Assessment of the sustainability in family agricultural units: diagnosis and recommendations for three municipalities of Boyacá, Colombia

Family agriculture is a complex process that shows different multidimensional aspects, which must be identified as a previous phase at the moment of planning agroecological transitions. In this landscape, the present study was aimed at assessing the sustainability of nine family agricultural units in the municipalities of the center of Boyacá (Colombia), to diagnose their state and suggest recommendations. From the implementation of the framework for the evaluation of natural resource management systems incorporating sustainability indicators (in Spanish MESMIS) methodology, nine Productive Family Units (UPF by its acronym in Spanish) were assessed between December 2020 and October 2021. The main results showed that most of the farms presented medium sustainability, which allows them to a considerable extent to comply with food self-sufficiency. Aspects to be improved have to do with agricultural extension, monthly income, soil conservation and agroecological practices, while the issue of marketing was the strongest. Some emerging recommendations are related to the peasant organization, the establishment of field schools and the intersectoral accompaniment to reinforce knowledge and practices. The diagnosis developed was useful for the peasants to think about strengthening strategies and processes that consider the integrity of the productive systems to guarantee their resilience in face of several adverse conditions.