As a result, urban food production has become a complex, thriving
industry. More and more people in cities in the South are trying to
grow some of the food they need. Globally, about 200 million urban
dwellers are now urban farmers, providing food and income to about
700 million people a minority of households farm in North American
cities, whereas most do so in Siberian and smaller Asian cities
(DGIP/UNDP, 1993: 3). Estimates are 25% in urban USA and 65% for
Moscow in 1991 (Smit and Ratta, 1992).
In Peru, more than 50% of households are reported to raise guinea pigs at home (Charbonneau, 1988: 7). In the El Alto area of La Paz, Bolivia (based on a sample of 266 households representing a range of incomes, from August 1984 to June 1985) between 31 and 55% raised small livestock for self-consumption (hens, rabbits, pigs, lambs, and ducks), with the number of self-consumers tending to increase. Animal husbandry is the main source of animal protein for households, with the low-income group representing as much as 68.1% of all animal raisers during the period. Also, between 14 and 68.4% of households grew food crops, mostly tubers, but also produce and vegetables, with the majority again being low- income growers (Prudencio, 1993: 226 229).
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revised, June 12,1995
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