A measure of sustainability of Brazilian agribusiness using directional distance functions and data envelopment analysis

Abstract

The social and environmental impacts caused by the modernization of Brazilian agribusiness have evoked a growing interest in the search of balance between social-economics development and the adequate use of natural resources, driving the country to sustainable development. Therefore, the main aim of this article is to estimate a set of indicators of relative efficiency in the Brazilian agricultural sector, which satisfy the concept of Pareto optimality, potentiates simultaneously both economic, ecological dimensions and social functions. To reach this purpose, the method of directional distance functions and data envelopment analysis was applied. These indicators confirm, in different ways, the hypothesis that it is possible to perform consistent productive strategies with the maximization of social welfare, despite the apparent antagonism among these three dimensions. In addition, it is shown that efficient Brazilian states tend to combine the three dimensions in different ways. Hence, it can be concluded that several equilibrium taken sustainable can be achieved through different actions on poverty and environmental impact reduction without necessarily generating productive inefficiencies. This result can be considered of prominent importance for sustainable development in Brazil and can also serve as a reference in the definition of goals of the plan 'Brazil without Misery' and international commitments to reduce Greenhouse Gas -GHGin Brazil, especially for the 17 inefficient Brazilian states.

Sustainable Supply Chain Management: Analyzing the Past to Determine a Research Agenda

“…In the case of the articles that used modeling, it was verified that a considerable part of these (8) adopted the data envelopment analysis (DEA). DEA is a mathematical programming technique that seeks to analyze the performance, in terms of the relative efficiency, of different decision-making units (DMUs), from a set of inputs and outputs [43,44]. The incorporation of sustainability aspects in SC is still an uncommon practice in most organizations, especially in emerging countries [45].…”

“…The data envelopment analysis (DEA) allows the use of multiple inputs and outputs to identify some assumptions about the efficiency. This model can consider the environmental and social impacts for this purpose, reaching a set of optimal solutions to be indicated and analyzed [43].…”

Measuring Eco-Efficiency of Agriculture in China

“…In the process of agricultural production, input means agricultural production and produce products (or value), while waste and emissions (or other undesirable outputs) are unavoidable [25,40]. Therefore, this research, according to the eco-efficiency evaluation criteria of the WBCSD, refers to some of the latest research on the eco-efficiency evaluation [40][41][42][43][44], combined with the availability of data, to construct evaluation index system.…”

Avaliação de eficiência a partir de indicadores de sustentabilidade

“…Dentre as principais pesquisas neste setor, destacam-se os estudos em ambiente e energia por Zhou, Ang e Poh (2008), em sustentabilidade no agronegócio por Rosano-Peña et al (2014) e indicadores regionais europeus por Gerdessen e Pascucci (2013).…”