Sustainability of Local Cattle Production Systems in Hopelchén, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

A global trend in meat consumption has led to an increase in the amount of land used for extensive cattle production, causing deforestation and climate change. Cattle production is also one of the main sources of monetary income for rural families in low- and middle-income countries, including Mexico. However, agri-industrialization is transforming local production systems and threatening their sustainability. We used the Sustainability Assessment Framework for the Evaluation of Natural Resources Management Systems (MESMIS) to assess the sustainability of beef cattle production by comparing conventional and alternative systems in Hopelchén, a deforestation hotspot and agricultural frontier in Campeche, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Our sample included 28 farmers from 14 Maya ejidos. The alternative system, which combines several silvopastoral practices, had significantly better results in three environmental criteria (soil and forest conservation and quality) and two social criteria (self-sufficient family workforce, openness to innovation), is slightly more efficient economically and in terms of pasture availability than the conventional system, and can be easily combined with traditional agriculture and beekeeping. Therefore, the alternative system represents a viable and self-reliant productive activity that can be developed by Maya farmers as an alternative to the extensive big livestock systems or to the mechanized agriculture promoted by the agri-industrial model.