080/14747731.2021.1923353.
SENASA (Servicio Nacional de Sanidad Agraria) (2023) Informe del Plan de Monitoreo de Contaminantes en Alimentos Agropecuarios Primarios y Piensos, Año 2022. Lima: SENASA. https://cdn.www.gob.pe/uploads/document/file/4422002/Informe%20Plan%20Monitoreo%202022.pdf.
Soliz L (2022) Desafíos actuales de la agroecología en Sudamérica. IPDRS. https://ipdrs.org/images/impresos/archivos/Desafios-actuales-de-la-agroecologia-Tacsa1.pdf.
Steglich M, Beutler T, Kativu S, Favi S, Kawira C, Grasi C, Maalim A, Kallee D, Osho-Adbulgafar N, Kasali O and Schaaf J (2022) Agroecology and Rural Development: Acting in the Global North – with and for the Global South. SLE. 1st edition. https://edoc.hu-berlin.de/bitstream/handle/18452/25885/SLE290E_Agroecology_and_Rural_Development.pdf?sequence=1.
Valdivia-Díaz M and Le Coq J (2021) Hacia una hoja de ruta para el escalamiento de la Agroecología en Perú: Un análisis de las políticas, programas y factores limitantes actuales. CCAFS and CIAT.
Van der Ploeg J, Barjolle D, Bruil J, Brunori G, Costa L, Dessein J, Drag Z, Fink-Kessler A, Gasselin P, de Molina M, Gorlach K, Jürgens K, Kinsella J, Kirwan J, Knickel K, Lucas V, Marsden T, Maye D, Migliorini P, Milone P, Noe E, Nowak P, Parrott N, Peeters A, Rossi A, Schermer M, Ventura F, Visser M and Wezel A (2019) The economic potential of agroecology: Empirical evidence from Europe. Journal of Rural Studies. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2019.09.003.
Villafuerte J (2017) Sembrando agroecología en campesinos indígenas y afrodescendientes de Colombia, Ecuador y Perú. Letras Verdes. Revista Latinoamericana de Estudios Socioambientales, 22: 97-119. http://dx.doi.org/10.17141/letrasverdes.22.2017.2726.
Wezel A, Gemmil B, Bezner R, Barrios E, Rodrigues A and Sinclair F (2020) Agroecological principles and elements and their implications for transitioning to sustainable food systems. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 40: 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-020-00646-z.
Wijeratna A (2018) Agroecology: Scaling-up, scaling-out. Actionaid. Available at: https://actionaid.org/publications/2018/agroecology-scaling-scaling-out (accessed 9 April 2025).
Wong L (2008) Data Analysis in Qualitative Research: A brief guide to using NVivo. Malaysian Family Physician, 3(1): 14-20.
Zamora G, Anchieta J and Hentz A (2022) The Peruvian agroecological movement 1980-2015 and the creation of the General Directorate of Agricultural Development and Agroecology. Agroecossistemas, 14(2): 67 – 86. http://dx.doi.org/10.18542/ragros.v14i2.11598.
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How to Cite
“Exploring the Contribution of Public Policies to the Scaling Up of Agroecology in Peru” (2025) The International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food, 31(2), pp. 63–90. doi:10.48416/ijsaf.v31i2.657.