A Survey of Fertility Program Responses of Kentucky Dark Fire-Cured Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) Yield and Quality for Cigars Manufacture in the Benevento Province (Southern Italy)

Summary Nitrogen (N) fertilization of Kentucky dark fire-cured tobacco can be used to increase weight of high quality cured leaves for cigar manufacture. We conducted field experiments at 11 different locations in the province of Benevento (Southern Italy) where the following four N treatments were compared: 1) unfertilized control (N0); 2) a site-specific N rate, calculated by a N fertilization plan (NFP) based on physical and chemical soil characteristics, which ranged between 113 and 145 kg N ha−1; 3) 200 kg N ha−1 (rate commonly used by farmers, N200); 4) 100 kg N ha−1 (half of the rate commonly used by farmers, N100). Yields of the following five commercial quality categories of cured leaves were measured: i) wrappers, ii) heavy filler (Fh), iii) light filler (Fl), iv) heavy shredded (Sh) and v) light shredded (Sl). Fh cured products of B1, B4, B6 and B10 locations were analyzed for: total alkaloids, reducing sugars, chlorides, total N (Kjeldahl), ammonium-N (NH4-N), nitrate-N (NO3-N), and tobacco specific nitrosamines (TSNA). Color parameters: Lightness (L), Chroma (C) and Hue (H) were determined on five cured leaves / plot of both Fh and Fl types at B1, B2, B3, B6, B8 and B10. A blind evaluation of cured leaves collected across locations was conducted by a panel test who considered the main basic characteristics of cured leaves (stalk position, leaf structure, texture, etc.). The total yield of cured products increased with fertilization across locations, up to NFP treatment, without any statistically significant increase at N200 treatment. Fertilization increased yield of wrappers at B1 up to NFP treatment (113.5 kg N ha−1), without any significant increase at N200 treatment. Yield of light filler product was positively influenced by fertilization up to the maximum dose only in 5 out of 11 locations. Total alkaloids significantly increased with increasing fertilization up to 100 kg N ha−1 without any significant changes at higher N rate. Fertilization hardly increased L and C of Fl leaves, which appeared light-brown but brilliant-colored. There was a reduction in the H value of Fh products which indicated a darker tone of those leaves with respect to Fl. Increasing N rate affected production costs more than revenues. According to agronomic results, in most locations the best results in terms of net revenues were obtained by NFP treatment. Considering that N rates above the NFP would disqualify growers from the economic aids provided by EU agrienvironmental measures, by economic point of view the NFP treatment would be recommended over the current grower standard (N200)

The role of F&V Producer Organizations in implementing environmental and social sustainability strategies

European Union actively supports the fruit and vegetable (F&V) sector and pursues important goals through Producer Organizations (POs), including a more sustainable production. Referring to sustainability, POs can implement environmental measures and actions that are respectful of the environment through their Operational Programmes (OPs). The present work aimed at verifying the role Italian POs play in implementing sustainability actions in the F&V sector by carrying out a field survey focused on the approach of POs to sustainability issues and actions undertaken in the OPs. Collected data were processed using exploratory data and multivariate analysis techniques. In particular, by crossing the way POs perceive environmental and social sustainability, on one side, and actions they undertake, on the other side, they have been classified in relation to their ability/will to translate views in sustainability actions. Results show that POs’ strategies often include interlinked economic and environmental objectives. Moreover, while product quality improvement often goes with the promotion of environmentally friendly techniques, other environmental objectives, e.g. water and energy saving are not considered priorities and when such actions are implemented, they respond to a reduction costs rather than to a sustainability strateg

Corporate social responsibility in agri-food firms: the relationship between CSR actions and firm’s performance

Over the last years, many firms introduced environmental and social sustainability in their business mission and adopted Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as the operative tool of a new business model. Several studies focused on the relationship between CSR and firm’s performance or more generally value creation in the supply chain. The present work aims at giving further insight into this relationship with reference to the agri-food sector. It wants to illustrate a conceptual framework of this relationship and represents a preliminary empirical work aimed at understanding and testing some main link. Through multivariate techniques data on CSR actions were analysed to identify the firm CSR strategies and using the correlation analysis and non-parametric tests the link between CSR strategies and firm performance was tested, both directly and through innovation variables. Results highlighted that firms with lower CSR orientation have also lower profitability levels and showed the association between the adoption of specific innovations and some CSR patterns, while the connection innovation-performance was not statistically proved. The small size of the sample does not allow a conclusive analysis. Nevertheless, results provide useful insights to better specify the conceptual model CSR-performance

