No abstract

The problem of food insecurity is generally associated with developing countries, but at the household level it also occurs in developed countries, especially in socially vulnerable groups, such as small-scale farms. However, the issue of food insecurity in developed countries, especially at the household level, is rather neglected in the scientific literature. This study was conducted to fill this gap and examine the level of food insecurity among small-scale farms in Poland. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from 710 small-scale farms in Poland. The incidence and degree of food insecurity was measured with the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS). The study found that about 43% of the respondents were exposed to food insecurity, including almost 9% to severe food insecurity, which is well above the average for the entire Polish population. By applying cross-tabulation and the zero-inflated Poisson regression model, the study found that the higher age and secondary or higher education of the farm manager, having children in the household and higher land productivity have a statistically significant negative influence on households’ food insecurity (i.e., decreased HFIAS score). On the contrary, family size of five or more and production type “permanent crops” and “dairy cows” have a statistically significant positive influence on households’ food insecurity (i.e., increased HFIAS score).

Th e article investigates the role of natural conditions in the development of the qualifi ed form of rural tourism, which the authors defi ne as qualifi ed agritourism. Th e research hypothesis assumes that rural space, which is characterized by high natural conditions, complemented in sporting infrastructure, can support the development of qualifi ed agritourism. Th e empirical survey examines the relationship between the sightseeing and natural conditions and the conditions for physical recreation occurring on agritourism farms in Poland. Further, the fi ndings suggest that, in the opinion of the hosts and guests of agritourism farms, undertaking of physical recreational activity and its intensity are infl uenced by the favourable sightseeing and natural conditions, the number of off ered forms of physical recreation and the availability of sports equipment.

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The projected increase in the world’s population requires an increase in the production of edible energy that would meet the associated increased demand for food. However, food production is strongly dependent on the use of energy, mainly from fossil fuels, the extraction of which requires increasing input due to the depletion of the most easily accessible deposits. According to numerous estimations, the world’s energy production will be dependent on fossil fuels at least to 2050. Therefore, it is vital to increase the energy efficiency of production, including food production. One method to measure energy efficiency is the energy return on investment (EROI), which is the ratio of the amount of energy produced to the amount of energy consumed in the production process. The literature lacks comparable EROI calculations concerning global food production and the existing studies only include crop production. The aim of this study was to calculate the EROI of edible crop and animal production in the long term worldwide and to indicate the relationships resulting from its changes. The research takes into account edible crop and animal production in agriculture and the direct consumption of fossil fuels and electricity. The analysis showed that although the most underdeveloped regions have the highest EROI, the production of edible energy there is usually insufficient to meet the food needs of the population. On the other hand, the lowest EROI was observed in highly developed regions, where production ensures food self-sufficiency. However, the changes that have taken place in Europe since the 1990s indicate an opportunity to simultaneously reduce the direct use of energy in agriculture and increase the production of edible energy, thus improving the EROI.