Investments in Energy-Saving Systems in Dutch Horticultural Farms

In the Netherlands the greenhouse sector is a major user of energy. It accounts for 7% of the total amount of energy used in the Netherlands and for 79% of the total amount of energy used in agriculture. In order to sustain this sector on the long term, it is important that its use of energy is lowered. One way of reducing energy use for horticultural producers is investing in energy-saving systems. The purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the investment behavior of farm operators. A two-stage econometric model has been applied to analyze the factors influencing the decision of farmers to invest and the level of investments.investments, two-stage model, management theory, option value, adjustment costs, Farm Management,

Food waste reduction in supply chains through innovations: a review

Purpose – Agri-food supply chains are facing a number of challenges, which cause inefficiencies resulting in the waste of natural and economic resources, and in negative environmental and social impacts. Food waste (FW) is a result of such inefficiencies and supply chain actors search for economically viable innovations to prevent and reduce it. This study aims to analyse the drivers and the barriers that affect the decision of supply chain operators to adopt innovations (technological – TI, organisational – OI and marketing – MI) to reduce FW. Design/methodology/approach – The analysis was carried out using a four-step approach that included: a literature review to identify factors affecting the decision to adopt innovations; analysis of FW drivers and reduction possibilities along agri-food supply chains through innovations; mapping the results of Steps 1 and 2 and deriving conclusions regarding the factors affecting the adoption of innovations to reduce and prevent FWFindings Results show that different types of innovations have a high potential in reducing and preventing FW along the supply chain; however, they still must be economically feasible to be adopted by decision makers in the food supply chain. TI, OI and MI are often interrelated and can trigger each other. When it comes to a combination of different types of innovation to reduce and prevent FW, a good example of combining TI, OI and MI may be observed in the retail sector in Europe. Here, innovative smartphone apps (TI) to promote the sale of products nearing their expiration dates (OI in terms of organising the sales differently and MI in terms of marketing it differently) were developed and adopted via different retailing channels, leading to the creation of a new business model. Practical implications This study analyses the drivers of FW generation together with the factors affecting the decision to adopt innovations to reduce it and provides solutions to supply chain operators to prevent and reduce FW through different types of innovations. Originality/value Literature has not systematically addressed innovations aiming at the reduction of FW yet. This paper provides a comprehensive literature review of the determinants of innovation adoption and offers a novel view on the problem of FW reduction by means of innovation, by linking factors affecting the decision to innovate with FW drivers. Supply chain, Food waste, Technological innovation, Organisational innovation, Marketing innovationpublishedVersio

Food waste drivers in Europe, from identification to possible interventions

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The use of systems models to identify food waste drivers

In developed countries, the largest share of food waste is produced at household level. Most studies on consumers’ food waste use models that identify covariates as significant when in fact they may not be, particularly where these models use many variables. Here, relying on EU-level Eurobarometer data from 2013, we use alternative analytical methods that avoid these problems (Bayesian Networks) to identify the impact of household characteristics and other variables on self-assessed food waste. Our analysis confirms that the country, the age of the respondent, the status (student/non-student), and a belief that the family wastes too much are related to the level of self-assessed food waste. But we found no evidence that waste behaviours differ between people living in urban and rural areas, and little support of a difference between genders. Households from lower-income EU countries (e.g. Portugal, Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Latvia), as well as students and young adults tend to report higher levels of food waste. Hence, the adoption of an EU strategy based on the concept of subsidiarity, and of country-level policy measures targeting different age groups is suggested. Furthermore, our analysis shows that policy makers need to be wary of relying on analysis based on large datasets that do not control for false-positives, particularly when sample sizes are small

Behavioural economics : assessing food waste innovations diffusion through ABM models - insights from Italy and the Netherlands

Food Waste is problem related to all the actors of the Food Value Chain: producers, retailers and consumers. In this context, retail sector plays an important role in tackling the food waste problem. Food waste at the retail level can be reduced through the adoption of food waste reducing innovations. The authors investigate the most relevant factors that promote the adoption of those innovations among retailers

Blind Spot for Pioneering Farmers? Reflections on Dutch Dairy Sustainability Transition

This study explores the questions of how to govern the transition towards sustainable farming in a responsible and inclusive manner by exploring the Dutch dairy case. Sustainability transition is about fundamental social–technical changes to address the grand challenges that society faces today. It includes breaking down and phasing out unsustainable practice as well as scaling up sustainable alternatives. Transition literature argues that governments should implement a mix of transition tasks to give direction, support the new and destabilase the unsustainable. In addition, market-based instruments (MBIs) and policy interventions rewarding sustainable farming stimulate transition. This study illustrates that strong and prolonged pressure of not meeting international environmental agreements triggered the implementation of stronger policy interventions that destabilize the unsustainable. However, less policy attention seems to be given to supporting the “new”, such as pioneering alternative farmers who develop sustainable alternatives to mainstream farming. To achieve more responsible and inclusive sustainability transitions, it is important to implement tailor-made policies that support pioneering alternative farmers who are already taking steps in developing sustainable farms which, in addition to food, provide ecological and other benefits to community