An integrated sustainability assessment of mediterranean sheep farms with different degrees of intensification

Ripoll-Bosch, R.; Díez-Unquera, B.; Ruíz, R.; Mata, Daniel Villalba; Molina, Ester; Joy, M.; Olaizola, A. M.; Bernués, A.

doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2011.10.003

Cited by 148 publications

(119 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Evolution in a changing context Input self-sufficiency has often been considered as interesting to promote farm sustainability, faced with an increase in energy and input costs (López-Ridaura et al, 2002;Bernués et al, 2011;Ripoll-Bosch et al, 2012). In addition, Raveau (2011) found that when product prices increased, as in 2007, autonomous farms had more latitude for increasing their production, through increasing the use of inputs.…”

Section: Discussion and Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Role of input self-sufficiency in the economic and environmental sustainability of specialised dairy farms

Lebacq

Baret

Stilmant

2015

Animal

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Increasing input self-sufficiency is often viewed as a target to improve sustainability of dairy farms. However, few studies have specifically analysed input self-sufficiency, by including several technical inputs and without only focussing on animal feeding, in order to explore its impact on farm sustainability. To address this gap, our work has three objectives as follows: (1) identifying the structural characteristics required by specialised dairy farms located in the grassland area to be self-sufficient; (2) analysing the relationships between input self-sufficiency, environmental and economic sustainability; and (3) studying how the farms react to a decrease in milk price according to their self-sufficiency degree. Based on farm accounting databases, we categorised 335 Walloon specialised conventional dairy farms into four classes according to their level of input self-sufficiency. To this end, we used as proxy the indicator of economic autonomy -that is, the ratio between costs of inputs related to animal production, crop production and energy use and the total gross product. Classes were then compared using multiple comparison tests and canonical discriminant analysis. A total of 30 organic farms -among which 63% had a high level of economic autonomy -were considered separately and compared with the most autonomous class. We showed that a high degree of economic autonomy is associated, in conventional farms, with a high proportion of permanent grassland in the agricultural area. The most autonomous farms used less input -especially animal feeding -for a same output level, and therefore combined good environmental and economic performances. Our results also underlined that, in a situation of decrease in milk price, the least autonomous farms had more latitude to decrease their input-related costs without decreasing milk production. Their incomes per work unit were, therefore, less impacted by falling prices, but remained lower than those of more autonomous farms. In such a situation, organic farms kept stable incomes, because of a slighter decrease in organic milk price. Our results pave the way to study the role of increasing input self-sufficiency in the transition of dairy farming systems towards sustainability. Further research is required to study a wide range of systems and agro-ecological contexts, as well as to consider the evolution of farm sustainability in the long term.

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Section: Discussion and Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…López-Ridaura et al, 2002;Ripoll-Bosch et al, 2012). It has also been considered as a key principle of agroecology for animal systems (Dumont et al, 2013), as well as a strategy to improve their resilience (Darnhofer, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of input self-sufficiency in the economic and environmental sustainability of specialised dairy farms

Lebacq

Baret

Stilmant

2015

Animal

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“…Stability (resilience), adaptive capacity and self-reliance are important attributes to understand how farms will face changes in the future (Ripoll-Bosch et al, 2012b). The level of intensification and specialisation, technical aspects of management of animals and grazing resources, household and labour characteristics and economic performances are aspects that largely determine the reproducibility of sheep farming (Bernué s et al, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of self-sufficiency, productivity and diversification on the economic sustainability of farming systems with autochthonous sheep breeds in less favoured areas in Southern Europe

