Categorizing the sustainability of vegetable production in Chile : a farming typology approach

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MSustainable practices are seen as one of the solutions to redress the negative impact of agriculture's growing intensification. Despite efforts by many governments, the adoption rate of sustainable practices amongst farmers is still low. One of the causes is policymakers' insufficient knowledge of farming-system diversity. In order to account for such diversity, this paper proposes classifying farming systems, including new elements such as the sustainability level of agricultural practices and market channel traits, in combination with socio-economic and farm characteristics. We apply a farming typology approach, using vegetable production in Chile as our case study. We developed the typology using multivariate analysis techniques including principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical clustering (CA). We collected data using surveys (n = 352) in the central region of Chile. The results reveal five farming-system types: (1) Large dual farming, (2) ecological farming, (3) traditional farming, (4) conventional small-scale farming, and (5) conventional medium-scale farming. The five farming system types provide insights on the different agricultural practices used and their different starting points in terms of their transition towards more sustainable agriculture practices. We also propose possible policies based on these farming-system types that can be useful for policymakers to promote sustainable practices

Options to support sustainable trajectories in a rural landscape : drivers, rural processes, and local perceptions in a colombian coffee-growing region

Altres ajuts: Ean UnivesityUnidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MTrajectories of many rural landscapes in Latin America remain unsustainable. Options to support sustainable rural trajectories should be comprehensive and rooted in the interests of rural actors. We selected a municipality in a coffee-growing region in Colombia with an increasing urban- rural nexus to describe interactions between rural processes and their drivers while identifying and contextualising the perceptions of local actors on major constraints and opportunities for more inclusive and sustainable rural trajectories. We described these interactions by combining secondary data on main drivers, agricultural census data, and interviews with different local actors. Changes in population structure, volatility in coffee prices, in-/out-migration, deagrarianisation, and rurbanisation, among others, are reconfiguring the rural trajectories of the study area. Despite not being a major coffee region, farmers in the study area have developed different strategies, including intensification, diversification, replacement or abandonment of coffee production, and commercialisation. The perceptions of local actors and the multiplicity of agricultural households, food/land use systems, rural processes, and drivers described in this study suggest that more sustainable rural transitions need to be supported by inclusive, integrated, and transformative landscape planning approaches that align with local priorities. However, this transformation needs to be accompanied by changes at a systemic level that address the fundamental bottlenecks to real sustainability

Farmer-buyer relationships and sustainable agricultural practices in the food supply chain : The case of vegetables in Chile

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MThis study investigates how the relationship between farmers and buyers affects the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices (SAPs) in the vegetable sector in Chile. Specifically, we focus on the dyadic relationships between farmers and different types of buyers, including besides lead firms, intermediaries, and wholesalers, which have received little attention in the scientific literature. Our analysis focuses on formal and informal contracts as governance forms between farmers and buyers, and explores the correlation between contract provisions (e.g., quality, quantity, and the provision of services), relationship attributes (i.e., satisfaction, trust, and opportunism) and adoption of SAPs. We gathered survey data from 352 vegetable farmers in Chile and employed analysis of variance and logit modeling for our analysis. Our findings indicate that small-scale farmers primarily engage with intermediaries using informal contracts, while medium-scale farmers trade with wholesalers through spot markets, andlarge-scale farmers with lead firms using formal contracts. We also found that farmers who traded through informal contracts, mainly with intermediaries, reported greater satisfaction in the farmer-buyer relationship than farmers trading through formal contracts. However, farmers engaging in informal contracts were less likely to adopt SAPs than farmers trading through formal contracts. Our results suggest that the governance form (contracts or spot market) adopted for the relationship between farmers and buyers influences the adoption of SAPs, while the impact of relationship attributes on SAP adoption is less clear. A deeper understanding of buyers and their relationship with farmers is essential to enhance policies encouraging SAP adoption in regional and local fresh food supply chains. [EconLit Citations: Q13, Q15, Q56]

Public food procurement from family farming : a food system and social network perspective

