Changes in Land Use and Food Security: The Case of the De La Vega Agrarian Shire in the Southern Spanish Province of Granada

Francisco-Javier Peña-Rodríguez, Francisco Entrena-Durán (), Adrià Ivorra-Cano and Agustín Llorca-Linde
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Francisco-Javier Peña-Rodríguez: Department of Sociology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Francisco Entrena-Durán: Department of Sociology, University of Granada, C/Rector López Argüeta, 18071 Granada, Spain
Adrià Ivorra-Cano: Department of Geography, History and Philosophy, University Pablo de Olavide, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
Agustín Llorca-Linde: Department of Sociology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 4, 1-23

Abstract: Changes in land use that are taking place in many parts of the world are having varying effects, depending on the case, on food security in diverse environments. This article analyzes how these changes manifest themselves in the De La Vega territory, an agrarian shire located in the center of the southern Spanish province of Granada. Over recent decades, this shire has been confronted with deep socioeconomic, demographic, and urban transformations that have led and are leading to significant changes in the role of agriculture, land use, and the position of farmers. The results reveal that, over the last four decades, the population has increased (44%), the agricultural area has decreased (40%) as has the usable agricultural land (25%), olive groves have grown exponentially (144%), farms have decreased (68%), and levels of livestock have grown and become more concentrated. Finally, the actions and demands raised by the main actors and social organizations involved in the defense of farming in this shire are examined. These demands and actions have ocurred especially in the peri-urban areas close to what is known as the Granada urban agglomeration, precisely where the changes have been most intense, according to the data analyzed.

Keywords: land use changes; agriculture; food security; southern Spain; De La Vega shire; Granada; Spain (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:12:y:2023:i:4:p:747-:d:1107943

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