Can Small French Farms Provide an Opportunity for Employment in the Agricultural Sector?

Lécole, Pauline

doi:10.1111/1746-692x.12290

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 6 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The study findings and their implications are important in the broadest context of subsistence and semi-subsistence farming [90,91] in their transformation toward farm entrepreneurship based on products of higher added value [83,92,93]. The findings can also be important for better understanding of changes in socioeconomic types of farms with part-time farming [94], which was important in the studied rural areas in the past with a combination of work in local labor-intensive factories and afternoon work on the farm.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Farm Household Income Diversification as a Survival Strategy

Bojnec

Knific

2021

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The analyses focus on the structural change in agriculture and farm households for the selected hilly and mountainous areas in Slovenia before and after the accession to the European Union, with an emphasis on empirical analysis of a sample of income diversification of rural households in the census years, and the importance of self-employment for farm households’ well-being and food security. A t-test was applied to investigate the differences of arithmetic means between the two municipalities and between the two census years, and an F-test with analysis of variance was used for the differences of arithmetic means between four socioeconomic types of agricultural households (AHs). The number of farm households has declined with heterogeneous patterns according to their socioeconomic type and their location areas according to the level of economic development and natural farming conditions. Farm exits do not necessarily mean discontinuation of other nonfarming activities at a household. While the number of farm households leaving farming has increased, there has also been an increase in farm households engaged in other gainful activity such as supplementary farm activities and in off-farm employment and off-farm incomes. Income from farming for most households is not sufficient for survival, and therefore, diversification of income for households is imminent. Diversification of income from self-employment is important for more than one-third of households that maintain agri-food production for the market. Income from self-employment is an important source of income for household well-being and for investment in agricultural production to improve incomes from farming activities. Expansion of self-employment impacts the lack of time, business risks, and lack of interest of households to expand the business by renting external sources.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…They can play an important role in farm and rural entrepreneurship and in short supply chains [79][80][81]. Small farms traditionally associated with subsistence or semi-subsistence farms can be entrepreneurially and commercially oriented and can play a role in the provision of public goods supported by public policies [82,83].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farm Household Income Diversification as a Survival Strategy

Bojnec

Knific

2021

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Some entrants reported that they obtained financing by borrowing from other well‐known entrepreneurs or family members, or, at later stages, by applying for small grants from business support programmes. For financial reasons, some newcomers combined two occupations during the first years of conversion; the previous job with the new engagement and in rare cases the farming has remained a part‐time activity combining various employment regimes (see also Lecole, 2021). Here, the second income source – both of the farmer and the spouse – is based on a side employment in the IT sector or accounting, allowing support for the farm in case of unforeseen challenges.…”

Section: Innovation Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

New Entrants Need Tailored Farm Advice

Žabko

Tīsenkopfs

2022

EuroChoices

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

SummarySupporting new entrants in farming is an increasingly important political and practical issue in European agriculture. This article looks at a specific group of new entrants – career changers – who move into agriculture from other occupational and educational backgrounds. As they bridge several worlds, they are often important innovators. One of the main challenges encountered by this group is the lack of tailored advice and insufficient capacity of the existing agricultural advisory services to respond to their specific innovation needs. The article examines how career changers use the knowledge from their background and access new knowledge on agriculture. The research is based on biographical interviews with individuals who have changed their careers and in‐depth interviews with advisors in Latvia. The results suggest that the gap between knowledge needs and knowledge services is being filled through the creation of professional networks by new entrants with each other and with industry experts and customers and to a lesser degree with formal advisory services. We discuss how in this situation various actors in the EU’s agricultural knowledge and innovation system (AKIS) may better help the career changers to professionalise in farming and undertake sustainability‐oriented innovations.

show abstract

Interactions between animal enterprises and marketing strategies shape organic multispecies farming systems

Benoit,

Martin,

Steinmetz

et al. 2023

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

One of the key ways to improve the sustainability of agricultural systems is through diversification, taking advantage of synergies between farm enterprises. Among diversified systems, multispecies livestock farms with at least two animal enterprises have rarely been studied. We explored 95 organic farms from six countries, accounting for the proportion of animal enterprises, sales management, workforce size, and work organization. The study reveals various types of interactions between animal enterprises. Complementarities were observed between ruminant and monogastric enterprises, particularly fertilizer transfer from monogastric manure to grasslands. Milk production was often associated with on-farm processing and short distribution channels, which enhanced farm viability and reduced its dependency on herd productivity. Eleven out of the 95 farms combined above-average production efficiency, on-farm processing, and the majority of sales in short distribution channels. Their labor productivity converged toward 22 livestock units per annual work unit, regardless of the number of workers. Combining farm structure; livestock production efficiency; social elements, such as the workforce; and sales management led us to distinguish four types of farms: (i) small and very autonomous grassland farms with on-farm processing and short distribution channels; (ii) dairy farms associated with a high-density pig or poultry enterprise, whose feed purchase contributes to high rates of cattle feeding self-sufficiency and stocking rate; (iii) large farms with an extensive, grassland beef enterprise associated with either sheep or monogastrics; and (iv) dairy sheep associated with goat or beef cattle on rangelands, with high added-value products enhancing salaries. This study highlights for the first time the diversity of organic multispecies livestock farms and how consistent patterns of interactions among farm structure, livestock management, sales management, and workforce management shape them. The results are a preliminary basis for designing policy interventions aiming to scale up organic farming and value social assets of diversified and small farms.

show abstract

Can Small French Farms Provide an Opportunity for Employment in the Agricultural Sector?

Abstract: Les petites exploitations agricoles françaises peuvent-elles offrir une opportunité d'emploi dans le secteur agricole ? Können französische kleinbäuerliche Betriebe eine Chance für Beschäftigung im Agrarbereich bieten?

Cited by 5 publications

References 6 publications

Farm Household Income Diversification as a Survival Strategy

Farm Household Income Diversification as a Survival Strategy

New Entrants Need Tailored Farm Advice

Interactions between animal enterprises and marketing strategies shape organic multispecies farming systems

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About