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MAjuts: This research forms part of HortEco project (Horticultural food systems based on ecologically intensive production and socio-economically sustainable value chains in the transition economies Chile and Uruguay), funded by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research-Science for Global Development (NWO-WOTRO) contract no. W08.250.304. Special thanks go to all the interviewees of the study.There is promising evidence that public food procurement from family farming (PFPF) can serve as a powerful policy instrument in transitions towards more sustainable food systems. Despite the evidence around PFPF, there is lack of systemic and actor-oriented approaches analysing the relational and interactional dynamics among the multiple and diverse sets of actors in PFPF programs. In this paper, we address this gap by presenting an integrative framework that brings together food systems research, innovation studies and social network analysis, to assess the role of actor networks in PFPF. To illustrate the usefulness of the framework, we present the case of public procurement from family farming in Uruguay. We show how the framework has potential to: highlight the composition and diversity of networks of actors in PFPF; unravel individual and network barriers faced by actors in food systems; and, identify how interactions and (intermediary and brokerage) roles of network actors stimulate innovation or blockthe changes that are needed for PFPF to catalyse the transition towards sustainable food systems. © 2022 The AuthorsThere is promising evidence that public food procurement from family farming (PFPF) can serve as a powerful policy instrument in transitions towards more sustainable food systems. Despite the evidence around PFPF, there is lack of systemic and actor-oriented approaches analysing the relational and interactional dynamics among the multiple and diverse sets of actors in PFPF programs. In this paper, we address this gap by presenting an integrative framework that brings together food systems research, innovation studies and social network analysis, to assess the role of actor networks in PFPF. To illustrate the usefulness of the framework, we present the case of public procurement from family farming in Uruguay. We show how the framework has potential to: highlight the composition and diversity of networks of actors in PFPF; unravel individual and network barriers faced by actors in food systems; and, identify how interactions and (intermediary and brokerage) roles of network actors stimulate innovation or blockthe changes that are needed for PFPF to catalyse the transition towards sustainable food systems

Sustainability transition pathways through ecological intensification: an assessment of vegetable food systems in Chile

Ecological intensification has been proposed as a promising lever for a transition towards more sustainable food systems. Various food systems exist that are based on ecological intensification and may have potential for a sustainability transition. Little is known, however, about their diversity and about how they perform against dominant systems in terms of the multiple societal goals. The aim of this study is to contribute to knowledge about sustainability transitions in food systems through an empirical analysis of vegetable food systems in Chile. The study (i) characterizes the diversity of vegetable food systems in Chile (ii) evaluates the food systems in terms of multiple societal goals, and (iii) assesses their potential for supporting sustainability transition pathways from the perspective of ecological intensification. Results indicate that among the five vegetable food system types, the agroecological and the small organic have potential to foster a sustainability transition. Nevertheless, these systems are small and localized, and scaling them requires actions to remove barriers in the relations with the agri-food regime and among themselves. The broader relevance of this analysis is that there needs to be awareness in research on transitions about the diversity of food systems present in countries and how they interact.</p

The roles and dynamics of transition intermediaries in enabling sustainable public food procurement : insights from Spain

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MAltres ajuts: Fundación Daniel y Nina Carasso: Grant Number 2021 Daniel Carasso FellowshipSustainable Public Food Procurement (SPFP) is gaining recognition for its potential to improve the sustainability of food systems and promote healthier diets. However, SPFP faces various challenges, including coordination issues, actor dynamics, infrastructure limitations, unsustainable habits, and institutional resistance, among others. Drawing upon insights from the Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) on socio-technical transitions and the X-curve model on transition dynamics, this study investigates the role of transition intermediaries in facilitating SPFP-induced transformations in food systems. Focusing on four case studies in Spain, we identify common barriers encountered in SPFP and analyse how distinct types of transition intermediaries contribute individually and collectively to address these challenges. Additionally, we explore how intermediary networks evolve throughout different phases of the transition process. Our findings reveal that SPFP barriers are systemic and interconnected, emphasizing the necessity of collective intermediation to overcome these obstacles. Furthermore, our results reveal how collective intermediation is orchestrated by pivotal intermediaries who mobilize diverse transition intermediaries, shaping multiple transition pathways. These intermediaries operate at both food system regimes and niches, challenging the conventional notion that transformative change can only originate from niche efforts. Lastly, we highlight the dynamic and flexible nature of intermediation in SPFP transitions, underscoring the importance of adaptability in strategies as these transitions evolve over time. Practical implications include the need for context-specific, adaptive approaches and strategies that leverage intermediary diversity. This research offers insights for policymakers, practitioners, and scholars into SPFP and broader transitions towards food systems transformation, fostering a more comprehensive understanding of these transition processes

Can Precision Agriculture Increase the Profitability and Sustainability of the Production of Potatoes and Olives?

For farmers, the application of Precision Agriculture (PA) technology is expected to lead to an increase in profitability. For society, PA is expected to lead to increased sustainability. The objective of this paper is to determine for a number of common PA practices how much they increase profitability and sustainability. For potato production in The Netherlands, we considered variable rate application (VRA) of soil herbicide, fungicide for late blight control, sidedress N, and haulm killing herbicide. For olive production in Greece, we considered spatially variable application of P and K fertilizer and lime. For each of the above scenarios, we quantified the value of outputs, the cost of inputs, and the environmental costs. This allowed us to calculate profit as well as social profit, where the latter is defined as revenues minus conventional costs minus the external costs of production. Social profit can be considered an overall measure of sustainability. Our calculations show that PA in potatoes increases profit by 21% (420 € ha−1) and social profit by 26%. In olives, VRA application of P, K, and lime leads to a strong reduction in nutrient use and although this leads to an increase in sustainability, it has only a small effect on profit and on social profit. In conclusion, PA increases sustainability in olives and both profitability and sustainability in potatoes

Can precision agriculture increase the profitability and sustainability of the production of potatoes and olives?

For farmers, the application of Precision Agriculture (PA) technology is expected to lead to an increase in profitability. For society, PA is expected to lead to increased sustainability.The objective of this paper is to determine for a number of common PA practices how much they increase profitability and sustainability. For potato production in The Netherlands, we considered variable rate application (VRA) of soil herbicide, fungicide for late blight control, sidedress N, and haulm killing herbicide. For olive production in Greece, we considered spatially variable application of P and K fertilizer and lime. For each of the above scenarios, we quantified the value of outputs, the cost of inputs, and the environmental costs. This allowed us to calculate profit as well as social profit, where the latter is defined as revenues minus conventional costs minus the external costs of production. Social profit can be considered an overall measure of sustainability. Our calculations show that PA in potatoes increases profit by 21% (420 € ha-1) and social profit by 26%. In olives, VRA application of P, K, and lime leads to a strong reduction in nutrient use and although this leads to an increase in sustainability, it has only a small effect on profit and on social profit. In conclusion, PA increases sustainability in olives and both profitability and sustainability in potatoes

Applicability of economic instruments for protecting ecosystem services from cultural agrarian landscapes in Doñana, SW Spain

Abandonment and conversion of cultural agrarian landscapes are major drivers behind the loss of ecosystem services in Europe. One incentive for land-use conversion is the higher (private) economic return from industrial mono-functional crops relative to traditional multi-functional ones. However, conversion of cultural agrarian landscapes can involve high direct and indirect costs to society through the loss of ecosystem services. Using as a case study the traditional vineyards surrounding the Doñana National Park, South-West Spain, this research has three objectives: i) to measure soil erosion impacts from the conversion of traditional vineyards in biophysical and economic terms, (ii) to identify drivers of change behind the loss of traditional vineyards, and iii) to assess the applicability of economic instruments to protect traditional vineyards. Our results suggest that uprooting of traditional vineyards is an important driver behind the siltation of the marsh in the Doñana National Park, which in turns involve socio-environmental costs in terms of loss of ecosystem services and cultural values. Subsidy reform to reward management practices that sustain ecosystem services and eco-labelling of vine-derived products are pointed at as promising economic instruments to slow down or reverse abandonment or conversion of traditional vineyards.</p