The Agriculture Industry Relationship and Integral Rural Development

Rural areas have been the subject of study due to their fundamental importance in food production and the advance of a whole process of urbanization and industrialization brought about by the progressive growth of the population. This research deals with the study of an experience in the community of San Rafael Ixtapalucan, municipality of Tlahuapan, state of Puebla, Mexico, where recent industrial growth has affected the agricultural production of the community in different ways. The aim is to gain a better understanding of the current situation of agriculture in a rural community with a considerable expansion of small textile workshops, and the implications of these new activities on agricultural production. It also highlights the importance of the community level in rural development planning and an approximation to the knowledge of the agriculture-industry relationship at this territorial level.