The determining factors of farm sustainability in a context of growing agricultural intensification

Baccar, Mariem; Bouaziz, Ahmed; Dugué, Patrick; Gafsi, Mohamed; Gal, Pierre-Yves Le

doi:10.1080/21683565.2018.1489934

Cited by 22 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Existing reviews focus on a limited number of tools that have gained popularity among researchers and that have been used in multiple contexts, e.g. the IDEA tool in France presented in Zahm et al (2008) and used in various contexts such as in Morocco (Baccar et al 2018). However, the focus on these popular tools may have caused more local initiatives in tool development that reflect certain perspectives on sustainability assessments to be overlooked.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Avenues for improving farming sustainability assessment with upgraded tools, sustainability framing and indicators. A review

Chopin

Mubaya

Descheemaeker

et al. 2021

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

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The sustainability of agriculture is questioned due to major negative environmental and socioeconomic impacts. To improve the state of agriculture, various management changes have been proposed. Different tools, with varying characteristics, sustainability framing and indicators, have been used to evaluate the impact of these changes on sustainability. Here, we review 119 tools for farm sustainability assessment and compare their use, sustainability dimensions, themes and types of indicators used for biodiversity conservation, farm viability and gender equity. Our main findings are that (1) tools could be classified into five groups that differ in stakeholder participation and model used for calculating sustainability, (2) seven different sustainability framings are used and (3) only two out of 29 indicators screened address impacts of farming system while the others address drivers, pressures or states of the system. The tools were grouped in “Long-term monitoring of farm activities” (11%), “Ex-ante assessment of sustainability with bioeconomic models” (9%), “Survey- and indicator-based assessment of tools” (41%), “Consultation-based assessment” (25%) and “Active engagement of stakeholder-based assessment” (14%). The “classical view of sustainability”, with the economic, social and environmental pillars, was used in 61% of the papers. Based on these findings, we suggest (1) development of temporal dynamic assessment of farm sustainability with active involvement of stakeholders in the framing of sustainability and design of indicators to achieve reliable and relevant assessment outcomes. We recommend (2) adoption of more complex sustainability framings dealing with emerging system properties, namely resilience, viability and stability. In these, (3) governance/institutional dimensions should be emphasised, and social themes targeting farmers’ characteristics should be included. Finally, (4) use of impact indicators in farm sustainability assessments is critical, and they should be designed to contribute to scientifically rigorous and relevant assessments of farming system sustainability.

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Avenues for improving farming sustainability assessment with upgraded tools, sustainability framing and indicators. A review

Chopin

Mubaya

Descheemaeker

et al. 2021

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

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“…First, it is the problem of time and efforts required to collect such a large information from farmers, of which some indicators are sometime not observable from farmers. As discussed by Cruz et al (2018, p. 37), “many indicators are purely theoretical,[..] that require a lot of information and expert knowledge to provide environmental estimates that are generally not suitable.” Similarly, it is also pointed out that a number of indicators are not directly observable but need to be calculated from observed ones (Baccar et al, 2019). Second, there is also the problem of complexity, where many researchers try to reduce/aggregate the number of variables or indicators for the examination process using techniques such as PCA or FA (Baccar et al, 2019; Ilari‐Antoine et al, 2014).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As discussed by Cruz et al (2018, p. 37), “many indicators are purely theoretical,[..] that require a lot of information and expert knowledge to provide environmental estimates that are generally not suitable.” Similarly, it is also pointed out that a number of indicators are not directly observable but need to be calculated from observed ones (Baccar et al, 2019). Second, there is also the problem of complexity, where many researchers try to reduce/aggregate the number of variables or indicators for the examination process using techniques such as PCA or FA (Baccar et al, 2019; Ilari‐Antoine et al, 2014). Another problem with IDEA is that it aims to construct a composite index of agriculture sustainability using equal weights from the components and sub‐component indicators, assuming that all indicators/components play a similar role in the index (Zahm et al, 2008; Zahm et al, 2018).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similarly, it is also pointed out that a number of indicators are not directly observable but need to be calculated from observed ones (Baccar et al, 2019). Second, there is also the problem of complexity, where many researchers try to reduce/aggregate the number of variables or indicators for the examination process using techniques such as PCA or FA (Baccar et al, 2019;Ilari-Antoine et al, 2014).…”

