Environmental sustainability in agriculture: diet matters

Chapter 8 - Revisiting sustainable systems and methods in agriculture

Environmental sustainability in agriculture: Identification of bottlenecks

The main goal of the article is to compare three approaches to measuring environmental sustainability in agriculture: i) the environmental burden index; ii) the sustainable value of eco-efficient production; and iii) the sustainable value of the eco-effective farm, applied to the sample of 130 EUFADN (European Union Farm Accountancy Data Network) regions in 2015. The study indicates a fundamental problem: the notion of environmental sustainability in agriculture differs depending on the criterion we apply. We recognized a principle trade-off in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) which consists of compensating for the strain on the natural environment with production or with public goods provision. Studies on these two effects seem to be crucial to draw a consistent development path for the CAP. Our major finding is that public goods-oriented farming is more likely to expand after improving eco-efficiency. This is still a challenge because in European regions, eco-efficient has not meant environmentally sustainable yet.

Aiming to assist the environmental sustainability of the Brazilian Amazonian agriculture, this article developed an eco-efficiency index, indicating the possible limits to maximize economic and environmental objectives, taking into account the best practices in the municipalities of the region. Shadow prices of degraded areas and forest preservation were also estimated using data envelopment analysis with directional distance functions. The results indicate that, on average, the analyzed municipalities are able to expand the production and the forest areas by 38% and reduce degraded areas and their inputs in the same proportion. The shadow prices allowed the estimation of the annual opportunity cost of the degraded areas and the preservation of the forest on the farms. The first, US$ 3,131,571, represented 0.04% of the annual output value, indicating that the internalization of that cost should be a low burden for the eco-efficient producer. The second, the total cost of preserving 80% of the area of property, represented US$ 120,890,662 or 1.7% of the annual income of the biome producers studied. Therefore, the main conclusion of this work is that the internalization of negative and positive externalities of agricultural production in the Amazonian biome does not make agricultural production economically unfeasible in the region. In addition, the reimbursement of damages avoided by carbon sequestration, through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) established by the Kyoto Conference, should further increase the economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture in the area.

A range of liberalisation programmes were introduced in New Zealand in 1984 as part of an economy-wide reform. For the agriculture sector, reforms included the removal of price support for sheep and wool, and the removal of input subsidies, resulting in production shifts away from sheep and wool production towards dairying. The changing production patterns generated productivity gains and reduced environmental pressures, as erosion-prone hill country was taken out of sheep grazing and forested instead. Since that time, and unrelated to subsidies, these trends have slowed with relatively more intensive, but still pasture-based, dairying, causing environmental problems such as challenges in relation to the use of fertilisers and greenhouse gas emissions. This is the first paper that examines key economic and environmental indicators of New Zealand’s agricultural sector four decades after the reform. I conclude that while the agricultural sector in New Zealand shows resilience in responding to world markets and price volatility, low levels of public investment mean that agricultural productivity growth is constrained. While subsidy removal boosted economic resilience, persistent challenges in the use of soil resources, such as nutrient management practices, necessitate the need for balanced policy. The New Zealand story could help inform a broader discussion about future approaches to agricultural subsidies reform as it advances global discourse about sustainability in agriculture and free trade. The findings from this study will function as a useful reference tool for policymakers, along with researchers and industry stakeholders, who need to find the correct balance between economic growth and environmental stewardship through market-based agricultural sustainability models.

This paper presents the case that diet matters for environmental sustainability in the agriculture/food/population nexus from the ethical, religious and health points of view. This paper is addressed to all concerned with accelerating the transition to sustainability in agriculture in an ethical manner. There is little agreement that diet matters for agricultural sustainability; not even that it is a legitimate issue for agricultural policy. Ethical, health and religious arguments carry little weight in economic development decisions. Most agriculture is not sustainable, and there is little agreement on what the sustainability criterion may be when applied to the agriculture sector (FAO 1995, 1996). Agriculture has degraded more natural capital and caused more extinctions of species than any other sector.KeywordsFood ChainEnvironmental SustainabilityBovine Spongiform EncephalopathyNatural CapitalEnvironmental EthicThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

