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Small can be beautiful for organic market gardens: an exploration of the economic viability of French microfarms using MERLIN
Abstract
Microfarms are commercial soil-based market gardens cultivating organic vegetables with less than 1.5 ha per farmer in rural France. Microfarms typically grow crops in both outdoor and protected (tunnel) areas. Despite their growing popularity among young farmers with no agricultural background, there are no data on expected income generated by these small-scale farms. Our objective was to determine the economic viability generated by a given agricultural area based on distinct microfarm scenarios. We used the stochastic model MERLIN to simulate 18 microfarm scenarios combining three technical systems (varying with respect to the mechanization level, use of commercial inputs, cropping density, and number of cropping cycles per year), two marketing strategies (varying with respect to the length of the selling period and the range of crops grown), and three investment hypotheses (varying with respect to the level of bank loans and the percentage of workload used for self-built equipment). Viability was calculated from the number of simulations that generated a selected minimum monthly income (600, 1,000, or 1,400 Euro) for a maximum annual workload (1,800 or 2,500 h).
This study shows that organic microfarms can be made economically viable in some cases but that the risks of not reaching viability in microfarms are not to be neglected. For microfarms, system redesign based on low mechanization, higher cropping density, more cropping cycles per year, low-input practices, lower fixed costs, and lower initial investment (manual and bio-intensive system with tiller cultivation) was more favorable (meaning a higher modeled viability) than input substitution (classic system) at a small scale. A 9-month selling period without winter storage crop cultivation led to higher viability than a 12-month selling period with winter storage crop cultivation. Low-cost investment strategies based on self-built equipment and second-hand materials led to lower viability than high-cost investment strategies that purchased equipment because the low-cost strategies increased the workload. Further research on microfarms should integrate other types of production and activities, such as small-scale breeding and on-farm processing and examine in which extent collaborations between microfarmers and larger scale farms could contribute to reshape farming systems and impact rural communities beyond the gate of microfarms.
... Les vergers-maraichers, encore extrêmement rares au début de ce siècle, connaissent actuellement un fort engouement auprès des porteurs de projets (Figure A-2). Depuis le début des années 2010 et l'essor du maraichage bio-intensif (Morel, 2016;Morel et al., 2017;Morel and Léger, 2016), les formes d'agricultures écologisées sur petite surface couplant maraichage diversifié et arboriculture suscitent l'intérêt de nombreux néo-agriculteurs. Cela se produit notamment en réponse à une forte demande sociétale visant à raccourcir les circuits alimentaires et à écologiser les systèmes agricoles (Lamine, 2017;Navarrete et al., 2012). ...
... The last decades have been marked by a growing interest in sustainable farming systems, with a fast-acting progress in its achievement (Warlop, 2016;Wezel et al., 2014). Within this general dynamic, farming strategies developed by innovative growers are highly diverse (Morel et al., 2017) but a common objective followed by these systems is the reduction of risk through an increased cultivated diversity. ...
... Horticulture, indeed, makes it possible to combine a large number of crops with a wide range of functional traits in both diversification and association configurations. Moreover, there has been a strong development of diversified horticultural systems in recent years, combining an increasing crop diversity (Morel et al., 2017;Morel and Léger, 2016;Navarrete et al., 2014) with intercropping and agroforestry configurations (Léger et al., 2018(Léger et al., , 2019Sieffert et al., 2014). This creates a fertile ground for the application of our conceptual framework to an applied issue relevant to a growing number of farmers. ...
Les vergers-maraichers sont des systèmes mixtes agroforestiers qui visent à optimiser l'utilisation des ressources spatiales et temporelles en produisant des fruits et des légumes sur la même parcelle. De ce point de vue, ces systèmes semblent en mesure de répondre au double enjeu productif et environnemental auquel l’agriculture est confrontée aujourd’hui. Néanmoins, les vergers-maraichers sont caractérisés par une grande complexité structurale et organisationnelle, car ils combinent deux ateliers très exigeants possédant des dynamiques contrastées. Dans cette optique, les conditions permettant d’obtenir un compromis entre résilience des performances et complexification de la gestion du système nécessitent d’être identifiées.L’objectif de ma thèse est donc de caractériser les compromis entre les bénéfices attendus de ces systèmes et les difficultés engendrées par leur complexité structurelle et organisationnelle. La démarche de recherche s’appuie sur le développement de plusieurs modèles qui mobilisent alternativement (i) la théorie du portefeuille ; (ii) le concept de Surface Equivalente Assolée ; (iii) la modélisation dynamique de type états-contrôles.Ces outils de modélisation sont complétés par une approche compréhensive au travers d’entretiens semi-directifs réalisés auprès de 15 agriculteurs du sud-est de la France. La combinaison de ces différentes approches met en évidence quatre résultats principaux. (i) Les effets de la diversification dans un contexte horticole peuvent permettre de réduire la variabilité de la production globale jusqu’à 77% ; (ii) l’association de cultures, en plus d’augmenter le rendement global, réduit davantage le risque ; (iii) la part relative de l’arboriculture et du maraichage dans l’assolement, couplée à l’allocation du temps de travail entre ces deux ateliers sont des éléments déterminants dans la gestion à long terme de la dynamique du système ; (iv) enfin, gérer la complexité liée à la diversité des cultures et à leur agencement agroforestier implique une reconfiguration des pratiques de gestion.L’ensemble de ces résultats met en évidence que la conduite de ces systèmes permet d’arbitrer entre les différentes dimensions étudiées : réduction des risques, synergies entre cultures, différences de dynamiques entre arboriculture et maraichage, mais également, impact de la configuration agroforestière sur les pratiques agricoles. Ces travaux de thèse permettent ainsi de mieux caractériser les compromis entre les bénéfices attendus des vergers-maraichers et la complexité de leur mise en oeuvre.
... Les vergers-maraichers, encore extrêmement rares au début de ce siècle, connaissent actuellement un fort engouement auprès des porteurs de projets (Figure A-2). Depuis le début des années 2010 et l'essor du maraichage bio-intensif (Morel, 2016;Morel et al., 2017;Morel and Léger, 2016), les formes d'agricultures écologisées sur petite surface couplant maraichage diversifié et arboriculture suscitent l'intérêt de nombreux néo-agriculteurs. Cela se produit notamment en réponse à une forte demande sociétale visant à raccourcir les circuits alimentaires et à écologiser les systèmes agricoles (Lamine, 2017;Navarrete et al., 2012). ...
... The last decades have been marked by a growing interest in sustainable farming systems, with a fast-acting progress in its achievement (Warlop, 2016;Wezel et al., 2014). Within this general dynamic, farming strategies developed by innovative growers are highly diverse (Morel et al., 2017) but a common objective followed by these systems is the reduction of risk through an increased cultivated diversity. ...
... Horticulture, indeed, makes it possible to combine a large number of crops with a wide range of functional traits in both diversification and association configurations. Moreover, there has been a strong development of diversified horticultural systems in recent years, combining an increasing crop diversity (Morel et al., 2017;Morel and Léger, 2016;Navarrete et al., 2014) with intercropping and agroforestry configurations (Léger et al., 2018(Léger et al., , 2019Sieffert et al., 2014). This creates a fertile ground for the application of our conceptual framework to an applied issue relevant to a growing number of farmers. ...
Les vergers-maraichers sont des systèmes mixtes agroforestiers qui visent à optimiser l'utilisation des ressources spatiales et temporelles en produisant des fruits et des légumes sur la même parcelle. De ce point de vue, ces systèmes semblent en mesure de répondre au double enjeu productif et environnemental auquel l’agriculture est confrontée aujourd’hui. Néanmoins, les vergers-maraichers sont caractérisés par une grande complexité structurale et organisationnelle, car ils combinent deux ateliers très exigeants possédant des dynamiques contrastées. Dans cette optique, les conditions permettant d’obtenir un compromis entre résilience des performances et complexification de la gestion du système nécessitent d’être identifiées. L’objectif de ma thèse est donc de caractériser les compromis entre les bénéfices attendus de ces systèmes et les difficultés engendrées par leur complexité structurelle et organisationnelle. La démarche de recherche s’appuie sur le développement de plusieurs modèles qui mobilisent alternativement (i) la théorie du portefeuille ; (ii) le concept de Surface Equivalente Assolée ; (iii) la modélisation dynamique de type états-contrôles. Ces outils de modélisation sont complétés par une approche compréhensive au travers d’entretiens semi-directifs réalisés auprès de 15 agriculteurs du sud-est de la France. La combinaison de ces différentes approches met en évidence quatre résultats principaux. (i) Les effets de la diversification dans un contexte horticole peuvent permettre de réduire la variabilité de la production globale jusqu’à 77% ; (ii) l’association de cultures, en plus d’augmenter le rendement global, réduit davantage le risque ; (iii) la part relative de l’arboriculture et du maraichage dans l’assolement, couplée à l’allocation du temps de travail entre ces deux ateliers sont des éléments déterminants dans la gestion à long terme de la dynamique du système ; (iv) enfin, gérer la complexité liée à la diversité des cultures et à leur agencement agroforestier implique une reconfiguration des pratiques de gestion. L’ensemble de ces résultats met en évidence que la conduite de ces systèmes permet d’arbitrer entre les différentes dimensions étudiées : réduction des risques, synergies entre cultures, différences de dynamiques entre arboriculture et maraichage, mais également, impact de la configuration agroforestière sur les pratiques agricoles. Ces travaux de thèse permettent ainsi de mieux caractériser les compromis entre les bénéfices attendus des vergers-maraichers et la complexité de leur mise en œuvre.
... Elles remettent également en cause la nécessité absolue du recours au tracteur (envisagé comme incontournable) en défendant la possibilité de réfléchir au cas par cas au niveau approprié de motorisation, ce qui peut dans certains cas se traduire par l'absence d'utilisation du tracteur, l'emploi d'une motorisation plus légère (motoculteur) ou l'usage unique du travail manuel [Morel 2016]. Ces initiatives, appelées microfermes d'après les pionniers qui en ont fait la promotion [Fortier 2014;Hervé-Gruyer & Hervé-Gruyer 2014] se réfèrent à des sources d'inspiration alternatives comme le maraîchage biointensif 4 [Jeavons 1982 ;Fortier 2012 ;Coleman 2013], la permaculture 5 [Mollison & Holmgren 1986 ;Holmgren 2014 ;Léger & al. 2017] et l'agriculture naturelle 6 [Fukuoka 2012]. 4 Ensemble de techniques inspirées des maraîchers parisiens du XIXème siècle [Moreau & Daverne 1845] qui visent à produire une grande quantité de légumes sur une petite surface même en hiver par différentes techniques comme des hautes densités d'implantation, des outils manuels adaptés comme le semoir manuel de précision, une place importante accordée aux cultures à cycles courts et à haute valeur ajoutée, l'utilisation de variétés adaptées aux conditions hivernales, l'emploi de voile de forçage et de couches chaudes en hiver. ...
... Les niveaux de revenu générés par rapport au travail engagé, s'ils peuvent permettre de vivre, restent assez bas par rapport à d'autres secteurs et renvoient à la question plus globale et structurelle de la rémunération du travail agricole. Les difficultés économiques lors de la phase d'installation ne sont pas non plus à négliger [Morel 2016 ;Morel & al. 2017]. Les microfermes démontrent néanmoins qu'il est possible de créer des alternatives agricoles viables, en cherchant à « prendre soin » des écosystèmes, en valorisant des petites échelles et en s'extrayant d'une dépendance aux industries agricoles vendeuses d'intrants ou de machines dont la taille et le coût ne font qu'augmenter. ...
... Les microfermes démontrent néanmoins qu'il est possible de créer des alternatives agricoles viables, en cherchant à « prendre soin » des écosystèmes, en valorisant des petites échelles et en s'extrayant d'une dépendance aux industries agricoles vendeuses d'intrants ou de machines dont la taille et le coût ne font qu'augmenter. (Morel & al. 2017 Un trait frappant des microfermes est que les maraîchers ne limitent pas leur réflexion écologique à l'échelle d'une parcelle ou d'une planche de culture. A la conception de la ferme, une réflexion générale est menée sur l'organisation des différents espaces de production (souvent envisagés comme des jardins), les lieux de vie et l'intégration d'infrastructures écologiques (haies, arbres, mares creusées etc.). ...
Les microfermes, fermes maraîchères biologiques diversifiées sur très petite surface, sont emblématiques des dynamiques d’installations néo-paysannes en croissance en France. Des entretiens menés sur une vingtaine de microfermes au Nord de la Loire montrent qu’elles sont la concrétisation de projets de vie globaux marqués par la recherche de sens, d’engagement, de qualité de vie et d’autonomie plutôt que par la maximisation du profit. Elles cherchent à « prendre soin » de la terre et intensifient la production de manière écologique grâce à une revalorisation du travail manuel. Elles développent une approche holistique de la conception de « paysages comestibles » plutôt que de zones d’exploitation. Au-delà de la relocalisation de l’alimentation via les circuits courts, elles recréent du tissu social en milieu rural par la création d’emploi, des activités culturelles ou associatives. Elles participent donc d’un renouvellement des pratiques et de la vision du rôle de l’agriculteur dans les territoires à contre-pied de la modernisation. La contribution des microfermes à une transition plus large de l’agriculture est discutée..
... On pourrait imaginer regrouper les microfermes par nombre d'employés, par quantité produite, par nombre de consommateurs ou encore par chiffre d'affaires. Morel (2017) propose d'utiliser la notion de surface cultivée par équivalent temps plein (ETP). ...
... On retrouve dans cette notion, une idée de surface, de rendement, ainsi que d'unité de travail annuelle (UTA). Selon lui, une microferme est une entité utilisant moins de 1.5 ha par unité de temps plein (Morel et al. 2017). D'après le rapport sur l'évolution économique de l'agriculture suisse en 2016, la moyenne d'UTA par ferme est de 1.88 et la moyenne de surface agricole utile (SAU) est de 25.3 ha (Dux et al. 2016). ...
... De plus, elles pratiquent presque toute la vente directe, soit dans un magasin à la ferme, soit sous forme d'abonnement à des paniers (Morel 2016). Toutefois, la définition de Morel et al. (2017) a des limites: une ferme de 100 ha ayant 1.5 UTA par ha serait alors considérée comme une microferme, ce qui est une absurdité. Pour pallier à ce manque de cohérence, la limite supérieure de taille sera de 5 ha, comme dans la définition d'une petite ferme faite par la FAO et EUROSTAT (Davidova et al. 2012). ...
Since a couple of years, agriculture has been singled out by climatologists and environmentalists,
who often even rank it first among the accused. And for good reason, as industrial agriculture
which developed based on petroleum and the chemical industry, caused innumerable
environmental damages. The soils are less and less fertile, the rivers more and more polluted, the
insects disappear, bringing with them a drastic reduction of birds, the CO2 emissions explode, and
all this for a type of agriculture which consumes seven times more calories than it produces.
Fortunately, solutions exist in the form of small autonomous agricultural structures. These
structures commonly called microfarms, use techniques that consume little fossil energy and are
usually selling their products in their local environment. However, beyond the reductive micro
prefix, they are the vehicles of considerable changes in the agricultural world. They go against the
dominant system by preferring smallness to gigantism, by promoting strong links between
consumers and producers, by cultivating diversity and refusing specialisation, and finally by giving
back a place to aesthetic, pleasure and collective well-being.
However, although requiring little investment and being profitable very quickly, these new
agricultural practices are struggling to find their place in classrooms. If there are training in
neighbouring countries, there is none in French-speaking Switzerland. However, no country has yet
taken the step of offering microfarm training in its vocational courses. This study demonstrates,
using methods of occupational analysis (DACUM) and instructional design (SCID) that current
agricultural training only covers 38% of the objectives of a microfarm training. The aspects least
covered by the current training are mostly the economic models, the integration in the social and
economic local fabric, and the construction of strong relationships with consumers. The results
suggest a collaboration between vocational schools and active microfarms in order to develop
courses offering alternatives to declining industrial agriculture.
This study also sought to determine the profiles of people interested in such training. The results
show that the majority are women. It shows as well that the majority of interested persons are
tertiary educated in the field of agronomy. Following these results, a proposal for a communication
concept was developed. The latter proposes to disseminate messages in the written press
(newspapers, specialised magazine), in the digital world (social networks, mailing list), and to create
or participate in live events (conference, round table).
Finally, the last part of this study aimed to develop educational content in the form of a technical
and economic planning tool. This tool gives information on the recommended selling prices,
amount of working hours required for the areas and crops cultivated, as well as the expected yields
according to the soil and climatic criteria of the production site. The tool was then evaluated by
professional microfarmers who commented on the results. They all noted the significant lack of
tools to help them in their planning tasks.
... The decrease in biotechnical index as farm vegetable area increased up to 15 ha that was observed in this study reflects the relationship between use of external inputs and farm size that was observed in studies of smallholdings, especially in developing countries (Netting, 1993;Rosset, 2000). Decreasing external costs while relying on local resources and ecosystems to increase self-sufficiency and added value is a common strategy to make a living (or survive) on a small area (van der Ploeg, 2018), which also applies to French microfarmers (Morel et al., 2017). ...
... Les microfermes, qui, d'après l'index biotechnique, ont des pratiques plus agroécologiques que les autres, sont souvent jeunes (comme c'est le cas dans notre échantillon) et leur création est souvent motivée par des convictions écologiques fortes . Ces fermes sont souvent peu mécanisées, génèrent un revenu relativement faible pour une charge de travail importante et parfois physiquement dure (Dumont et Baret, 2017;Morel et al., 2017). Il serait intéressant de voir sur le long terme si ces pratiques sont maintenues ou si les agriculteurs font des compromis en allant vers une certaine forme de conventionnalisation. ...
En France, le maraichage en agriculture biologique est un secteur dynamique, composé de fermesprésentant différents niveaux d’agroécologie laissant supposer une potentielle bifurcation entre desfermes biologiques « conventionnalisées » reposant sur l’utilisation d’intrants, et des fermes« agroécologiques » valorisant les ressources de l’écosystème. Cette hétérogénéité interroge sur ladiversité potentielle des impacts environnementaux associés. S’appuyant sur des donnéesessentiellement qualitatives collectées auprès de 165 fermes et sur un cadre d’analyse conceptuel, lathèse propose une caractérisation de la diversité des fermes et identifie quatre types : 1) lesmicrofermes diversifiées et utilisant peu d’intrants ; 2) les maraîchers diversifiés de taille moyenne ; 3)les producteurs spécialisés dans la culture sous abri ; et 4) les maraîchers spécialisés dans la culture deplein champ. Les caractéristiques des fermes et leur variabilité confirment l’existante de deux pôles« conventionnalisées » et « agroécologiques », tout en montrant qu’il s’agit d’une visionsimplificatrice, la majorité des fermes se trouvant entre ces deux pôles.Afin d’évaluer les performances environnementales de ces systèmes maraichers, l’analyse du cycle devie (ACV) a été mobilisée. Les fermes complexes, cultivant une grande diversité de légumes en lesassociant sur de petites surfaces dans une approche agroécologique systémique, posent des défis àcette méthode dans la prise en compte de leurs impacts sur la biodiversité et les interactions spatialeset temporelles sur lesquelles elles reposent. En adaptant le système expert SALCA-BD, j’ai comparédes fermes par rapport à leur impact sur la biodiversité, et mis en évidence l’importance des habitatssemi-naturels pour la biodiversité. SALCA-BD permet une évaluation détaillée de l’impact sur labiodiversité qui peut servir de base pour développer des méthodes d’évaluation combinant impactsglobaux et locaux dans un cadre d’ACV.Une approche système de l’ACV a été employée. Cette approche aborde la ferme comme un toutproduisant différents produits et où tous les intrants, opérations, et émissions sont rapportés à laproduction annuelle totale. Cette optique correspond à la logique de l'agroécologie, où beaucoupd’intrants sont raisonnés à l’échelle de la ferme et non à la culture, et où les cultures sontcomplémentaires les unes des autres. Préférée à une ACV par culture, l’approche système prend encompte les interactions au sein du système, et permet de comparer les systèmes entre eux. D’un pointde vue pratique, elle est adaptée au format des données souvent disponibles dans les fermesdiversifiées et évite des allocations.ivL’application de cette approche de l’ACV à trois fermes contrastées a permis l’analyse des forces etfaiblesses de ces fermes vis-à-vis de l’environnement, faisant apparaître de grandes différences entreles systèmes dans leurs principaux postes d’impact. Avec l’utilisation de plusieurs catégories d’impactet unités fonctionnelles, aucune ferme ne ressort clairement meilleure qu’une autre pourl’environnement. Exprimé par unité de surface, la ferme de plein champ, plus extensive, a le moinsd’impact et la ferme spécialisée sous tunnel a le plus d’impact, quelle que soit la catégorie d’impact.En revanche, quand les impacts sont exprimés par kg de produit ou par la valeur des produits (en Euro)les différences entre les trois fermes sont plus faibles. La comparaison des systèmes doit se faire engardant à l’esprit que les fermes ont des productions différentes et complémentaires. Les interactionset complémentarités entre ces modèles méritent d’être étudiées.Enfin, l’application de l’ACV système a permis d’identifier des perspectives de développementméthodologiques pour mieux estimer les émissions de nitrate, pour harmoniser l’évaluation desimpacts environnementaux des fertilisants organiques et pour intégrer la question de la pollution parles (micro)plastiques.
... yield of crops per m 2 ) is provided in Table 1. UA produces high yields largely due to more intensive input regimes and a more efficient use of space that results from a greater reliance on manual, rather than machine-based labour (Ackerman et al., 2013;Morel et al., 2017). The high inputs in UA are, however, not necessarily https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104554 a barrier to achieving sustainability as many of the materials required can potentially be obtained through recycling materials otherwise considered waste within an urban environment, including stormwater (Richards et al., 2015) and organic matter (e.g. ...
... Whilst a labour efficiency at this level would allow the land identified under all land-use scenarios to be managed by only a small proportion of the population, the trade-off for these improved efficiencies is a reliance on mechanisation (Pimentel and Pimentel, 2008). This would likely be impractical in the small and irregularly shaped spaces considered in this study (MacRae et al., 2010) as well as being undesirable due to the increased demands for nonrenewable energy and the reduced yields that may result (Ackerman et al., 2013;Morel et al., 2017). ...
Urban agriculture (UA) can be highly productive in terms of yield per unit area, however productivity is limited by available land and high input requirements. We determined how much of the food supply of Sydney, Australia, could be produced through UA by synthesising yield data from 13 UA gardens with information on labour and key material inputs and using spatial analyses to assess available land area. We modelled three scenarios with varying proportions of available land used for food production; 25 %, 50 % or 75 % of domestic yard space along with street verges and unused land (e.g. vacant lots). Around 15 % of Sydney’s total food supply, or its entire vegetable supply, could be produced through UA under the low range scenario, increasing to 34 % under the highest land use scenario. Under the low range scenario, all necessary irrigation water and organic soil amendments could be obtained from local waste streams, though these sources were insufficient to meet the needs of higher range scenarios. Available labour was a limiting factor in all scenarios, with the entire population being insufficient to meet labour needs required to maintain food production under efficiency and labour investment regimes typical of amateur urban gardeners. Establishing a professionalised UA workforce with greater labour efficiency would be required for managing the available land, however this scenario would likely require changes in public attitudes towards use of private land. These social issues, rather than physical limitations, may be the biggest factors preventing cities like Sydney from obtaining a non-trivial proportion of their food supply from UA.
... Horticulture, indeed, makes it possible to combine a large number of crops with a wide range of functional traits in both diversification and association configurations. Moreover, there has been a strong development of diversified horticultural systems in recent years, combining an increasing crop diversity (Morel et al., 2017;Morel and Léger, 2016;Navarrete et al., 2015) with intercropping and agroforestry configurations (Léger et al., 2019(Léger et al., , 2018Sieffert et al., 2014). This creates a fertile ground for the application of our conceptual framework to an applied issue relevant to a growing number of farmers. ...
... Finally, the diversification approaches in this study were limited to portfolios composed of two species. Yet, considering the growing interest of farmers in combining a large number of species within complex rotations (Galluzzi et al., 2010;Hoang et al., 2014;Morel et al., 2017), it would be especially interesting to extend our approach to more diversified systems. From the theoretical point of view, extension of the framework to situations with more than two crops is straightforward and does not present any mathematical difficulty (Paut et al., 2018;Van Noordwijk et al., 1994). ...
The need to redesign more sustainable agricultural systems able of producing more, especially through inter-cropping or agroforestry, cannot be achieved without taking into account the essential aspect of production variability. Yet, although many studies have focused on the effect of intercropping on overall production, the particular issue of production variability in such systems remains relatively unstudied. The approach we propose , for a shift towards sustainable intensification of agricultural systems, considers the dual dimensions of yield and risk in a combined framework for the assessment and the comparison of two diversification strategies: (i) a simple diversification strategy (SDS) considered as an increasing number of crops grown on separate plots within a farm and (ii) an intercropping strategy (IC) considered as a within-plot increased diversity, where more than one species is grown at the same time and place. The two perspectives examined here were Modern Portfolio Theory and Land Equivalent Ratio. The former quantifies the effect of diversification on risk, the latter measures the effect of association on production. This research merges both approaches in a combined framework in order to assess intercropping system performances. By applying our framework to cases selected from the literature, we explored and compared the potential benefits of these two strategies in terms of yield and risk. Results showed that intercropping, in addition to being interesting with regard to yield, can have an additional risk reduction effect compared to a simple diversification strategy. Conversely, some crop mixtures maintained or even increased yield variability. Our work contributes to a better understanding of the possible impacts of diversification strategies on trade-offs between yield and risk, but also underlines the importance of taking yield variability into account in further studies.
... Increasing awareness about the environmental limits of modern agriculture (Altieri and Nicholls, 2009;Stoate et al., 2009) has led to the need for a transition toward a more resilient and biodiverse agriculture model (Ferguson and Lovell, 2014). In this regard, micro-or mini-farms, inspired by the permaculture model (Mollison and Holmgren, 1990;Holmgren, 2002) and biointensive micro-gardening (Coleman, 1995;Jeavons, 1995), could potentially play a key role in this transition (Morel et al., 2017). ...
... Indeed, although there has been an increase in the number of publications concerning permaculture since 2008, only 23.1% are about "life sciences" (Ferguson and Lovell, 2014), and are even more rarely about soil science. Nevertheless, these systems have potentially limited impacts on ecosystems compared to conventional agriculture, and have also proven to be economically viable in some cases (Morel et al., 2017). ...
The limitations of conventional agriculture have accelerated the need for a transition to an environmentally and economically sustainable agricultural model. In this regard, the role played by soil organic matter (SOM) is key. Here, we aimed to study the impact of permaculture and biointensive micro-gardening practices, characterized by intensive cultivation, the use of large and localized organic inputs and the non-use of mineral fertilizers and pesticides, on soil physicochemical properties and SOM distribution in aggregate-size fractions. The physicochemical properties of soils in permaculture farming implemented for 7 years were compared with a soil under pasture. A soil experiencing conventional agriculture practices in similar geopedoclimatic conditions was simultaneously studied. Soils were separated into four aggregate-size fractions, into which organic carbon (OC) concentrations have been measured. The major soil physicochemical properties were measured on the bulk soils. The concentrations of total OC and nitrogen (N) in bulk soils were higher under permaculture practices, due to significant inputs of manure and compost, resulting in higher concentrations of the bioavailable nutrients Ca, Mg, K, and P. The permaculture practices sustained a level of macroaggregation similar to that of the pasture, and well above that of conventional practices. OC concentrations increased in the 250–2,000, 50–250 μm and occluded 50–250 μm fractions, but not in the <50 μm fraction compared to pasture. This can be explained by the too short duration of permaculture practices for allowing the decomposition of coarse particulate organic matter (POM) into fine sized SOM that is more associated with mineral particles. The higher OC stocks in permaculture are therefore mainly governed by the coarse POM fraction. Our results show that permaculture/biointensive micro-gardening practices enhance SOM storage and modify the distribution of SOM in aggregate-size fractions, while substantially improving nutrient bioavailability and suggest that these practices strongly affect soil properties. The effects of permaculture practices on soil properties would certainly vary depending on geopedoclimatic context, justifying the need to implement the approach for other soil types. Finally, we recommend to compare biogeochemical budget and nutrients use efficiency of permaculture gardening with conventional horticulture gardening.
... Also with their new ideas, young farmers could increase the multifunctional approach in the farm. Although farms in peri-urban areas often do not have large dimensions, it must be taken into account that appropriate technical, marketing and structural investment strategies can make sustainability possible for farmers despite the constraint of the small scale [37]. These strategies can also be linked to the use of social media and websites for the promotion of activities. ...
... This result is in contrast to the European trend. Moreover, it is also highlighted the growth of farm diversification across Europe, including nature and landscape management [19,37]. At the peri-urban level, the management of green areas such as parks and gardens turns out to be a qualifying activity. ...
Agriculture plays a key role in managing the peri-urban landscapes in Europe, influencing their social, aesthetic and environmental functions. Considering the increase in urban population and land consumption in the last decades, sustainability in peri-urban areas is a priority. Farming multifunctionality is the integration of different functions and activities that produce beneficial effects on local economy, environment and society. Three research questions were explored: How is multifunctionality applied in peri-urban agroecosystems? How do we ensure sustainability in peri-urban agroecosystem? How could a bottom-up approach promote sustainable actions, strategies and policies? The Chieri Municipality (Turin Metropolitan Area, Italy) was chosen as representative case study. A trans-scalar approach from the farm to the municipality levels was adopted. The analysis of statistical data and farmers' interviews were performed. Multifunctionality for three main farm categories (crops and grasslands; vineyards and orchards; and horticulture) was explored using the following parameters: website presence, online selling, agritourism, didactic farms, nonagricultural activities, maintenance parks and gardens, renewable energy, and transformation. According to the different farm types, multifunctionality assumes different aspects covering specific sets of sustainability needs. We consider important to move from the farm level multifunctionality to the landscape level multifunctionality in order to provide all services at a territorial scale. As a result, the following perspectives and strategies were proposed: increasing rural farm networks and cooperation, promoting initiates for valorizing the local food products, including farms in touristic and cultural networks, and involving farmers in social and didactic programs. In conclusion, this methodology could be applied for decision makers and planners for implementing a participatory approach in environmental-social and economic programs for peri-urban areas.
... Those experiments could help bridge the gaps between the different disciplines highlighted previously with more systematic monitoring of nutrient, weed and pest dynamics simultaneously. Another future research pathway could be to expand the tracking of practices and innovations by organic farmer, as done for farmers cultivating organic vegetables (Morel et al. 2017) or operating conventional diversified systems (e.g. Salembier et al. 2015). ...
Organic agriculture and organic food have expanded in recent decades but have undergone conventionalisation. Some claim that this contradicts some or all of the principles of ‘health’, ‘ecology’, ‘fairness’ and ‘care’ established by the International Federation of Organic Agricultural Movement (IFOAM). It is currently unclear how research on organic food/agriculture is structured, whether it embraces these principles, or how key crop diversification, driving sustainability, are addressed. To fill these knowledge gaps, we conducted a bibliometric analysis of 10,030 peer-reviewed articles published from 1945 to 2021 with topic and textual analysis. Our main findings were that: 1) research is compartmentalised into scales and disciplines, with at field-scale “weed”, “soil”, “pest and disease” management and “livestock farming” seldom addressed together, or with environmental assessment separated from socioeconomic studies at farm scale. 2) The proportion of publications on “Consumers' preferences” and “Product quality” research almost tripled in 20 years, from 10% to 27%, emphasizing the consumer orientation of research on organic agriculture and organic food. 3) Only 4% of articles covered all four IFOAM principles, while associated values such as “resilience”, “integrity”, “equity”, “transparency” and “justice” were even less frequently addressed. 4) Fewer diversification practices have been tested in organic than in conventional agriculture research, with fewer articles on “crop mixtures” or “bee-friendly crops” and a smaller range of legumes considered. 5) Research on genetic improvement and processing of organic legumes is lacking, which could constrain adoption of legumes in organic farming even more than in conventional agriculture. These results indicate a need for increasing interdisciplinary efforts at field level, with systematic measurement of multiple processes (weed-nutrient-pest dynamics). Future studies on organic agriculture should combine several diversification practices and legumes, with relevant indicators addressing the IFOAM values explicitly, and consider the whole value chain by linking producers with consumers.
... In rural France, where the microfarm concept has been fully integrated into the nation's food system, a microfarm is considered a commercial soil-based market garden cultivating organic vegetables on less than 1.5 hectare [2.5 acres] per farmer. 73 A small-scale commercial microfarm food production system does not require land as extensive as that demanded by industrial or factory farms, whose long-term sustainability is questionable given their intensive resource use and ever increasing dependence on mechanization and concomitant costs of fossil fuels and other operating expenses. A microfarmer, on the other hand, can produce enough 26 2.6. ...
This book discusses food systems economics within the context of collaborative sustainability in which solidarity enterprises forge lasting relationships to work together locally and regionally at the micro-enterprise level to provide employment and income. Resiliency is the keystone of sustainability. In addition to producing enough food for its members, a production unit must produce a surplus to sell to a support base of consumers at a profit in order to build resiliency into their operations, just as nature does in healthy ecosystems. Here, we will see that the idea of community-supported agriculture, combined with the creation of a value-web, can take on new meanings and be constructed in a way that all members have their needs met.
... 10% of the data analyzed in our study took place in vertical systems. Ultimately, the higher productivity of urban agriculture may also be linked to the substitution of mechanical labor with mostly manual labor in urban food production, which allows for a higher cropping density than in machine-managed systems (Morel et al., 2017). ...
Urban agriculture can contribute to food security, food system resilience and sustainability at the city level. While studies have examined urban agricultural productivity, we lack systemic knowledge of how agricultural productivity of urban systems compares to conventional agriculture and how productivity varies for different urban spaces (e.g., allotments vs. rooftops vs. indoor farming) and growing systems (e.g., hydroponics vs. soil‐based agriculture). Here, we present a global meta‐analysis that seeks to quantify crop yields of urban agriculture for a broad range of crops and explore differences in yields for distinct urban spaces and growing systems. We found 200 studies reporting urban crop yields, from which 2,062 observations were extracted. Lettuces and chicories were the most studied urban grown crops. We observed high agronomic suitability of urban areas, with urban agricultural yields on par with or greater than global average conventional agricultural yields. “Cucumbers and gherkins” was the category of crops for which differences in yields between urban and conventional agriculture were the greatest (17 kg m⁻² cycle⁻¹ vs. 3.8 kg m⁻² cycle⁻¹). Some urban spaces and growing systems also had a significant effect on specific crop yields (e.g., tomato yields in hydroponic systems were significantly greater than tomato yields in soil‐based systems). This analysis provides a more robust, globally relevant evidence base on the productivity of urban agriculture that can be used in future research and practice relating to urban agriculture, especially in scaling‐up studies aiming to estimate the self‐sufficiency of cities and towns and their potential to meet local food demand.
... D'autre part, les installés hors cadre familial, qui rejoignent le secteur agricole par choix et non par héritage familial, sont plus nombreux que par le passé, et sont souvent porteurs d'une autre vision du métier. Certains ont un capital important issu d'une reconversion professionnelle, d'autres au contraire sont sur des budgets restreints, mais la plupart compensent l'étroitesse du marché du foncier par des projets de développement innovants et intensifs sur des petites surfaces (Lécole, 2021a ;Morel et al., 2017 sur les micro-fermes maraichères ; Grémillet et Fosse, 2020 sur l'agro-écologie). ...
On assiste au renouvellement des petites exploitations agricoles. De plus en plus d’études de cas et travaux statistiques montrent qu’aujourd’hui certaines petites exploitations françaises s’inscrivent dans un modèle innovant et performant. Cet article compare les performances économiques et environnementales des petites exploitations, définies d’après les critères de la Confédération Paysanne, avec celles des moyennes et grandes exploitations du RICA. On montre que 55 % d’entre elles sont relativement plus performantes sur le volet environnement que l’ensemble des exploitations. 13 % sont même doublement performantes. Elles sont dirigées par de jeunes chefs, majoritairement des femmes, souvent en agriculture biologique, et dégagent un revenu par actif suffisant pour se maintenir. Les aides de la PAC sont cependant indispensables. Un rééquilibrage des aides par actif pourrait assurer la viabilité des petites exploitations à long terme, et contribuer à développer un modèle de petites exploitations innovantes et performantes.
... Vegetables, fruits, herbs, and, occasionally, small livestock are produced in reduced spaces for the market, private consumption, or educational purposes. The productivity of urban gardens depends on climate conditions and type of crops and can exceed that of rural farms [68]; if correct cultures are selected and machine-based crop treatment technologies are replaced by manual work, it results in higher cropping density and higher biodiversity of crops to be grown together [69]. Different types of cultivation can be selected for horticultural crops, both in open fields and/or under cover. ...
Urban agriculture (UA) plays a key role in the circular metabolism of cities, as it can use water resources, nutrients, and other materials recovered from streams that currently leave the city as solid waste or as wastewater to produce new food and biomass. The ecosystem services of urban green spaces and infrastructures and the productivity of specific urban agricultural technologies have been discussed in literature. However, the understanding of input and output (I/O) streams of different nature-based solutions (NBS) is not yet sufficient to identify the challenges and opportunities they offer for strengthening circularity in UA. We propose a series of agriculture NBS, which, implemented in cities, would address circularity challenges in different urban spaces. To identify the challenges, gaps, and opportunities related to the enhancement of resources management of agriculture NBS, we evaluated NBS units, interventions, and supporting units, and analyzed I/O streams as links of urban circularity. A broader understanding of the food-related urban streams is important to recover resources and adapt the distribution system accordingly. As a result, we pinpointed the gaps that hinder the development of UA as a potential opportunity within the framework of the Circular City.
... The last decades were recognizable by a growing interest in sustainable farming systems, with a fast-acting progress in its achievement (Warlop, 2016). In this regard ,general dynamic farming strategies developed by innovative growers which are highly diverse (Morel et al., 2017) but a common objective followed by these systems is the reduction of risk through an increased cultivated diversity. Diversification of crops from grain to vegetable crops can be helpful for improving agricultural sustainability to provide profitable employment, increase the income and conserve natural resources from further exploitation (Sekhon, 2004). ...
A field experiment was conducted at experimental site of Division of Vegetable Science, SKUAST-Kashmir during two consecutive years of 2016 & 2017. The experiment consisted of thirteen treatments which was carried out in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications. Observations for growth and yield attributes were recorded in the main crop-brinjal as well as in the residual crop-fenugreek. Higher values for days to first fruit picking (53.40), plant height (126.51 cm), number of branches plant-1 (7.06), number of fruits plant-1 (16.50), fruit length (13.41 cm), fruit diameter (7.96cm), average fruit weight (65.65g), fruit yield plant-1 (1.08 kg), fruit yield hectare-1 (395.42 q), duration of fruiting (92.16) were recorded in treatment T 9 (50% RFD + 50% PM) for main crop. For residual crop, growth and yield parameters viz., maximum plant height (34.01cm), maximum number of branches plant-1 (5.40), minimum harvest days (132.53 days), maximum leaf yield plot-1 (4.23kg), maximum leaf yield hectare-1 (52.27q) were recorded in treatment T 9 (50% RFD + 50% PM). In view of inconsistent, inadequate information regarding and site specific results of nutrient management through conjugated use of organic and inorganic nutrients, a location specific demonstrative trial was conducted at experimental field of SKUAST-K, Srinagar.
... 12 Sans restreindre la focale aux seuls agriculteurs, leur désir de (capacité à) continuer ou non leur activité productive constitue un élément primordial de la viabilité des CAP. Il nous semble dès lors pertinent de partir de la définition proposée par Morel et Léger (2016) (Morel et al., 2017). Elle permet de mieux mettre en exergue la réalisation complexe d'arbitrages et la gestion des points de tension ou de noeuds au sein des CAP (Brunori et al., 2016 ;Chiffoleau, 2018 ;Plateau et al., 2019). ...
The article questions the contribution, in terms of territorial viability, of intermediate collective structures involved in short proximity food supply chain. Our empirical approach is based on two case studies of food peasant cooperation, located in Ligurian region (Terroirs44) and Wallonia region (Paysans-Artisans). Based on a qualitative and inductive methodology, we show that these two organizations implement territorial anchoring strategies. These contribute to strengthening, more or less intensively, four main sustainability dimensions: an improving to the social well-being and quality of life of theirs producers; a smaller contribution to their economic well-being; a participation in local development; and a measured added value on the environment.
... The decrease in biotechnical index as farm vegetable area increased up to 15 ha that was observed in this study reflects the relationship between use of external inputs and farm size that was observed in studies of smallholdings, especially in developing countries (Netting, 1993;Rosset, 2000). Decreasing external costs while relying on local resources and ecosystems to increase self-sufficiency and added value is a common strategy to make a living (or survive) on a small area (van der Ploeg, 2018), which also applies to French microfarmers (Morel et al., 2017). ...
CONTEXT
According to the bifurcation hypothesis, a gap may be growing between “agroecological” organic farms, which rely mostly on ecosystem services, and “conventionalised” ones, which rely more on external inputs, related to contrasting evolutions in farm structure (e.g. size, specialisation) and supply chains.
OBJECTIVE
The objectives of this study were to 1) analyse the diversity of organic vegetable farming systems in France, 2) investigate the extent to which bifurcation can be observed among organic vegetable farms in France and 3) investigate the extent to which structural factors that can reflect bifurcation (e.g. profiles of “new organic farmers”, marketing channels, farm size) are related to conventionalised or agroecological OF.
METHODS
We developed a farm typology based on Factor Analysis of Mixed Data (FAMD) and agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC) using information obtained from an online survey with 165 complete answers. We used composite indexes that aggregated primary indicators to compare the biotechnical and socio-economic dimensions of farms among clusters.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
The diversity that exists in organic vegetable farms, with large differences among farm clusters, can be interpreted as a snapshot sign of bifurcation, which is a temporal process, and support hypotheses that relate farming structure to farming practices in this perspective. Our study suggests that 1) the dichotomy that contrasts “agroecological” to “conventionalised” organic farms should be considered as a conceptual perspective with two poles and a gradient of farms between them; 2) farms that were created as organic tended to be more agroecological than farms that were converted from conventional farming; 3) new entrants to organic farming had the best agroecological performances; 4) the best agroecological performances were associated with short supply chains, although good agroecological performances did occur with some long supply chains; and 5) the smallest farms were more likely to implement agroecological practices, but farm size did not have the same influence on all agroecological practices.
SIGNIFICANCE
These findings confirm the influence of structural factors that reflect bifurcation of the degree of conventionalisation or agroecology of organic vegetable farming. For a given set of structural factors (i.e. farmer profile, farm size and supply chain), however, agroecological performances varied greatly. This suggests levels of freedom to develop more agroecological organic practices for a given farm size or supply chain that should be further investigated.
... Les résultats obtenus indiquent que les exploitations de petite taille (peu nombreuses : 4,6 %) sont globalement les plus durables. Cela en particulier grâce au maintien d'une forte diversité d'espèces maraîchères sur leurs faibles surfaces, avec une agriculture de type traditionnel, bâtie autour du noyau familial (Van Vliet et al., 2015 ;Morel et al., 2017). Grâce à cette diversité de productions, ils réduisent les contraintes phytosanitaires et leur sensibilité aux aléas du marché. ...
Le maraîchage est actuellement un secteur où certaines pratiques d’agriculture moderne comme la culture pure et l’utilisation des produits de synthèse se développent, mais sont de plus en plus questionnées. L’évaluation de la durabilité de ces pratiques n’a pas encore fait l’objet d’études dans les régions montagneuses du Sud-Kivu, à l’Est de la République démocratique du Congo. Pour y remédier, la durabilité de 368 unités de production maraîchère choisies de manière aléatoire et stratifiée a été évaluée grâce à l’outil « Indicateur de la durabilité de la production maraîchère » (IPDM). Les résultats obtenus font ressortir trois types d’exploitations dont 44 % sont de grande taille, 52 % de taille moyenne et 5 % de petite taille. Il a été constaté que, sur un maximum de 100 points possibles, les exploitations de petite taille obtiennent des scores de durabilité de 60 %, 53 % et 57 % sur les trois dimensions respectives de la durabilité : agroécologique, socio-territoriale et économique. Sur toutes ces dimensions, les grandes exploitations n’atteignent pas 50 %. Ces résultats montrent que les grandes exploitations, plus modernes, sont cependant moins durables. Afin de pérenniser le maraîchage au Sud-Kivu, il apparaît donc nécessaire de promouvoir l’intensification écologique, la diversification intégrée et la promotion des intrants locaux auprès des différents types d’exploitation, et en particulier des plus grandes, engagées dans des techniques intensives mais peu durables.
... 12 Si sa durabilité écologique n'est que rarement questionnée, sa viabilité économique fait encore débat. Des chercheurs de l'institut INRA-AgroParisTech ont cependant pu démontrer qu'elle représentait une option rentable, tout en soulignant que la viabilité de ces projets est très dépendante du contexte territorial et des choix et valeurs des agriculteurs (Guégan et Léger, 2015 ;Morel et al., 2017). De récents travaux montrent, de plus, qu'au-delà des projets agricoles localisés, la viabilité et la performativité de la permaculture dépendent de la manière dont elle est portée comme projet politique (Centemeri, 15 La Suisse est une confédération de 26 cantons, eux-mêmes subdivisés en 2 200 communes. ...
(EN)
Based on ethnographic fieldwork with permaculture practitioners of Swiss Romandie, we highlight the territorial dynamics propelled by the implementation of permaculture. We offer the neologism of mesologisation to better qualify the dynamics, in which the territory is construed as a matrix to design ecological agriculture projects. We then contrast the dynamics of permaculture with those undergone by the Swiss agricultural policy, in order to show and explain why the two seem hard to reconcile, although both have strong environmental objectives at their core. The persisting chasm between the two positions prevents a joint vision of « sustainable agrifood systems » from emerging.
(FR)
Sur la base d’un terrain ethnographique dans le milieu de la permaculture en Suisse romande, nous mettons en évidence les dynamiques initiées par la permaculture au sein des territoires dans lesquels elle se déploie. Nous qualifions de « mésologisation » la dynamique qu’amorce la permaculture en concevant le milieu (méso) comme une matrice qui guide le design de projets agricoles écologiques et territorialisés. Ce concept permet de faire ressortir les différences entre trajectoires d’écologisation. Nous soutenons ainsi que, bien que la politique agricole suisse et la permaculture portent l’une comme l’autre une dimension écologique forte, elles peinent à se rejoindre – et ceci freine l’avènement d’une vision partagée d’un système agri-alimentaire durable.
... The success of farmers' work depends on the support of the community [110]. The long-term viability of SSC-channels such as CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is highly dependent on customer satisfaction [111] because if producers establish long-term relationships with consumers, CSA can operate cost-effectively and optimally [11]. The social and environmental side of farming can also be a motivation factor for consumers. ...
The sustainability of global food chains and intense agricultural production has become questionable. At the same time, the consumers’ interest in short supply chains (SSCs) and direct sales from producers has increased. SSCs are connected to sustainability by researchers. Their (supposed) positive sustainability attributes are based mostly on extensive production methods and short transport distances. However, from other points of view, the economic and environmental sustainability of the short chains is questionable. Our research aims to cast light on the SSCs’ role in circular economy and sustainability. By deep literature review and content analysis, we determine the sustainability aspects of short (local) chains and their effects related to economy and environment. Short supply chains are connected most widely to circularity and sustainability by the subjects of environmental burden (transport, production method, emission), health, food quality, consumers’ behavior, producer-consumer relationships, and local economy. According to our experience, these factors cannot be generalised across all kinds of short chains. Their circular economic and sustainability features are dependent on their spatial location, type, and individual attitudes of the involved consumers and producers.
... 12 Si sa durabilité écologique n'est que rarement questionnée, sa viabilité économique fait encore débat. Des chercheurs de l'institut INRA-AgroParisTech ont cependant pu démontrer qu'elle représentait une option rentable, tout en soulignant que la viabilité de ces projets est très dépendante du contexte territorial et des choix et valeurs des agriculteurs (Guégan et Léger, 2015 ;Morel et al., 2017). De récents travaux montrent, de plus, qu'au-delà des projets agricoles localisés, la viabilité et la performativité de la permaculture dépendent de la manière dont elle est portée comme projet politique (Centemeri, 15 La Suisse est une confédération de 26 cantons, eux-mêmes subdivisés en 2 200 communes. ...
(EN) Based on ethnographic fieldwork with permaculture practitioners of Swiss Romandie, we highlight the territorial dynamics propelled by the implementation of permaculture. We offer the neologism of mesologisation to better qualify the dynamics, in which the territory is construed as a matrix to design ecological agriculture projects. We then contrast the dynamics of permaculture with those undergone by the Swiss agricultural policy, in order to show and explain why the two seem hard to reconcile, although both have strong environmental objectives at their core. The persisting chasm between the two positions prevents a joint vision of « sustainable agrifood systems » from emerging. (FR) Sur la base d’un terrain ethnographique dans le milieu de la permaculture en Suisse romande, nous mettons en évidence les dynamiques initiées par la permaculture au sein des territoires dans lesquels elle se déploie. Nous qualifions de « mésologisation » la dynamique qu’amorce la permaculture en concevant le milieu (méso) comme une matrice qui guide le design de projets agricoles écologiques et territorialisés. Ce concept permet de faire ressortir les différences entre trajectoires d’écologisation. Nous soutenons ainsi que, bien que la politique agricole suisse et la permaculture portent l’une comme l’autre une dimension écologique forte, elles peinent à se rejoindre – et ceci freine l’avènement d’une vision partagée d’un système agri-alimentaire durable.
... The first is to make peri-urban agricultural production more environmentally sustainable and resilient [9,10]. The second is to improve the socio-economic performance of peri-urban agricultural systems, with strategies focusing on advantages in an urban environment, such as diversification, specialization, and short food supply chains [11][12][13][14][15]. More and more scholars claim local food as an important benefit Figure 1. ...
Urbanization brings significant changes to the urban food system. There is growing attention to food self-sufficiency in metropolitan areas for the concern of greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation in food transportation. In China, grain self-sufficiency in metropolitan areas is also an important issue for grain security and involves coordination among contradictory policy goals. Based upon a comprehensive statistical analysis of 70 metropolitan areas in mainland China, we investigated the regional differences in the trends of grain self-sufficiency capacity in these areas from 1990 to 2015. The findings show a trend of decline in 3/4 of metropolitan areas, mainly located in the rapidly urbanizing eastern coastal areas and in the West. The increase of self-sufficiency mainly occurred in the North, in areas either specialized in grain production or originally low in grain self-sufficiency. The enlarging contradiction of decreasing supply and rising demand explained the sharp decrease in self-sufficiency, while the increase in self-sufficiency was due to the increase in supply. Land productivity contributed more significantly than land availability to supply change. There was a tradeoff between urban expansion (rather than economic growth) and grain production in metropolitan areas. Our results provide implications to future research and policy-making for grain production management in China’s metropolitan areas.
... One of the reasons for the higher outputs reported here is likely due to the substitution of mechanical labor with mostly manual labor. Using manual labor allows for a higher cropping density than is possible in machine-managed systems (37). The use of manual labor also allows for different crops to be grown together, resulting in systems potentially "overyielding," where the sum of crop yields in a polyculture exceeds the yield that any one of those crops growing alone would be able to produce (38). ...
Significance
Growing food in cities for human consumption could be one means of increasing global food supply in the face of rising population growth and global food security concerns. While previous studies have shown that urban agricultural systems are productive, few studies provide yield figures that incorporate data on the inputs used to achieve the outputs. Across 13 urban community gardens, we show that yields were nearly twice the yield of typical Australian commercial vegetable farms. However, economic and emergy (embodied energy) analyses indicated they were relatively inefficient in their use of material and labor resources. Balancing the sustainability of urban food production with the cost of inputs is important to determine the trade-offs required to achieve high yields.
... Portfolios of two crops on a wide range of crops enabled an exhaustive exploration of all possible combinations. However, in diversified horticultural systems, high number of species and complex rotations are often implemented (Morel et al., 2017). Due to simulations constraints, it was not possible to explore all possible combinations for larger portfolios. ...
In agricultural sciences, it is frequently stated that diversified systems are more likely to cope with risks, but rarely demonstrated in a quantitative way. On the theoretical perspective, risk reduction based on asset diversification is a well studied mechanism in economics that has been formalized in the Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT). In this paper, we thus explore the opportunities for application of MPT to quantify the benefits of diversification for risk reduction in a context of highly diversified horticultural systems. Our analysis relies on a model of the effect of crop diversification on risk and expected yield. It is based on a dataset obtained from a range of 44 species and over a period of 10 years. Results show that (i) the variability of expected crop yield can be reduced up to 77% by choosing the appropriate crop combination; (ii) most common crop classifications such as botanical classification or functional types do not make it possible to identify suitable diversification strategies. These results provide insight into how different horticultural crop combinations may shape the relationship between production and risk in diversified farming systems. Our findings also provide indications on new diversification strategies based on a quantification of risk reduction.
... The last decades have been marked by a growing interest in sustainable farming systems, with a fast-acting progress in its achievement (Warlop, 2016;Wezel et al., 2014). Within this general dynamic, farming strategies developed by innovative growers are highly diverse (Morel et al., 2017) but a common objective followed by these systems is the reduction of risk through an increased cultivated diversity. ...
In a context of a redefinition of farming system, innovative cropping systems have arose in the recent decades. Among them, diversified horticultural systems show a growing interest in Europe, especially among new entrants into farming. One of the main motivations for farmers to grow simultaneously a variety of vegetables and fruits is to reduce the overall risk on production through a diversification effect. On the theoretical point of view, risk reduction based on diversification of assets is a well-studied mechanism in economics that has been formalized in the Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT). In practice, farmers tend to build crop portfolios that generate the highest yield while minimizing the risk on the overall crop production. The objective of this study was to understand how different fruit-vegetable combinations shape the relationship between production and risk in a diversified farming system. Based on the MPT framework, we explored all possible crop portfolios composed of 1 to 5 crops chosen in a list of 22 commonly grown fruits and vegetables. Results showed that (i) increasing portfolio compositions from 1 to 5 crops progressively improves the production-risk trade-off that farmers have to face; (ii) fruit and vegetables classification does not show clear trends to conclude on the interest of diversification based on botanical aspects. These results led us to identify suitable diversification strategies for fruits and vegetables production that make it possible to reduce the overall risk on crop production while maintaining the same level of production.
Many researchers, policy makers, and food activists view Short Food Supply Chains (SFSC) as attractive levers for improving farm income and the sustainability of farming systems. However, the empirical evidence documenting the association between SFSC participation and farm economic performance has been mixed. In this study, through a meta-analysis using a logistic regression, we identify key factors to explain differences between studies that find better economic performance in SFSC and those that do not. Our meta-analysis consists of 48 studies published in English and French from 2000 to 2022 that examine the economic performance of farms engaged in SFSC. Based on far more empirical evidence than previous reviews, we find that the relationship between SFSC participation and farmer income remains ambiguous. More specifically the findings indicate that the reported effect of SFSC on a farm economic performance varies depending on location and the indicator used to capture the economic performance of farms. Studies conducted in Europe are more likely to report higher farmer income as are studies that use profit satisfaction metrics rather than measures of gross or net income. We also emphasize the need to interpret the reported results cautiously because few are based on causal inference methods. Furthermore, the very few studies that account for selection bias often do so with inadequate corrections.
Aquaponik zur Selbstversorgung in der Kreislaufstadt: Begriffsbestimmungen,
Bedarfsdeckung, Umweltauswirkungen, Systemanalysen und Standortpotenziale unter Berücksichtigung des Umlands – Fallstudie Berlin // Dissertation, Fakultät für Architektur, RWTH Aachen, Germany
Short supply chains have recently gained increased attention because of the turbulence in the global environment caused by exogenous influences that create unstable and uncertain conditions. The emergence of short supply chains is of particular importance for sustainable development at large, but also for the viability of vulnerable communities and areas (e.g., remote and isolated, and islands). This paper aims to explore the area of short supply chains focusing on the agri-food sector from a bibliometric standpoint. Towards this end, journal articles listed in the Scopus database were analyzed using the software VOSviewer. We present a broad overview, recent developments, and fundamental ideas in the realm of short food supply chains, which may aid in our comprehension and future research on this topic.
Does the promotion of agricultural mechanization level have spatial driving effects on the agricultural total factor productivity growth (TFPG)? Based on spatial panel data from 2000 to 2019, we begin by measuring agricultural TFPG, then incorporating spatial econometric models as well as carrying out spatial regression to first explore the influence agricultural mechanization level has on the agricultural TFPG. Meanwhile, we also perform decomposition of the spatial regression results to further study the spatial spillover effects performed by agricultural mechanization. The study suggests that the promotion of agricultural mechanization level has exerted significant spatial spillover effects on the agricultural TFPG, especially in the eastern and northeast regions of China, demonstrating obvious radiation effects, whereas the central and western regions may not produce such intense spatial spillovers due to the pattern of agricultural development. The results could not only enhance the understanding of agricultural mechanization on the agricultural TFPG but also produce constructive implications for optimizing the spatial layout of agricultural mechanization development, promoting agricultural development according to local conditions and formulating reasonable agricultural economic development policies.
(Published in French) Urban agriculture is growing in France and, consequently,
it is becoming more and more important in public
policies. However, it has not always been considered so
favorably. The city has rather progressed to the detriment
of agriculture and today agriculture is mostly imposed on
marginalized spaces. Our article takes a geohistorical look
at urban agriculture, based first on existing literature. We
thus show the evolution from a marginalization of agriculture
to an agrarianization of the city. Some examples
taken in Tours Métropole Val de Loire (market gardening
and allotment gardens) and Île-de-France (abandoned
urban areas: urban micro-farms and eco-districts) are an
opportunity to question the current place of agriculture
in a city that now wants to be nourishing and sustainable,
allowing us to imagine its insertion in the city of
tomorrow. -------- RÉSUMÉ : L’agriculture urbaine est en plein essor en France et l’intérêt est tel qu’elle s’impose de plus en plus dans les politiques publiques. Pourtant, elle n’a pas toujours occupé cette place de choix : la ville a plutôt progressé au détriment de l’agriculture et c’est surtout sur des espaces marginalisés qu’elle s’impose aujourd’hui. Notre article porte ainsi un regard géohistorique sur l’agriculture urbaine, en se fondant d’abord sur la littérature existante ; nous montrons que nous sommes passés d’une marginalisation de l’agriculture à une agrarisation de la ville. Des exemples pris au sein de Tours Métropole Val de Loire (maraîchage et jardins familiaux) et en Île-de-France (délaissés urbains : micro-fermes urbaines et écoquartiers) sont l’occasion de questionner ensuite la place actuelle de l’agriculture dans une ville qui se veut désormais nourricière et durable, laissant imaginer son insertion dans la ville de demain.
Entrepreneurship plays an important role in developing the agricultural sector and increasing opportunities for farmers to promote sustainable livelihoods. The study aims to enhance discussion and gain an in-depth understanding of farm entrepreneurship in the context of sustainability in China. We conducted a case study of five farmers practicing organic farming through semi-structured face-to-face interviews. The analysis shows that organic farms enhance sustainability through many economic, social and environmental contributions. Additionally, emerging societal awareness of healthy foods and the increasing demand for organic products are among the most important opportunities contributing to the growth of organic farming. Despite this, farm entrepreneurship among organic farms faces many challenges, such as land use rights, lack of business networks and government subsidies. However, the government is the main player in promoting sustainability practices among entrepreneurs and society through agricultural policy development and promotion of organic products. We believe that this paper is the first attempt to study organic farm entrepreneurship in China from an entrepreneurs’ viewpoint. The conclusions could have potential implications and guidelines for promoting organic agriculture policies in national and international contexts. The conclusions have significant implications and potential guidelines for promoting sustainability in national and international contexts.
As family farms are the dominant form of agricultural activity in Europe, their economic viability is a prerequisite for the sustainable development of agriculture and rural areas. The aim of this research is to review the latest publications on the economic viability of family farms in Europe. Based on a systematic literature review of studies related to European agriculture published in 2010-2020, this paper presents various concepts of family farm economic viability and assesses the methodologies used. The paper also presents the results of selected empirical research from the last 10 years on family farm economic viability in Europe, broken down into international and national comparisons. Results suggest that the most common approach to measuring economic viability is to use the opportunity cost concept of own factors of production. An important observation is also that, although most studies are based on the FADN database, the results of the analyses are sensitive to the selection of the threshold wage and own capital costs. What contemporary literature lacks is a long-term comparative analysis for all EU countries, as well as studies of drivers of family farm economic viability.