Marketing strategies for organic foods: The role of distribution and communication

Interest in organically produced food is increasing throughout the world in response to concerns regarding the environment, conventional agricultural practices, food safety and human health. However many uncertainties related to the factors which influence consumer behaviour towards organic products persist. A survey on 300 consumers of organic products, living in the Campania region of Italy, demonstrates that respondents are unsatisfied of the current level of available information and consider the lack of information as a major deterrent in buying organic products. The paper suggests some European Union communication tools as response to the current information asymmetry. A further consideration regards the development of short supply chain alternatives, through which the consumer has the opportunity to receive more information on particular aspects of organic production and, consequently, has a better understanding of the quality of the products. The findings of this paper may contribute to derive indications for better strategic and tactical marketing decisions of organic producers

A Survey of Fertility Program Responses of Kentucky Dark Fire-Cured Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) Yield and Quality for Cigars Manufacture in the Benevento Province (Southern Italy)

Nitrogen (N) fertilization of Kentucky dark fire-cured tobacco can be used to increase weight of high quality cured leaves for cigar manufacture. We conducted field experiments at 11 different locations in the province of Benevento (Southern Italy) where the following four N treatments were compared: 1) unfertilized control (N0); 2) a site-specific N rate, calculated by a N fertilization plan (NFP) based on physical and chemical soil characteristics, which ranged between 113 and 145 kg N ha−1; 3) 200 kg N ha−1 (rate commonly used by farmers, N200); 4) 100 kg N ha−1 (half of the rate commonly used by farmers, N100). Yields of the following five commercial quality categories of cured leaves were measured: i) wrappers, ii) heavy filler (Fh), iii) light filler (Fl), iv) heavy shredded (Sh) and v) light shredded (Sl). Fh cured products of B1, B4, B6 and B10 locations were analyzed for: total alkaloids, reducing sugars, chlorides, total N (Kjeldahl), ammonium-N (NH4-N), nitrate-N (NO3-N), and tobacco specific nitrosamines (TSNA). Color parameters: Lightness (L), Chroma (C) and Hue (H) were determined on five cured leaves / plot of both Fh and Fl types at B1, B2, B3, B6, B8 and B10. A blind evaluation of cured leaves collected across locations was conducted by a panel test who considered the main basic characteristics of cured leaves (stalk position, leaf structure, texture, etc.). The total yield of cured products increased with fertilization across locations, up to NFP treatment, without any statistically significant increase at N200 treatment. Fertilization increased yield of wrappers at B1 up to NFP treatment (113.5 kg N ha−1), without any significant increase at N200 treatment. Yield of light filler product was positively influenced by fertilization up to the maximum dose only in 5 out of 11 locations. Total alkaloids significantly increased with increasing fertilization up to 100 kg N ha−1 without any significant changes at higher N rate. Fertilization hardly increased L and C of Fl leaves, which appeared light-brown but brilliant-colored. There was a reduction in the H value of Fh products which indicated a darker tone of those leaves with respect to Fl. Increasing N rate affected production costs more than revenues. According to agronomic results, in most locations the best results in terms of net revenues were obtained by NFP treatment. Considering that N rates above the NFP would disqualify growers from the economic aids provided by EU agrienvironmental measures, by economic point of view the NFP treatment would be recommended over the current grower standard (N200)

Endogenous and Exogenous Determinants of Agricultural Productivity: What Is the Most Relevant for the Competitiveness of the Italian Agricultural Systems?

Several factors are deemed to influence farms’ economic performance and competitiveness: endogenous characteristics, such as farm structure and entrepreneur’s features, as well exogenous factors related to the infrastructure endowment, networks and immaterial factors. A deeper knowledge of the role each factor plays in different geographical areas can help to better address the rural policies and to improve their efficacy. In this respect, the present study aims at analyzing how factors that potentially affect competitiveness differ within Italian agriculture and the way those factors act on the economic performance of agriculture at provincial level. The analysis was carried out in two steps. First, in order to define the main characteristics of the Italian agricultural systems a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) has been carried out using data collected by the last Italian Agricultural Census, carried out in 2010, at provincial level and component scores have been used to characterize provincial agricultural systems. In a second step, PCA results were used as explanatory variables in regression models to evaluate their relationship with agricultural productivity and performance indicators at provincial level. The work highlighted two main results. First, agricultural differentiation factors identified in the PCA discriminate two main territorial agricultural models linked to different agricultural systems organization and development strategies. Secondly, the determinants of agricultural productivity and performance are mainly endogenous to the sector and only few context indicators seem to act as explanatory variable