Assessment of the economic sustainability of an organic olive oil farm in Puglia region (Italy) under the voluntary regional quality scheme

doi:10.30682/nm2101h

Abstract

Puglia region is the most important producer of organic olives in Italy. The study aims at assessing the economic sustainability of a selected organic olive oil farm by adopting and testing the methodology based on a scientific approach designed by CIHEAM Bari, with the aim of a group of experts from national and international research organisations, used in the Programme "Agricoltura&Qualità of Puglia Region. SWOT-analysis of quality schemes system in Puglia has been drawn. The case study concerns a traditional organic farm producing olive oil, table olives, and almonds in Puglia region. The SWOT analysis highlights that Puglia has not a fully functioning system to ensure the sustainability. However, the results prove the feasibility of the methodological approach to assess the economic sustainability. The farm is economically sustainable and can use the Economic sustainability logo, in addition to the organic and PDO logos. Per hectare, almond is the most profitable crop with higher revenue, the variable costs are higher in table olives and inputs are higher in olives for oil. The growing interest in sustainability is an important opportunity to develop the agri-food sector.

Highlights

Nowadays, the sustainability concept is attracting increasing attention due to population growth and the depletion of natural resources
There are different definitions of sustainable development, but the most widely accepted one is from the report “Our common future” released in 1987 by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) chaired by Gro Harlem Brundtland, stated as “development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”
The purpose of the present study is to apply a preliminary methodological approach and economic indicators in order to assess the economic sustainability of organic olive oil farming in Puglia

Summary

Introduction

The sustainability concept is attracting increasing attention due to population growth and the depletion of natural resources. There are different definitions of sustainable development, but the most widely accepted one is from the report “Our common future” released in 1987 by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) chaired by Gro Harlem Brundtland, stated as “development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. Local crops provide sustainable production and they are economically feasible for the community (Shelef et al, 2018) Besides their importance as local cultivations (Saponari et al, 2018), olive crops represent one of the most important sources of income and employment for the Italian rural economy (Stillitano et al, 2016), mainly in the southern regions, and they are one of the key players in supporting rural economies in the Mediterranean region (Iofrida et al, 2020). Bari represents 32% of the total organic olive-growing surface area in Puglia (SINAB and Biobank Open Project, 2018)

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion