Assessment of the economic sustainability of an organic olive oil farm in Puglia region (Italy) under the voluntary regional quality scheme (original) (raw)
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International Journal of Sustainable Development
Dependence of conventional agricultural systems on chemical fertilizers and pesticides makes agricultural systems less stable and important drift polluters influencing to the regional and global sustainability. This problem made human being think about the alternative systems: agricultural systems that mimic natural systems and are friendly to the environment; those have higher economical efficiency concerning production level and costs. The objective of the present study was sustainability assessment and comparison of organic and conventional system with special focus environmental and economical performance. The case study consisted of two organic and conventional olive producing farms in the South of Italy. The method used for sustainability assessment was Environmental Accounting Information System (EAIS) that integrates together environmental (soil organic matter, soil erosion, genetic and landscape biodiversity, EPRIP, etc) and economical indicators (gross margin). Data used f...
Book of Abstracts, 158th EAAE Seminar “Euro-Mediterranean Cooperation in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security: Policies, Sustainability, Marketing and Trade”; 08-09 September, 2016; Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (CIHEAM-MAICh), Chania (Crete), Greece. pp. 10-11, 2016
There is a huge potential for the development of agricultural sector in Mediterranean territories by focusing on the valorisation of typical and traditional products, which represent the cornerstone of the well-known Mediterranean diet. However, this potential remains largely unexploited due to many legal, organisational, communication and marketing constraints. Combining tradition, innovation and sustainability can help better communicating the unique attributes and characteristics of typical products to consumers. Actually, more and more attention is paid to the sustainability of typical agro-food products. However, while producers associate a particular importance to economic sustainability, more weight is associated by consumers to the environmental one. As for economic sustainability, it is mainly related to profitability for producers while accessible prices for consumers. This creates a trade-off between consumers and producers and policy should mediate in order to find a balance between these different sustainability understandings and aspirations of two important actors of the agro-food chain. This is a concrete challenge also for the government of Apulia region (south-eastern Italy). Developing a shared and sound approach for the definition, assessment and dissemination of environmental, economic, socio-cultural and nutrition-health sustainability in relation to the Apulian typical agro-food system can help addressing this challenge and also serve as a tool for the valorisation of regional typical products and as a driver for development and growth of the entire territory. In the framework of Agriculture & Quality programme 2013-2015 of Apulia region, a pilot project was performed to develop appropriate and measurable indicators to assess the sustainability of Apulian products adhering to the quality scheme “Quality Products of Apulia”. The paper aims to highlight the methodological approach adopted, the sustainability criteria identified and indicators selected to assess the economic sustainability of Apulian quality agro-food products. Economic sustainability can be defined as the capacity to effectively combine resources in order to generate sustainable economic growth for enhancing the quality of products and local services thus rural community livelihood. In particular, economic sustainability of a product or an agro-food supply chain is the ability to generate income and employment on an ongoing basis. Identified criteria of sustainability are related to income, employment, investment, and production factors profitability and productivity. According to these criteria, indicators easily measurable at the farm/company level were identified. These relate to products and services diversification, commercial riskiness index, localization index, investment and innovation propensity, labour and capital profitability, and output enhancement capacity. A scoring system was developed for each indicator referring to each product and supply chain; from 0 (unsustainable) to 10 (very sustainable) with 5 corresponding to sustainability benchmark or reference value. The sustainability benchmarks will be reviewed and updated over time based on monitoring of companies involved in the quality scheme. The challenge ahead is to see how these indicators referring to products or businesses can be used for assessing the sustainability of food supply chains in the different Mediterranean territories.
