Do Smallholder, Mixed Crop-Livestock Livelihoods Encourage Sustainable Agricultural Practices? A Meta-Analysis

Diana Burbano,Michael Peters,Birthe Paul,Idupulapati Rao,Mario Cuchillo,Megan McGroddy,Manuel Luna,Thomas Rudel,Amy Lerner,Douglas White,Oh-Jung Kwon,Maryline Boval

doi:10.3390/land5010006

Abstract

As calls for bolstering ecosystem services from croplands have grown more insistent during the past two decades, the search for ways to foster these agriculture-sustaining services has become more urgent. In this context we examine by means of a meta-analysis the argument, proposed by Robert McC. Netting, that small-scale, mixed crop-livestock farming, a common livelihood among poor rural peoples, leads to environmentally sustainable agricultural practices. As predicted, mixed crop-livestock farms exhibit more sustainable practices, but, contrary to predictions, a small scale of operation does not predict sustainability. Many smallholders on mixed crop-livestock farms use sustainable practices, but other smallholders practice a degrading, input-scarce agriculture. Some large farm operators use soil-conserving, minimum-tillage techniques while other large operators ignore soil-conserving techniques and practice an industrialized, high chemical input agriculture. The strength and pervasiveness of the link in the data between mixed crop-livestock farming and sustainable agricultural practices argues for agricultural policies that promote mixed crop-livestock livelihoods.

Highlights

Over the past decade as the intertwined threats of food security, biodiversity losses, and climate change have become more apparent, scientists and policymakers have shown a renewed interest in sustainable agriculture
The analyses reported below use an index of sustainable agriculture, measured by the presence or absence on farms of these practices, plus an additional presence/absence score for the self-conscious practice of conservation agriculture (CA)
We identified several important aggregate differences between richer and poorer countries in their farms and in their sustainable agriculture practices

Summary

Introduction

Over the past decade as the intertwined threats of food security, biodiversity losses, and climate change have become more apparent, scientists and policymakers have shown a renewed interest in sustainable agriculture. An assessment of the potential of mixed crop-livestock farming for fostering sustainable agriculture would test the accuracy of Netting’s argument, and raise questions about the likelihood that mixed crop-livestock farms could become a “seed bed” for the spread of sustainable practices to other farms. This prospect currently seems unlikely because the growing bifurcation in global agriculture between large mechanized operations and very small farms seems to have reduced the numbers of mixed crop-livestock farms. Their decline in numbers would diminish the likelihood that mixed crop-livestock farms could provide the bases for a more sustainable agriculture

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