Urban micro-farms are rapidly developping driven by NGOs and supported by citizen and local politics. This new object of research was defined in two different contexts: urban and peri-urban/rural environments (Daniel 2019; Morel et al. 2017). In urban environments micro-farm are small scale farms (less than 1.5EFT per ha), involving often volunteers and generating a diversity of activities. The different functions expected from them (food provisioning, teaching support, social and cultural activity, water retention, valorization of wastes and landscape…) are directly linked to a diversity of ecosystem services that they can deliver. Nevertheless, only a few studies focus on micro-farms and do not allow a sufficient understanding of the ecosystem services that they can deliver. In parallel, the involvement of farmers in the evaluation of ecosystem services seems to be a great opportunity, if not a necessary condition. Based on this observation, the research project SEMOIRS (2018 – 2020), funded by ADEME, aims to evaluate ecosystem services delivered by urban micro-farms. The aim of this article is to present and discuss the methodology of the project. Seven micro-farms were studied during two years: 4 were located at the soil level and 3 at rooftop level [see table 1]. Five ecosystem services were studied: food production (quantity and quality), biodiversity supporting (flora, fauna, and microorganisms), regulation (water catchment and quality, local climate regulation, use of urban waste and carbon storage) as well as social and cultural services. A set of indicators was set up [see table 3] based on three types of data : (i) participative measurements achieved by the farmers themselves, (ii) field measurements (including a questionnaire for micro-farm users) performed by researchers and (iii) external data, based on laboratory measurements, data bases, literature etc. The study has shown that all of the seven soils of micro-farms are deeply disrupted, from removed topsoil to isolatic Technosol (IUSS Working Group WRB, 2014). The methodology used raised key questions regarding ecosystem services evaluation. (i) First, there is a trade-off to be dealt within the participative approach, between the targeted precision of data needed on the one hand and the time spent by stakeholders for the measurement on the other hand. Despite these limits, the participative approach allows for a better understanding of the ecosystem services drivers by the farmers as well as collecting data not accessible otherwise. (ii) Second, the choice of references to which we compare the ecosystem services delivered by urban micro-farms is crucial. In the project, three reference were considered: professional vegetables farms, other urban agriculture forms and other type of urban green spaces. We identified a serious lack of reference data on the considered ecosystem services that limits the comparison and the discussion. (iii) Finally, our work raised the question of the scale at which to study different ecosystem services, as the different ecosystem services operate at different spatial scales. Four scale were used here: soil, farm, neighborhood and the territory (here, the city; see figure 3). Encompassing different scales raises however the questions of a common study scale and that of the methodology needed to change from one scale to another. However, despite those limits and perspectives the proposed methodology, relying partly on a participatory approach, appears promising to evaluate the ecosystem services provided by urban micro-farms.
This document presents in French a global synthesis of Kevin Morel's PhD dissertation (INRA, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay) on the viability of organic market-gardening microfarms. It is oriented toward practitioners, teachers, advisors, current and future farmers.
Few scholars have investigated the economic viability of urban farms in industrialized countries. This study focused on urban community microfarms—small-scale organic market gardens committed to social work activities—in London. Our objective was to investigate the extent to which economic viability was (i) possible for urban microfarms in London and (ii) compatible with the other social and ecological aspirations of microfarmers. The simulation model MERLIN was adapted to London, based on 10 case studies. We analyzed the likelihood of viability—that is, the percentage of economically viable simulations (out of 1000 simulations)—of 192 different strategic scenarios of microfarms. Based on the modeling outputs, a collective workshop was organized with 11 urban farmers to discuss the possibility of reconciling socio-ecological aspirations and economic viability in an urban context. This is the first time that modeling and discussions with stakeholders are combined to explore the viability of urban agriculture. Our novel study shows that urban microfarms can be viable and that viability can be increased by focusing on short-cycle and high added-value leaf vegetables grown in high tunnels and sold at high prices to restaurants. Such strategies can lead urban farmers to make trade-offs with their socio-ecological aspirations. Costs can be decreased by taking advantage of community resources such as volunteer labor or agreements with local councils to rent land at a low rate. Social work (training, hosting community events) is a key condition to access these resources but entails more complex farm management.
Alternative farming systems are challenging classical agronomic frameworks because their aim is to promote human and ecosystems welfare rather than profit maximization. The objective of our work was to understand how alternative farmers build their strategic choices. Through a multiple-case qualitative study of 14 organic market gardening microfarms in the northern half of France, we developed a systemic conceptual framework in which strategic decision making is integrated with a wide range of social and environmental aspirations. As these various aspirations can be in tension, it is relevant to consider tradeoffs between them to study the viability of alternative farms.
Resource use and environmental impacts of a small-scale low-input organic vegetable supply system in the United Kingdom were assessed by emergy accounting and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The system consisted of a farm with high crop diversity and a related box-scheme distribution system. We compared empirical data from this case system with two modeled organic food supply systems representing high-and low-yielding practices for organic vegetable production. Further, these systems were embedded in a supermarket distribution system and they provided the same amount of comparable vegetables at the consumers' door as the case system. The on-farm resource use measured in solar equivalent Joules (seJ) was similar for the case system and the high-yielding model system and higher for the low-yielding model system. The distribution phase of the case system was at least three times as resource efficient as the models and had substantially less environmental impacts when assessed using LCA. The three systems ranked differently for emissions with the high-yielding model system being the worst for terrestrial ecotoxicity and the case system the worst for global warming potential. As a consequence of being embedded in an industrial economy, about 90% of resources (seJ) were used for supporting labor and service.
The concept of agroecology in the United States is born out of a dialectical process of co-production of knowledge whereby the science of agroecology has shaped and been shaped by alternative agri-food movements, policy, and local practice. This article examines the relationship between agroecology and alternative agri-food movements and identifies opportunities for greater engagement. The article concludes with a discussion of the challenges and opportunities to scaling up agroecology and sustainable agri-food systems.
Résumé Améliorer les conditions de vie au travail des éleveurs nécessite de penser l'organisation du travail de manière à ce qu'elle permette d'articuler production et subjectivité. A partir de cas d'éleveurs pluriactifs, nous avons construit un modèle d'interprétation de l'organisation du travail d'élevage qui met en relation le rapport subjectif au travail avec les modalités et les raisonnements des choix de dimensionnement, de gestion du temps, d'organisation de la main-d'oeuvre et techniques d'élevage. Il permet d'expliciter les ajustements faits par les éleveurs pour organiser le travail, le sens qu'ils ont pour eux et la façon dont ils les vivent. Mots-clés : organisation du travail, subjectivité, élevage, pluriactivité.
Designing or improving farming systems requires understanding their dynamics so as to predict their behaviour in response to management. Simulation tools can potentially support the process by which farmers and scientists might obtain such an encompassing understanding. The usability of these tools is, however, partially inhibited by the inherent complexity of the interactions at work in farm-scale models. Whereas such models are generally used in isolation, here we present an approach in which a field-scale diagnosis method complements a farm-scale simulation model. This diagnosis method lends itself easily to an intelligible presentation of field-specific knowledge that can be fed to the simulation tool for more encompassing considerations. Our approach is used to support the design of novel management strategies in grassland-based beef systems and proved to be effective when applied to two farms in the French Pyrenees. Thanks to the integrative representation of the various processes, including the management ones, simulation contributed to deeper learning of both scientists and farmers about room for manoeuvre for increasing self-sufficiency for forage. The diagnosis phase enhanced the learning process by providing a simpler framework in which elementary problems at field scale could be considered separately before being examined concurrently at farm scale in the simulation phase.
To address the challenges of biodiversity conservation and commodity production,
a framework has been proposed that distinguishes between the integration
(“land sharing”) and separation (“land sparing”) of conservation and production.
Controversy has arisen around this framework partly because many
scholars have focused specifically on food production rather than more encompassing
notions such as land scarcity or food security. Controversy further
surrounds the practical value of partial trade-off analyses, the ways in
which biodiversity should be quantified, and a series of scale effects that are
not readily accounted for.We see key priorities for the future in (1) addressing
these issues when using the existing framework, and (2) developing alternative,
holistic ways to conceptualise challenges related to food, biodiversity, and
land scarcity.
Agricultural production is unstable as a result of complex, dynamic and interrelated factors such as climate, markets and public policy that are beyond farmers’ control. Farmers must therefore develop new farming systems incorporating innovations in objectives, organization and practices adapted to changing production contexts. As a consequence, agronomists have expanded the “farming system design” field of research. A variety of quantitative and qualitative design approaches have been developed to support the analysis of current farming systems and the design and evaluation of alternatives. A comprehensive literature assessment is lacking for this emerging field of agricultural science. Here we review 41 farming system design approaches using computer models. Our main findings are the following: (1) the reviewed literature do not make reference to the theoretical approaches from the field of design science. (2) Two categories of farming system approaches can be distinguished: optimisation approaches, and participatory and simulation-based approaches. These two categories are connected to two of the main design science theories. (3) For optimisation approaches, farming system design is mainly seen as a problem-solving process. Emphasis is placed on the computational exploration of the solution space by a problem-solving algorithm. (4) For participatory and simulation-based approaches, conceptualization of the design problem is central to the farming system design process. The subsequent exploration of the solution space relies on the creativity of humans. (5) Optimisation approaches, and participatory and simulation-based approaches are oriented towards the development of exploitative rather than exploratory innovations. Exploitative innovations involve the exploitation of available knowledge while exploration innovations build on knowledge created in the course of the design process.
The central question posed by this essay is whether sustainable agriculture will be able to rescue modern industrial agriculture from its present state of crisis. To answer this question this article begins by outlining the economic, social, and ecological dimensions of the crisis, each of which must be addressed by an alternative paradigm in order to pull agriculture out of crisis. It then examines a persistent contradiction in the alternative agriculture movement: that of input substitution versus agroecologi‐calty informed transformation of farming systems. It is argued that the prevalence of input substitution, which emphasizes alternatives to agrochemical inputs without challenging the monoculture structure of agricultural systems, greatly diminishes the potential of sustainable agriculture. By only addressing environmental concerns, this dominant approach offers little hope of either reversing the rapid degradation of the resource base for future production or of resolving the current profit squeeze and debt trap in which the world's farmers are caught.
