Integrated sustainability assessment (ISA) models can trigger change towards sustainable agriculture. This paper reports the implementation of an existing ISA model in Flanders, MOTIFS (Monitoring Tool for Integrated Farm Sustainability), in two cases in dairy farming selected from private/public accountancy/consultancy networks. Interactive learning between model developers (scientists) and model users (farmers and advisers) is examined with two objectives: first, to identify critical success factors (CSFs) for implementation; and second, to suggest improvements for MOTIFS or ways to use MOTIFS. Through a qualitative research methodology, based on open coding of data collected in farmer discussion groups, 10 CSFs are derived that are linked to the various implementation steps. Sufficient attention should be paid to attitude of model users, compatibility, data availability and user-friendliness, particularly when an ISA model is used in existing networks. Improvements in the ISA model and its use are suggested, such as more focus on the organization of the discussion sessions. Training of advisers, enhancement of their facilitation skills, involvement of experts and a thorough planning of sessions are suggested for MOTIFS to become more effective in supporting learning and sustainable farm management

Pollution of ground-and surface waters with nitrates from agricultural sources poses a risk to drinking water quality and has negative impacts on the environment. At the national scale, the gross nitrogen budget (GNB) is accepted as an indicator of pollution caused by nitrates. There is, however, little common EU-wide knowledge on the budget application and its comparability at the farm level for the detection of ground-and surface water pollution caused by nitrates and the monitoring of mitigation measures. Therefore, a survey was carried out among experts of various European countries in order to assess the practice and application of fertilization planning and nitrogen budgeting at the farm level and the differences between countries within Europe. While fertilization planning is practiced in all of the fourteen countries analyzed in this paper, according to current legislation, nitrogen budgets have to be calculated only in Switzerland, Germany and Romania. The survey revealed that methods of fertilization planning and nitrogen budgeting at the farm level are not unified throughout Europe. In most of the cases where budgets are used regularly (Germany, Romania, Switzerland), standard values for the chemical composition of feed, organic fertilizers, animal and plant products are used. The example of the Dutch Annual Nutrient Cycling Assessment (ANCA) tool (and partly of the Suisse Balance) shows that it is only by using farm-specific “real” data that budgeting can be successfully applied to optimize nutrient flows and increase N efficiencies at the farm level. However, this approach is more elaborate and requires centralized data processing under consideration of data protection concerns. This paper concludes that there is no unified indicator for nutrient management and water quality at the farm level. A comparison of regionally calculated nitrogen budgets across European countries needs to be interpreted carefully, as methods as well as data and emission factors vary across countries. For the implementation of EU nitrogen-related policies—notably, the Nitrates Directive—nutrient budgeting is currently ruled out as an entry point for legal requirements. In contrast, nutrient budgets are highlighted as an environment indicator by the OECD and EU institutions.

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We examined the effects of 10 yr of reduced tillage (RT) management, compared with conventional tillage (CT), on the chemical composition of soil organic matter (SOM) using a combination of physical fractionation and pyrolysis–field ionization mass spectroscopy (Py–FIMS). Surface soil samples (0–10 cm), which were collected from two adjacent CT and RT managed fields, were separated into particulate organic matter (POM) fractions and sand, silt, and clay size separates. Higher amounts of C (77%) and N (64%) were observed in all size separates of the RT soil and, in particular, the proportion of intramicroaggregate POM was two times as large as in the CT soil. The Py–FIMS spectra showed that larger proportions of free fatty acids, sterols, and N‐containing compounds were present in the RT soil's sand fraction than in the CT soil. Similar observations were also made for both free and intramicroaggregate POM fractions. In the silt and clay size fractions, no substantial differences in SOM composition were measured between tillage treatments, except that the RT soil's clay fraction had a higher proportion of N‐containing compounds and a lower proportion of alkylaromatics. Ratios of carbohydrate hexose to pentose subunits and of lignin monomers + phenols to lignin dimers confirmed a less decomposed character of the SOM in the silt and clay size fractions of the RT soil. These observations can be logically linked to the reduced mixing of crop residues and manure in the soil profile and higher surface soil microbial biomass under RT.