Environmental sustainability in agriculture is a key component of discussions to address the current climate crisis; unfortunately, many people (including researchers) presume that only certain types of agriculture (e.g., organic, local) are environmentally sustainable. Non-farmers also fail to acknowledge that many farm practices, including grazing animals, mitigate climate change. Farmers' perceptions about environmental sustainability are important because their livelihoods, and those of future generations, depend on their commitment to sustainable environmental practices. The purpose of this qualitative research was to understand Canadian farmers' perceptions of environmental sustainability, how they are implementing strategies that contribute to sustainable food production, and the challenges they face. Fifty-two farmers, representing 48 farms and over 1000 years of farming experience, participated in comprehensive in-depth interviews. Four farms were in British Columbia; 13 in the Prairies; 26 in Central Canada; and five in Eastern Canada. A wide variety of farm types (e.g., fruit/vegetables, livestock, grains) and sizes (2 to 6500 acres) were included in the study. Farmers' perceptions of environmental sustainability coalesced into four main themes: (1) definitions of sustainability and environmental sustainability, (2) current practices, (3) farming as an identity, and (4) challenges. Many participants explained that they already use sustainable practices and technology, contrary to prevailing opinion that entire food systems need to be transformed to be sustainable. As new agricultural policies and educational curricula are developed, information provided to students, policy makers, and the public must be accurate, balanced, evidence-based, and respectfully consider all perspectives, especially those of farmers.

This study focuses on the synthesis and characterization of nanobiochar-based nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) fertilizers derived from rice husk. The aim is to address the agricultural by-products generated during the rice milling process and convert them into valuable products. The nanobiochar particles, with dimensions in the nanoscale range, exhibit enhanced physical, chemical, and surface characteristics compared to macrobiochar counterparts. The particle size analysis revealed hydrodynamic diameters of 42.5 nm for RHNB N and 10.9 nm for RHNB K, while the zeta potentials were found to be -32.4 mV and -31.8 mV, respectively. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) confirmed the presence of functional groups and nutrient incorporation in the fertilizers. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis indicated the crystalline structure of the samples, attributed to the presence of SiO2. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) provided insights into the porous structure and surface morphology of the nanobiochar fertilizers. The elemental analysis using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) confirmed the presence of various elements. The developed rice husk nanobiochar-based N and K fertilizers offer promising properties for sustainable agriculture, including slow-release nutrient delivery and mitigation of environmental issues associated with conventional fertilizers. These fertilizers have the potential to enhance soil fertility and contribute to environmental sustainability in agricultural systems. Further research and field trials are necessary to evaluate their efficacy in agricultural practices.

With the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO), as the world appears to be moving towards a freer agricultural trade regime, questions around competitiveness become front line issues in the relevant research and policy agendas. However, the data required for quantitative analysis is not yet available, so that studies addressing these questions will necessarily remain exploratory in nature. Among the key variables influencing the competitiveness of agriculture is productivity (Barkema, Drabestott, and Tweeten, 1990). Productivity is dependent on investment decisions made by the farmer, as well as investment decisions made by the state, including public infrastructure. Competitiveness is often achieved at the expense of environmental sustainability, and public pressure calls for action in this arena too. Environmental sustainability in agriculture is usually approached using qualitative analysis.

This introductive paper aims to address the features of environmental sustainability in agriculture. Recent developments of the concept, which are discussed here, emphasise its multi-faceted nature and lead to various definitions as well as to different implications for policy measures in society. On the basis of all the papers presented in this Special Issue, we draw some perspectives for future research on the topic.

Agricultural production and farm management are inextricable, since managerial aspects for safe and of high-quality food products have led to the development of successful production plans but multifaceted controversies as well. These controversies arise from the focus of policymakers, especially in the EU, to the environmental aspects of agricultural production, creating conflicting objectives for farmers. Energy from biomass derivatives could play a significant role in the dispute for economic and environmental sustainability in agriculture, along with the formulation of agro-energy districts. In this context, an MCDM model was developed integrating LCA data for the assessment of economic, environmental and energy sustainability regarding thirteen major crops in the Region of Central Macedonia in Greece. The model's objectives consist of maximization of farmers' gross income, minimization of emissions coming from farming practices and maximization of energy potentially coming from biomass. Furthermore, three different scenario-based directions allocate different weights to the respective objectives, creating different managerial strategies. The optimal production plan was the scenario in which the weights were allocated by goal programming. The optimal plan proposes the cultivation expansion of energy crops, tree crops, alfalfa and hard wheat to a higher degree. Moreover, a significant reduction to the cultivated areas of tobacco, rice, barley and soft wheat could lead to a potentially viable production plan.