Meybeck A., Redfern S., Paoletti F. and Strassner C. (eds.); Proceedings of International Workshop “Assessing sustainable diets within the sustainability of food systems - Mediterranean diet, organic food: new challenges”; 15–16 September 2014, Rome. FAO, Rome. pp: 147-151, 2015
In the framework of the Agriculture & Quality programme of Apulia region (southeastern Italy), in addition to the issues of quality, CIHEAM-Bari started a pilot project to promote the sustainability of the products with a regional voluntary quality scheme. Therefore, the products that adhere to the quality scheme should not only comply with the quality requirements defined by the technical specifications but also with sustainability requirements. The pilot project is one of the activities started after the international seminar organized by CIHEAM in collaboration with FAO on "Sustainability of food systems in the Mediterranean Area" in Malta in September 2012. The aim is to apply the methodology proposed in Malta to a well-defined territorial context (i.e. Apulia region) by developing the most appropriate indicators to assess the sustainability of Apulian products adhering to the quality scheme. This preliminary communication on the ongoing pilot project presents the methodological approach adopted, the sustainability criteria and themes identified and some indicators selected to assess the economic, environmental, socio-cultural and nutritional-health sustainability of Apulian quality agro-food products.
Assessing the Sustainability of Typical Agro-Food Products: Insights from Apulia Region, Italy
New Medit, XV(1): 28-35, 2016
Typical agro-food products are the cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet. For an effective valorisation of these products it is important to combine tradition, innovation and sustainability. The paper aims to describe the methodological approach adopted and to list the sustainability criteria identified together with a preliminary set of indicators enabling to assess the environmental, economic, socio-cultural and nutritional-health sustainability of Apulian agro-food products. These activities were carried out in the frame of “Agriculture & Quality” programme (2012-2015) of Apulia Region, whose main objective was the qualification and enhancement of typical food products through the creation of the quality scheme “Quality Products of Apulia”. The methodological approach, developed thanks to focus groups, will be validated on representative agro-food supply chains of Apulia region in view of its upscaling to other Mediterranean territories.
CIHEAM Watch Letter n° 32 - April 2015, “Feeding Expo Milano with Mediterranean Perspectives”. pp: 40-44, 2015
CIHEAM-Bari in collaboration with different Italian institutions started in 2013 a pilot project to promote the sustainability of the agro-food products with a regional voluntary quality scheme in Apulia region (south-eastern Italy). The products that adhere to the quality scheme should comply with specific environmental, economic, socio-cultural and nutritional-health sustainability requirements. This paper presents the methodological approach adopted, the sustainability criteria and themes identified and some indicators selected to assess the sustainability of Apulian quality products.
New Medit
This work aims to assess, in a comparative way, the sustainability of organic and conventional olive growing systems in the Sfax region (Tunisia). This assessment will be undertaken based on I) a multidimensional perspective considering the three classical dimensions of sustainability-environmental, economic and socio-territorial-and II) on an experts' knowledge approach selecting the adequate criteria of sustainability to compare both systems. The Analytic Hierarchy Process methodology (AHP) was applied as the adequate framework to fulfil the study objectives based on a survey directed with a panel of 20 Experts. Results suggest the need to reinforce the economic performance of organic olive growing production system through political strategies focusing on I) the improvement of the productivity by the implementation of good practices II) the increase of the demand of organic products in the local market, essentially by the improvement of the consumer's purchase capacity and III) the adoption of a strategic plan to explore new markets.
Economic and Environmental Sustainability of Olive Production: A Case Study
Agronomy
This paper aims to achieve an economic feasibility and life cycle assessment of three different olive cultivation systems in the Mediterranean area through the joint use of economic and environmental indicators, in order to identify the key elements to optimize their economic performance and a lower environmental impact. Three different management systems of olive cultivation were analysed by distinguishing Treatment 1—Fully Irrigated, Treatment 2—Partially Irrigated, and Treatment 3—Non-Irrigated, which were conducted through different levels of irrigation strategies. The three scenarios were examined using a Life Cycle Assessment methodology to assess the environmental impacts, and the impact in terms of water footprint was investigated using the Water Scarcity Index approach. The economic sustainability evaluation of olive cultivation was carried out through economic indicators, taking into account all of the cost and revenue factors of the olive cultivation in each management sy...