Ripoll-Bosch

Joy

Bernués

2014

Animal

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Traditional mixed livestock cereal-and pasture-based sheep farming systems in Europe are threatened by intensification and specialisation processes. However, the intensification process does not always yield improved economic results or efficiency. This study involved a group of farmers that raised an autochthonous sheep breed (Ojinegra de Teruel) in an unfavourable area of North-East Spain. This study aimed to typify the farms and elucidate the existing links between economic performance and certain sustainability indicators (i.e. productivity, self-sufficiency and diversification). Information was obtained through direct interviews with 30 farms (73% of the farmers belonging to the breeders association). Interviews were conducted in 2009 and involved 32 indicators regarding farm structure, management and economic performance. With a principal component analysis, three factors were obtained explaining 77.9% of the original variance. This factors were named as inputs/self-sufficiency, which included the use of on-farm feeds, the amount of variable costs per ewe and economic performance; productivity, which included lamb productivity and economic autonomy; and productive orientation, which included the degree of specialisation in production. A cluster analysis identified the following four groups of farms: high-input intensive system; low-input self-sufficient system; specialised livestock system; and diversified crops-livestock system. In conclusion, despite the large variability between and within groups, the following factors that explain the economic profitability of farms were identified: (i) high feed self-sufficiency and low variable costs enhance the economic performance (per labour unit) of the farms; (ii) animal productivity reduces subsidy dependence, but does not necessarily imply better economic performance; and (iii) diversity of production enhances farm flexibility, but is not related to economic performance.

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“…Com o objetivo de avaliar a sustentabilidade dos sistemas de produção, na pesquisa de Ripoll-Bosch et al (2012) observou-se que há uma relação positiva entre a produtividade e o nível de intensificação da atividade nas propriedades estudadas. Entretanto, também se configuraram relações de conflito da sustentabilidade econômica e social com a ambiental.…”

Section: Resultsunclassified

As Emissões de Carbono Provocadas pela Bovinocultura de Corte: Uma Análise a partir da Estância do 28

Vargas

Silveira

2016

Rev. Agro. Amb.

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RESUMO:Esta pesquisa analisa os impactos ambientais provocados pelos sistemas de produção extensivos da bovinocultura de corte. Para isso, realizou-se um estudo de caso na Estância do 28, propriedade da Fundação Maronna, localizada na Área de Proteção Ambiental do Ibirapuitã, na região Sul do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul. No âmbito dos recursos metodológicos, foi utilizado o software IPCC como ferramenta de auxílio na análise dos dados, capaz de quantificar as emissões de carbono provenientes da bovinocultura de corte. Para a análise dos dados coletados na Estância do 28 delimitaram-se os anos de 2010, 2011 e 2012, a fim de avaliar os impactos ambientais provocados pela produção de carne. Na pesquisa foram consideradas as emissões derivadas da fermentação entérica, das mudanças ocorridas no uso da terra na propriedade e dos dejetos dos animais. Por meio da análise dos dados pode-se constatar que as emissões provenientes da propriedade estão dentro dos limites encontrados em outros trabalhos. PALAVRAS-CHAVE:Bovinocultura de Corte; Custo em Carbono; Impactos Ambientais. CARBON EMISSIONS BY BEEF CATTLE: AN ANALYSIS OF THE ESTÂNCIA 28ABSTRACT: Environmental impacts caused by extensive beef cattle production systems are analyzed. A case study of Estancia 28 of the Fundação Maronna, within the Environmental Protection Area in Ibirapuitã in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, was undertaken. IPCC was employed for the analysis of meteorological data, which quantified carbon emissions from beef cattle. The years 2010, 2011 and 2012were selected for data analysis on the Estância 28 to evaluate the environmental 1 Este trabalho é parte da dissertação de mestrado da primeira autora.

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An integrated sustainability assessment of mediterranean sheep farms with different degrees of intensification

Cited by 148 publications

References 30 publications

Role of input self-sufficiency in the economic and environmental sustainability of specialised dairy farms

Role of input self-sufficiency in the economic and environmental sustainability of specialised dairy farms

Role of self-sufficiency, productivity and diversification on the economic sustainability of farming systems with autochthonous sheep breeds in less favoured areas in Southern Europe

As Emissões de Carbono Provocadas pela Bovinocultura de Corte: Uma Análise a partir da Estância do 28

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