"Organic District": identification methodology and agricultural policy objectives

Italy, unlike other countries, has included the territorial dimension in the recent interventions and regulations of organic agriculture, introducing explicitly the concept of “organic district”. It is defined as a local productive system with a high agricultural vocation where organic production and processing practices are predominant. The main object of this new subject is to promote the diffusion of organic agriculture focusing on the productive and environmental territorial characteristic. In this poster, after a general definition of the organic districts, as they are introduced in the Italian regulations, a method for their identification in a region is proposed. In the final part, some considerations about the role of the organic district within the general framework of agro-environmental policies are developed.organic district, agro-environmental policies, organic agriculture, Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy,

THE “STOCK AND FLOW” APPROACH TO THE GOVERNANCE OF SELF-SUSTAINABLE RURAL SYSTEMS

The aim of this study is to present the “stock and flow” model - based on the Georgescu-Roegen bio economic paradigm and on the ecological economics principles - in a regional key and to discuss the implications of such an approach on the local system governance in order to guarantee a long term economic, social and environmental self-sustainability. These theories give a dynamic characteristic to this approach, by interconnecting the production process (supply) with the responsibilities of the welfare generation (demand). Starting from this theoretical model, it is possible to look at the integrating modes of production and consumption processes at a local scale that consent to guide a rural system towards conditions of sustainability. This perspective of rural system governance imposes the relocation of the control of resources (stock) to a local level and, therefore, a deep change in the idea of the politic procedures.Ecological economics, Stock and flow, Ecological footprint, Agribusiness, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Environmental Economics and Policy, Public Economics,

Back to the Future? Understanding Change in Food Habits of Farmers' Market Customers

farmers' markets, food habits, Italy, Agribusiness, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy,

Farmers’ Markets, Producer and Consumer Behaviour: Analysis of Interactions with the Metrics of Sustainability

This paper provides insights of the Italian farmers' markets (FMs) experience. These short food chains can be conceptualized among the so-called "alternative agro-food networks", which reject the traditional food chains features - productivity, products standardization and industrial organization - to focus on other issues such as quality, local production and "naturality" of agro-food production.The main objective of the paper is to evaluate the sustainability of FMs, through the analysis of the demand and the supply side. The analysis is based on a survey administered in 13 Italian FMs, involving 158 farmers and 458 consumers. Data are used to evaluate consumers' demand for sustainability within FMs and sustainability indicators at the farm level. These indicators support a classification of the farms, aimed at analysing their motivation to participate in the markets and the extent to which they are able to meet consumers' demand.Results show that FMs might be able to favour the spreading of a more sustainable economy. However, farms should improve their business strategies in order to meet consumers' demand for sustainability. In this respect, agricultural policies at the European and local level can play a role, in order to enhance sustainable practices within the farms

The role of network creation and actor engagement in the adoption and diffusion of sustainable innovations in food value chains

The paper aims at understanding how innovations, that are promoted and facilitated by private actors, can be fostered by network creation and actor engagement in the agri-food value chains. More specifically, we investigated innovative governance mechanisms related to the introduction of new sustainable practices in food value chains and tried to evaluate the environmental, economic and social effects of these new practices. We use information derived from a case study based on an ongoing project in the North of Italy, where in 2013 a multinational corporation operating in the pasta and bakery sector has initiated an agreement with other three agri-food companies in order to facilitate sustainable sourcing from a group of farmers