Farm performance and input self-sufficiency increases with functional crop diversity on Swedish farms

Nilsson, Pia; Bommarco, Riccardo; Hansson, Helena; Kuns, Brian; Schaak, Henning

doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2022.107465

Cited by 15 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 76 publications

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“…Regardless, Watson et al (2017) and Annicchiarico (2017) contend that even with a modified gross margin analysis, the economic performance of legumes is typically inadequate. However, other empirical research (Nilsson et al, 2022) has found that over time, CD practices improve economic performance and input self-sufficiency in Swedish agriculture.…”

Section: Economic Performancementioning

confidence: 91%

Overcoming barriers to crop diversification uptake in Europe: A mini review

Brannan

Bickler

Hansson

et al. 2023

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Crop diversification (CD) encompasses practices such as extending crop rotation, cover cropping and intercropping practices, and growing minor crops. It has attracted increasing interest because it can produce both private benefits for farmers, including improved crop and soil health, and reduced inputs, and public goods for society, including greater biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and climate resilience. Nevertheless, CD is not widely practiced in Europe. This paper uses a conceptual framework based upon the literature on barriers to agricultural innovation and CD to guide a systematic-like literature review of existing review articles on the barriers to CD in Europe and a review of research from the European Crop Diversification Cluster, comprising six EU research projects. We compare barriers to CD uptake and identify opportunities to accelerate CD uptake, drawing four main conclusions. First, the barriers to CD are influenced by many factors: the specific crop, cropping method, geographical region, the farmer, the supply chain or market, and the institutional environment. Second, the barriers to CD uptake are interconnected and occur at multiple points along the supply chain; addressing barriers to CD uptake therefore requires a simultaneous and coordinated approach. Third, the inclusion of farmers' perspectives in the CD cluster research revealed novel barriers and solutions demonstrating that participatory and transdisciplinary agricultural research is needed to understand the on-farm reality and its influence on CD uptake. Lastly, farmers' decision-making warrants greater attention. The results highlight that farmers' decision-making is unpredictable and likely to focus on utility rather than profit maximization.

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Section: Economic Performancementioning

confidence: 91%

Overcoming barriers to crop diversification uptake in Europe: A mini review

Brannan

Bickler

Hansson

et al. 2023

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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show abstract

“…These factors constitute economic risks and lock-ins often beyond the control of the farmers, which hinder the adoption of diversifying practices (IPES-Food, 2016; Magrini et al, 2018;Meynard et al, 2018). Despite these barriers, evidence indicates that diversified cropping systems can increase farm economic performance (Nilsson et al, 2022). Subsidies should support farmers in transitioning from input-intensive systems to diversified ones, as it may take years for the soils to recover from more industrial settings and to benefit from diversity effects, or for the alternative crops to increase in profitability.…”

Section: Barriers To Diversificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diversifying crop rotations for sustainable production and climate change adaptation

Costa

2024

Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae

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Industrial cropping systems are increasingly simplified, with fewer crops being grown, requiring extensive use of inputs, and contributing to environmental pollution and climate change. Solutions are needed to reduce the negative effects, while retaining productivity in the face of increasingly frequent detrimental climatic conditions. Crop rotational diversity has shown promises to increase staple cereal yields, especially under low fertilisation regimes and years of low productivity. However, it is unclear how different levels and types of crop rotational diversity mediate the interaction between productivity, contrasting levels of fertilisation, and explicit climatic conditions. Moreover, crop diversification substitutes staple cereals with alternative crop types, e.g., legumes, broadleaves, and perennial mixtures of grasses and legumes, raising the question whether sufficient and sufficiently nutritious food can be produced with less nitrogen inputs in diverse rotations. Using data from 32 long-term field experiments (10-64 years) from Europe and North America, I show that crop rotational diversity, expressed as species diversity or functional richness, enhances cereal yields over time, particularly under regimes of low fertilisation. I also show that crop rotational diversity can reduce cereal yield losses caused by detrimental climatic conditions. Using a sub-set of the European data, I also show that increasing functional richness can increase the outputs of human-available calories and macronutrients, i.e., carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, with increasing benefits over time, and requiring less nitrogen than cereal-only rotations. In summary, crop rotational diversity can benefit food security and sustainability, and provide climate adaptation to cropping systems.

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“…By contrast, less biodiverse systems where these components are narrowed, by utilising highly bred monocultures and inorganic substitutes, such as mineral fertilisers and biocides, can be more susceptible to single points of failure (Puma et al, 2015). Increasing soil organic matter is one way of restoring some buffering capacity, and regenerative practices may provide longer term stability in yield (Renard and Tilman, 2019), eventually leading to increased farm performance and input self-sufficiency (Nilsson et al, 2022). There have been numerous calls for this type of approach and increasing interest in farming communities putting it into practice, especially in the light of increasing climate change pressures (Urruty et al, 2016;Altieri et al, 2015).…”

Section: Building Resilience To Shocksmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The protected cropping sector (or greenhouse horticulture) also has high energy inputs, but provides a significant contribution to the rural economy (Defra, 2016). In the UK, the soft fruit sector has experienced a strong and sustained period of expansion over the last decade, with soft fruit increasing in popularity each year due to its nutritional benefits, dietary changes and advances in post-harvest storage and processing (Nour et al, 2011). Strawberries represent one of the highest-value crops cultivated in the UK with most production grown at field-scale and under protected (polytunnel) conditions (Morris et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards net zero in agriculture: Future challenges and opportunities for arable, livestock and protected cropping systems in the UK

et al. 2023

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The agricultural sector faces multiple challenges linked to increased climate uncertainty, causing severe shocks including increased frequency of extreme weather events, new pest and disease risks, soil degradation, and pre and postharvest food losses. This situation is further exacerbated by geopolitical instability and volatility in energy prices impacting on fertiliser supplies and production costs. Net zero strategies are vital to achieve both food security and address negative environmental impacts. This perspective paper reviews and assesses the most viable options (actions) to achieve net zero with a focus on the arable/livestock and protected cropping sectors in the UK. The methodology was based on a synthesis of relevant literature, coupled with expert opinions using the holistic PESTLE (Political, Environmental, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental) approach to categorise actions, leading to formulation of a roadmap to achieve net zero. The PESTLE analysis indicated that there are technically and economically viable actions available which need to be prioritised depending on the ease of their implementation within the two crop sectors investigated. These actions include (i) policy changes that are better aligned to net zero; (ii) circular economy approaches; (iii) connectivity and accessibility of information; (iv) increased resilience to shocks; (v) changing diets, nutrition and lifestyles; (vi) target setting and attainment; and (vii) farm economics and livelihoods. The outputs can be used by stakeholders and decision makers to inform policy and drive meaningful changes in global food and environmental security.

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Farm performance and input self-sufficiency increases with functional crop diversity on Swedish farms

Cited by 15 publications

References 76 publications

Overcoming barriers to crop diversification uptake in Europe: A mini review

Overcoming barriers to crop diversification uptake in Europe: A mini review

Diversifying crop rotations for sustainable production and climate change adaptation

Towards net zero in agriculture: Future challenges and opportunities for arable, livestock and protected cropping systems in the UK

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