Environmental issues have been one the most important for sustainable agricultural development in recent years. The EU common agricultural policy (CAP) direct payments (DP) system, which requires the most significant financial resources, should also promote environmental sustainability in agriculture. However, there is a lack of systematic approach and instruments to assess the impact of the DP system to environmental sustainability. This paper examines the linkages between DP system and environmental sustainability indicators. The underlying research question is: how 2004-2013 CAP DP system had impacted environmental sustainability. To answer this, the article uses a comparative analysis, a statistical analysis, theoretical modelling as a basis to determine, prove and evaluate the linkages between DP system and agricultural environment sustainability indicators. The article also provides empirical results of Lithuania and Puglia region (Italy). These regions were selected because of the similarity by area size and population, however with different DP systems.

Environmental sustainability in agriculture can be measured through the construction of composite indicators. However, this is a challenging task because these indexes are heavily dependent on how the individual base indicators are weighted. The main aim of this paper is to contribute to the existing literature regarding the robustness of subjective (based on experts’ opinions) weighting methods when constructing a composite indicator for measuring environmental sustainability at the farm level. In particular, the study analyzes two multi-criteria techniques, the analytic hierarchy process and the recently developed best-worst method, as well as the more straightforward point allocation method. These alternative methods have been implemented to empirically assess the environmental performance of irrigated olive farms in Spain. Data for this case study were collected from a panel of 22 experts and a survey of 99 farms. The results obtained suggest that there are no statistically significant differences in the weights of the individual base indicators derived from the three weighting methods considered. Moreover, the ranking of the sampled farms, in terms of their level of environmental sustainability measured through the composite indicators proposed, is not dependent on the use of the different weighting methods. Thus, the results support the robustness of the three weighting methods considered.

Environmental sustainability is a major challenge for cotton production in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The creation of voluntary certification programs is an effort aimed at finding new ways to influence corporate conduct along supply chains. This article contributes novelty and insight on cotton certification in SSA by exploring the most relevant programs in detail with regard to the demands of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs). We selected the five most central NGOs dedicated to environmental sustainability in agriculture: Friends of the Earth (FoE), Greenpeace, Oxfam, Pesticide Action Network (PAN), and World Wildlife Fund (WWF). After identifying these NGOs’ demands regarding pesticides, fertilizers and genetically modified (GM) cotton, we analyzed the requirements of the four most dominant programs certifying SSA cotton cultivation: the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), Cotton made in Africa (CmiA), the EU Organic Regulation and Fairtrade Labelling Organization (FLO). The results of our document analysis are bolstered by semi-structured interviews with stakeholders on NGOs’ stances and roles in standard setting and implementation. We find that the EU Organic Regulation scores best in terms of environmental sustainability. Those programs in which NGOs actively participate are less ambitious compared to the public standard. Therefore, we conclude that, if NGOs maintain their commitment to multi-stakeholder initiatives, they risk contributing to ‘greenwashing’ corporate conduct by mobilizing consumer support for labelling programs that actually fall behind existing public regulation on organic certification.

The increasing global population, rapid urbanization, and climate change are putting unprecedented pressure on limited water and energy resources for food production. It requires integrated management of the key resources to achieve economic and environmental sustainability. The water-energy-food (WEF) nexus, in conjunction with circular bioeconomy (CBE) principles, offer a promising approach to achieve sustainable agriculture. It provides the integration between interconnectedness and interdependencies of the resources through closing bio-resource loops. Using bio-based materials, renewable energy resources, and implementing energy-efficient practices and technologies can maximize synergistic among the resources and promote sustainable agriculture while minimizing negative environmental impacts. However, there are challenges and limitations, such as economic conditions, proper infrastructure and technology, policy and governance support, public awareness, and potential trade-offs and conflicts. Moreover, it also faces various social and cultural challenges in implementing this approach. Therefore, to overcome these challenges and limitations, the need for innovative and sustainable technologies, significant investments in research and development, infrastructure and training, environmental campaign, innovative financing mechanisms and policies that incentivize sustainable practices, and support from stakeholders and the public are essential.