Peter Rosset challenges the conventional wisdom that small farms are backward and unproductive. Using evidence from southern and northern countries he demonstrates that small farms are multi-functional more productive, more efficient, and able to contribute more to economic development than large farms. He analyses the threats posed to small farmers by today's trade liberalization and concludes with a call to unite against an Agreement on Agriculture that might make their continued existence impossible.Development (2000) 43, 7782. doi:10.1057/palgrave.development.1110149
The common approach to the multiplicity problem calls for controlling the familywise error rate (FWER). This approach, though, has faults, and we point out a few. A different approach to problems of multiple significance testing is presented. It calls for controlling the expected proportion of falsely rejected hypotheses – the false discovery rate. This error rate is equivalent to the FWER when all hypotheses are true but is smaller otherwise. Therefore, in problems where the control of the false discovery rate rather than that of the FWER is desired, there is potential for a gain in power. A simple sequential Bonferroni-type procedure is proved to control the false discovery rate for independent test statistics, and a simulation study shows that the gain in power is substantial. The use of the new procedure and the appropriateness of the criterion are illustrated with examples.
This article addresses the potential for food movements to bring about substantive changes to the current global food system. After describing the current corporate food regime, we apply Karl Polanyi's 'double-movement' thesis on capitalism to explain the regime's trends of neoliberalism and reform. Using the global food crisis as a point of departure, we introduce a comparative analytical framework for different political and social trends within the corporate food regime and global food movements, characterizing them as 'Neoliberal', 'Reformist', 'Progressive', and 'Radical', respectively, and describe each trend based on its discourse, model, and key actors, approach to the food crisis, and key documents. After a discussion of class, political permeability, and tensions within the food movements, we suggest that the current food crisis offers opportunities for strategic alliances between Progressive and Radical trends within the food movement. We conclude that while the food crisis has brought a retrenchment of neoliberalization and weak calls for reform, the worldwide growth of food movements directly and indirectly challenge the legitimacy and hegemony of the corporate food regime. Regime change will require sustained pressure from a strong global food movement, built on durable alliances between Progressive and Radical trends.
Urban agriculture offers an alternative land use for integrating multiple functions in densely populated areas. While urban agriculture has historically been an important element of cities in many developing countries, recent concerns about economic and food security have resulted in a growing movement to produce food in cities of developed countries including the United States. In these regions, urban agriculture offers a new frontier for land use planners and landscape designers to become involved in the development and transformation of cities to support community farms, allotment gardens, rooftop gardening, edible landscaping, urban forests, and other productive features of the urban environment. Despite the growing interest in urban agriculture, urban planners and landscape designers are often ill-equipped to integrate food-systems thinking into future plans for cities. The challenge (and opportunity) is to design urban agriculture spaces to be multifunctional, matching the specific needs and preferences of local residents, while also protecting the environment. This paper provides a review of the literature on urban agriculture as it applies to land use planning in the United States. The background includes a brief historical perspective of urban agriculture around the world, as well as more recent examples in the United States. Land use applications are considered for multiple scales, from efforts that consider an entire city, to those that impact a single building or garden. Barriers and constraints to urban agriculture are discussed, followed by research opportunities and methodological approaches that might be used to address them. This work has implications for urban planners, landscape designers, and extension agents, as opportunities to integrate urban agriculture into the fabric of our cities expand.
Organic farming is widely perceived as being more environmentally friendly than conventional farming. As a form of sustainable agriculture, it receives substantial support from policy for its contribution to environmental protection as well as the provision of amenities such as biodiversity and cultural landscapes. Consumers are attracted to organic foods as they are produced without synthetic chemicals and comply with higher animal welfare standards. Although organic farming certainly has the potential to fulfil these expectations, studies have shown that some certified organic farms do not. Their practices comply with the regulations, but not with the principles of organic farming. This trend has been called `conventionalisation' of organic farming. In this paper we review the studies that discuss the conventionalisation of organic farming, focusing on the farm level and on evidence from Europe. We argue that to strengthen organic farming's transformative potential, the debate must move beyond its focus on the bifurcation between artisanal and conventionalised organic farms, so as to capture the full range of empirical heterogeneity. Our core argument is that to adequately understand the dynamics within organic farming and their potential impact on the ability of organic farming to fulfil the expectations of consumers and policy-makers, it is not sufficient to focus on structural changes. Instead, we need to assess whether or not the observed changes comply with the principles and values that are the fundament of organic farming.
The impacts of agricultural land use are far-reaching and extend to areas outside production. This paper provides an overview of the ecological status of agricultural systems across the European Union in the light of recent policy changes. It builds on the previous review of 2001 devoted to the impacts of agricultural intensification in Western Europe. The focus countries are the UK, The Netherlands, Boreal and Baltic countries, Portugal, Hungary and Romania, representing a geographical spread across Europe, but additional reference is made to other countries. Despite many adjustments to agricultural policy, intensification of production in some regions and concurrent abandonment in others remain the major threat to the ecology of agro-ecosystems impairing the state of soil, water and air and reducing biological diversity in agricultural landscapes. The impacts also extend to surrounding terrestrial and aquatic systems through water and aerial contamination and development of agricultural infrastructures (e.g. dams and irrigation channels). Improvements are also documented regionally, such as successful support of farmland species, and improved condition of watercourses and landscapes. This was attributed to agricultural policy targeted at the environment, improved environmental legislation, and new market opportunities. Research into ecosystem services associated with agriculture may provide further pressure to develop policy that is targeted at their continuous provisioning, fostering motivation of land managers to continue to protect and enhance them.
- This paper describes the process of inducting theory using case studies from specifying the research questions to reaching closure. Some features of the process, such as problem definition and construct validation, are similar to hypothesis-testing research. Others, such as within-case analysis and replication logic, are unique to the inductive, case-oriented process. Overall, the process described here is highly iterative and tightly linked to data. This research approach is especially appropriate in new topic areas. The resultant theory is often novel, testable, and empirically valid. Finally, framebreaking insights, the tests of good theory (e.g., parsimony, logical coherence), and convincing grounding in the evidence are the key criteria for evaluating this type of research.
Greater adoption and re®nement of low-external-input (LEI) farming systems have been proposed as ways to ameliorate economic, environmental and health problems associated with conventional farming systems. Organic soil amendments and crop diversi®cation are basic components of LEI systems. Weed scientists can improve the use of these practices for weed management by improving knowledge of four relevant ecological mechanisms. First, multispecies crop rotations, intercrops and cover crops may reduce opportunities for weed growth and regeneration through resource competition and niche disruption. Secondly, weed species appear to be more susceptible to phytotoxic eects of crop residues and other organic soil amendments than crop species, possibly because of dierences in seed mass. Thirdly, delayed patterns of N availability in LEI systems may favour large-seeded crops over small-seeded weeds. Finally, additions of organic materials can change the incidence and severity of soil-borne diseases aecting weeds and crops. Our research on LEI sweetcorn and potato production systems in central and northern Maine (USA) suggests that these mechanisms can reduce weed density and growth while maintaining crop yields. Low-external-input farming systems will advance most quickly through the application of interdisciplinary research focused on these and other ecological mechanisms.
This paper argues that the food crisis cannot solely be equated with abrupt food price increases or seen as merely market induced. The unprecedented price increases of the first half of 2008, and the extremely low prices that followed, are expressions of a far wider and far more persistent underlying crisis, which has been germinating for more than a decade. It is the complex outcome of several combined processes, including the industrialization of agriculture, the liberalization of food and agricultural markets and the rise of food empires. The interaction of these processes has created a global agrarian crisis that has provoked the multifaceted food crisis. Both these crises are being accelerated through their interactions with the wider economic and financial crisis.
The paper analyzes the relationship between factor inputs, land yields and labor productivity for farms of different size on the basis of FAO farm management data for 15 developing countries. For all but three countries a strong negative correlation is found between farm size on the one side, and factor inputs and yields per hectare on the other. The fitting of unconstrained production functions to the above data suggests that in only few cases the decline in yields for increasing farm size can be attributed to decreasing returns to scale. The higher yields observed in small farms are mainly to be ascribed to higher factor inputs and to a more intensive use of land. Therefore, where conspicuous labor surpluses exist, the superiority of small farming provides solid arguments in favor of land redistribution. Such an agrarian reform would determine higher output, higher labor absorption and a more equitable income distribution, thus contributing in a decisive manner to the alleviation of rural poverty. The paper also provides estimates of cross-sectional production functions for the 15 countries analyzed. Empirical relations are found between the output elasticities of land, labor and intermediate inputs and physical indicators of their scarcity. The paper concludes by proposing a simple method for deriving a long-term production function for agriculture.
Next week, more than 200 science journals throughout the world will simultaneously publish papers on global poverty and human development--a collaborative effort to increase awareness, interest, and research about these important issues of our time. Some 800 million people still experience chronic and transitory hunger each year. Over the next 50 years, we face the daunting job of feeding 3.5 billion additional people, most of whom will begin life in poverty. The battle to alleviate poverty and improve human health and productivity will require dynamic agricultural development.
The data for this study are from farm management surveys taken in the Indian state of Haryana during the agricultural years 1969I70-1971I72.2 For each of the three years, 162 holdings were selected through a multi- stage stratified random sampling procedure. However, no data were ob- tained from 22% of the selected holdings because of the unwillingness or inability of the farmers to keep the required records. Illiteracy was given as the major reason these observations were lost. The potentially pernicious effect of this non-random selection process, and a procedure which corrects for it, will be discussed below. In total, data is available on 376 holdings. Each observation is identified only by its district and village location, and it cannot be determined if any individual holding was repeatedly sampled over time. But, there are at least two observations on all but fifteen of the 94 villages represented in the total sample. In anticipation of later analysis which requires multiple observations
This paper presents a framework for quantifying and diagnosing constraints to sustainability of farming systems. For a dynamic, stochastic, purposeful system, sustainability is defined as its ability to continue into the future. It can be expressed as the probability of continuation within specified threshold boundaries through a specified future period. Long-term, stochastic simulation of a system model serves as a basis for quantifying sustainability. Hypothesized constraints to sustainability can be tested and ranked by sensitivity analysis. Issues that arise when applying the framework to a particular farm include selecting an appropriate time frame, making assumptions about the future behaviour of system inputs, specifying criteria for system failure, and identifying potential determinants of sustainability. A previously published simulation study of Texas rice farms illustrates elements of the proposed approach.
Fonctionnement et durabilité des microfermes urbaines, une observation participative sur le cas des fermes franciliennes
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Miraculous Abundance: One Quarter Acre, Two French Farmers, and Enough Food to Feed the World
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Une étude inductive combinant méthodes qualitatives et modélisation
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