Abstract

A simulation software, GRANJAS was utilized to analyze a Chilean peasant farming system. The purpose of this simulation experiment was to test the impact of the technological innovations being proposed to the peasant family within the context of a Farming Systems Research and Development (FSRD) project. The use of GRANJAS allowed the timely detection of erroneous assumptions concerning the feasibility of solving the present labor shortages in the peasant farm while at the same time intensifying the use of the available irrigated land. It also permitted the comparison of two general options for the development of this particular farming system: development based on the intensification of the crop subsystem, or development based on the intensification of both crop and livestock production. It is concluded that GRANJAS, if properly combined with other analytical tools and techniques, can be a useful and cost efficient instrument for the design of development proposals for peasant farming systems such as the one analyzed in this paper.