Journal of Cleaner Production, 2018
Innovations are increasingly needed by companies to engage in new market competitiveness. Conscientious consumers are demanding sustainable products and services, and "new qualities" are requested, such as environmental protection, social equitability and economic viability. To satisfy this demand, companies are struggling to find innovative solutions to sustainability concerns. The present paper proposes an innovative and integrated approach, i.e., the Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment, a methodology that is still under development within the conceptual framework of Life Cycle Thinking (Kloepffer, 2008). Life Cycle Assessment, Life Cycle Costing and social Life Cycle Assessment are integrated here by means of a multicriterial and participative method, the Analytic Hierarchy Process. This case study is about growing Calabrian olives, which is the most important crop in terms of surface area at a regional level. The study focuses on an important agronomic practice, i.e., weeding. The functional unit is 1 hectare of cultivated surface, and the system boundary is "from cradle to farm gate". The time boundary considered here is the expected life of an olive tree corresponding to 50 years. All of the primary data have been gathered through specific in-field surveys with semi-structured questionnaires to farmers and workers. Nine impact categories and quantitative indicators, direct and/or proxy, cover the three primary sustainability dimensions, i.e., environment, economy and society. Three scenarios have been chosen for their relevance to the Calabrian panorama as follows:-a control scenario (CS), which is represented by the conventional and traditional farming system, that commonly recurs according to the use of chemicals for weed and pest control;-a low-dosage/no-tillage (LDNT) scenario, as represented by a reduced use of chemicals; and-a zero chemical weeding (ZCW) scenario, representing the organic farming system. The results of the multicriterial analysis revealed that the greatest stakeholder concerns are environmental and social sustainability, especially in terms of toxicity and worker health. According to these preferences, low-dosage/no-tillage was the best scenario, with better performance for all of the selected categories except for job opportunities. Holistic sustainability assessments, especially those involving relevant stakeholders, are essential strategies for successfully satisfying and retaining customers, and the present epistemological hybrid proposal to the Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment could serve this purpose.
Are Tunisian organic olive growing farms sustainable? An adapted IDEA approach analysis
Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research, 2012
Sustainability and multifunctionality of agriculture have become widely shared goals for both scientific community and decision makers. Nowadays, it is important to assess not only the economic sustainability of farms, but also their environmental and socio-territorial sustainability. Numerous sustainability measurement tools have been developed by researchers and some institutions to assess these three dimensions. With the purpose to improve farms' sustainability, this paper aims providing oriented strategies to go toward more conscientious farmers' practices in the Tunisian organic olive sector. To reach this goal, two methodological steps were followed: (i) a sustainability measurement process to quantify farms' sustainability by a methodological adaptation of the IDEA approach; (ii) on the basis of the obtained scores of the three sustainability scales, farms' segmentation was carried out by the use of cluster analysis. In that sense, a questionnaire directed to a sample of organic olive growing farmers was carried out in the regions of Sfax and Mahdia, Tunisia. Results show a variability of sustainability levels within and between groups of farms. Cluster analysis results confirmed the existence of two main farms' groups. The first group is more agro-environmentally and socio-territorially sustainable than the second one. Weaknesses in the sustainability performances have been identified and improvement strategies have been formulated and oriented to each group. Results also indicate that in some cases there is no antagonism between environmental, socio-territorial and economic sustainability, so it is possible to improve simultaneously the three dimensions of sustainability.
The socio-economic impacts of organic and conventional olive growing in Italy
New Medit, 2020
Olive growing is the most important agricultural activity in Italy, representing, in 2010, 56% of Italian farms and 76% of land used for permanent crops. Producing high-quality products, such as healthy and socially responsible produces, while containing costs, is the current market challenge, and evaluation tools are of utmost importance to help farmers shaping management practices to obtain competitive prod-ucts. This study applies Life Cycle Costing (LCC) and social Life Cycle Assessment (sLCA) as evaluation tools to compare the socio-economic impacts of organic and conventional farming systems of the Italian olive growing. Results showed a similar level of economic profitability in both scenarios, due to the public subsidies for organic farming, which balanced higher production costs. From a social point of view, some differences have been highlighted: organic farming would be suitable not only to increase incomes but also to improve the occupational health of the people involve...