Towards a New Information System for Farm Management: Changing the Accounting System for Better Environmental Reporting

The paper aims at confronting traditional (fiscal) reporting with the administrative requirements in modern farm management. It aims especially at formulating leading indicators for management and control with respect to environmental issues.Farm Management,

Explaining Environmental Management System Development: A Stakeholder Approach

Managerial changes are necessary for companies in the Dutch food industry and agribusiness to lessen the environmental impact of their activities. To identify the opportunities or limits of environmental management systems (EMSs), it is important to first understand what influence stakeholders have on EMS development. In an empirical research we found that developmental levels of internally oriented EMSs, which primarily aim at internal administrative procedures, are explained mainly by the frequency of contacts with governmental authorities. For this kind of EMSs, non-commercial stakeholder groups have a major influence on the corporate environmental policy. Externally oriented EMSs, which focus on joint efforts in supply chains, are influenced by commercial groups in the business network (like suppliers, clients and competitors). The development of externally oriented EMSs requires adjustments in the composition of and interaction with the stakeholder environment by governmental agencies as well as managers in the agri-food sector. Opening up towards the stakeholder environment, by (among others) an adjustment of the information system, integrated (supply-chain wide) auditing and licensing, can enhance cost-efficiency, transparency and sustainability.Environmental management, Stakeholders, Environmental policy, Information system, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Struggle for Leadership: the Competitiveness of the EU and US Food Industry

Globalization is an important issue in the food industry, although most food is still locally produced and consumed. Many small and medium enterprises characterize the industry. Results of WTO negotiations intensify the international competition, in which the EU and USA are the largest players. Countries like Brazil, India and China are gaining market share. This raises the following research questions: 1. How competitive are the EU and US food industry and their sub-sectors? 2. Which role plays innovation and legislation in the competitiveness of the industry? 3. How will the competitiveness develop under future globalization and trade liberalization? The goal of this study is to fill these knowledge gaps.Agribusiness, International Relations/Trade,

Administrative burdens and dairy industry competitiveness

The goal of this paper is to assess the effect of regulatory burdens in the European dairy industry on its competitiveness. A theoretical foundation is provided by transaction cost economics and total quality management insights. The effects of legislation on administrative requirements and competitiveness are supposed to be mediated by impacts on innovativeness, company strategy, food safety system availability, as well as the available information & communication capabilities. We will connect to previous research (Wijnands et al., 2007) and the findings therein. Four sub-questions are addressed: • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, innovation and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, food safety & quality system deployment and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, food labelling requirements and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, supply chain transparency and competitiveness? In addition to the theoretical framework presented earlier in Bremmers et al., 2008, this paper contains the first results of a survey in the European dairy industry. They are combined with the proceeds from a literature search. The results show that (Q1) especially product innovation is negatively impacted by administrative burdens. Food safety and quality systems (Q2) serve to provide a level playing field in Europe. They would be installed also if no legal requirements would enforce them, because clients ask for it, so that administrative burdens could easily be attributed to business strategy rather than legal obligations. To reduce administrative burdens, we advice to integrate food safety and quality requirements is necessary. It would reduce monitoring and reporting costs, both for private as well as public parties. Food labeling (Q3) (a ‘made in Europe’ origin marking) could work contraproductive with respect to the competitive position of dairy firms and will have an increase of administrative burdens as a net-effect. And last but not least (Q4), increased chain transparency (mentioning the name of intermediary producers on the end-product package) will accelerate administrative burdens, but will only be beneficial for SMEs with a differentiated product. Commodity-producers in the dairy industry which only follow a cost strategy will gradually merge and/or disappear.dairy industry, competitiveness, administrative burdens, food safety, labelling, Livestock Production/Industries,

Feeling Safe in the Dark : Examining the Effect of Entrapment, Lighting Levels, and Gender on Feelings of Safety and Lighting Policy Acceptability

This research examined to what extent physical factors, notably lighting and entrapment (blocked escape), and individual factors, notably gender, affect feelings of safety and the acceptability of reduced lighting levels. The authors reasoned that acceptability of reduced street lighting depends on perceived safety, which in turn depends on entrapment, lighting, and gender. Virtual representations of a residential street were used, systematically manipulating entrapment and lighting levels. As expected, people felt less safe in lower lighting and higher entrapment settings, and these settings were evaluated as less acceptable. Although women perceived a situation as less safe compared with men, the authors found no gender differences in acceptability, which extends previous research. Importantly, as hypothesized, perceived safety mediated the effect of lighting on acceptability levels, suggesting that people can accept lower lighting levels when social safety is not threatened

Carbon balance of a restored and cutover raised bog: implications for restoration and comparison to global trends

The net ecosystem exchange (NEE) and methane (CH4) flux were measured by chamber measurements for five distinct ecotypes (areas with unique eco-hydrological characteristics) at Abbeyleix Bog in the Irish midlands over a 2-year period. The ecotypes ranged from those with high-quality peat-forming vegetation to communities indicative of degraded, drained conditions. Three of these ecotypes were located in an area where peat was extracted by hand and then abandoned and left to revegetate naturally at least 50 years prior to the start of the study. Two of the ecotypes were located on an adjacent raised bog, which although never mined for peat, was impacted by shallow drainage and then restored (by drain blocking) 6 years prior to the start of the study. Other major aspects of the carbon (C) balance, including dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), and open-water CO2 evasion, were quantified for a catchment area at the study site over the same 2-year period. The ecotype average annual ecotype C balance ranged from a net C sink of -58±60&thinsp;g&thinsp;C&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1, comparable to studies of intact peatlands, to a substantial C source of +205±80&thinsp;g&thinsp;C m−2&thinsp;yr−1, with NEE being the most variable component of the C balance among the five ecotypes. Ecotype annual CH4 flux ranged from 2.7±1.4&thinsp;g&thinsp;C-CH4&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1 to 14.2±4.8&thinsp;g&thinsp;C-CH4&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1. Average annual aquatic C losses were 14.4&thinsp;g&thinsp;C&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1 with DOC, DIC, and CO2 evasion of 10.4&thinsp;g&thinsp;C&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1, 1.3&thinsp;g&thinsp;C&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1, and 2.7&thinsp;g&thinsp;C&thinsp;m−2&thinsp;yr−1, respectively. A statistically significant negative correlation was found between the mean annual water table (MAWT) and the plot-scale NEE but not the global warming potential (GWP). However, a significant negative correlation was observed between the plot-scale percentage of Sphagnum moss cover and the GWP, highlighting the importance of regenerating this keystone genus as a climate change mitigation strategy in peatland restoration. The data from this study were then compared to the rapidly growing number of peatland C balance studies across boreal and temperate regions. The trend in NEE and CH4 flux with respect to MAWT was compared for the five ecotypes in this study and literature data from degraded/restored/recovering peatlands, intact peatlands, and bare peat sites.</p

Chemical Control over T-Cell Activation in Vivo Using Deprotection of trans-Cyclooctene-Modified Epitopes

Tumorimmunolog

Towards an Improved Environmental Reporting Structure for Companies in Food and Agribusiness Chains

The present paper focuses on the perceived quality of information exchange between government and business (G2B) in the field of environmental reporting in the Dutch agri-food industry. It seems most important for environmental performance enhancement (a concept that includes the quality of information given to stakeholders in our view) that companies are entangled in a network of intermediary institutions (branch organizations, covenants, existence of chain leaders etc.). It seems that that these mediating institutions are very instrumental in `translating&apos; the governmental `message&apos; to the companies. The companies choose the (related to the development of internal care) improvement of electronic reporting as the most promising innovation for the G2B communication. This shows that the companies still have a long way to go towards chain oriented care systems

An Integrated Analysis of Food Information to Consumers: Problems, Pitfalls, Policies and Progress

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion on the positive and negative aspects of food information requirements, especially in the light of the acceptance of a new food information regulation (EU) 1169/2011. The methods which are used are legal and literature studies, case studies as well as the provision of supplementary data on the effects of food information requirements on consumer choices, costs and benefits. The field of food information is complex, since it includes legal, socio-psychological as well as economic aspects. The paper describes the major recent changes in food information law and the barriers to competitiveness of the European food industry as a consequence of connected problems and pitfalls. It suggests technical and legal solutions for improvement. The paper especially focuses on the major barriers to innovation: the competition on the package of legal and commercial information, the labelling of novel foodstuffs, (i.e., nanotechnology and gmo), and the authorisation of health claims. It advices to overhaul food information law: to integrate, simplify and to improve its logic

Towards a New Information System for Farm Management: Changing the Accounting System for Better Environmental Reporting

The paper aims at confronting traditional (fiscal) reporting with the administrative requirements in modern farm management. It aims especially at formulating leading indicators for management and control with respect to environmental issues