Section: The Indicateurs De Durabilité Des Exploitations Agricoles mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Assessing the important factors of sustainable agriculture development: An Indicateurs de Durabilité des Exploitations Agricoles‐Analytic Hierarchy Process study in the northern region of Vietnam

Ngo

Nguyen²,

Ho³

et al. 2020

Sustainable Development

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Combining the systemic indicators of sustainable agriculture provided by the Indicateurs de Durabilité des Exploitations Agricoles (IDEA) framework and the pairwise comparison method provided by the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique, this study examined 644 farmers in the Northern region of Vietnam (using Bac Giang province as a case study) to identify and rank those important factors according to their contributions to the farmer's practices. We found that the Economic dimension is the most important factor that contributes 54% toward the overall Sustainable Agriculture, followed by the Socio-territorial dimension (29%) and then the Agroecology dimension (17%). We further argue that while it is reasonable for farmers to focus on the sustainable economic performance aspect of their farms, there is a need for the local authorities to be involved to maintain a balanced sustainable agriculture development in the region. K E Y W O R D S agriculture, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Indicateurs de Durabilité des Exploitations Agricoles (IDEA), Northern region of Vietnam, sustainable development | INTRODUCTIONThe agriculture sector is becoming more important, especially in developing countries, because of its central role in food safety, hunger and

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“…This study follows two previous studies on farms sustainability in the Saïs plain. The first aimed to understand the past dynamics of farms [19], the second to assess their current sustainability from an external point of view [24]. In the spirit of continuity, the same sample of 36 farmers interested in participating in this study was used.…”

Section: Sampling and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainability Viewed from Farmers’ Perspectives in a Resource-Constrained Environment

et al. 2020

Self Cite

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The way farmers perceive the concept of sustainability as applied to their own farms must be better understood in order to help them evolve towards more sustainable production systems. Based on extensive discussions with 36 farmers on the Saïs plain (Morocco), this article explores farmers’ perceptions of sustainability and the strategies they are implementing for their farms to endure. Although these farmers are not formally aware of the concept of sustainability, they have several perceptions expressed through seven sustainability-related themes. The most frequently mentioned is the profitability of their agricultural activities (31% of responses). Three groups of perception were identified through a multiple component analysis (MCA) and an ascending hierarchical cluster (AHC) analysis: A combination of economic profitability and maintenance of the farm’s natural resources (Environment); a combination of economic profitability and a capacity to seize opportunities (Profitability); and setting up a modern agricultural model (Modernism). Additionally, farmers implement three types of strategies to endure also identified through MCA and AHC analysis: (1) Income security and farm survival with low-intensity practices involving farmers with low levels of investment (Security); (2) adaptation and valorization of the flexibility of the farm, bringing together farmers who intensify their practices according to economic opportunities (Adaptation); and (3) quest for productivity and income maximization for farmers with high levels of capital (Entrepreneurship). A certain coherence emerges between these two ways of grouping farms: Environment and Security linked to threats related to the degradation of soil fertility or water scarcity; Profitability and Adaptation in relation to land and economic opportunities; and Modernism and Entrepreneurship, which links economic sustainability, a modern production model, and capital accumulation.

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The determining factors of farm sustainability in a context of growing agricultural intensification

Cited by 22 publications

References 52 publications

Avenues for improving farming sustainability assessment with upgraded tools, sustainability framing and indicators. A review

Avenues for improving farming sustainability assessment with upgraded tools, sustainability framing and indicators. A review

Assessing the important factors of sustainable agriculture development: An Indicateurs de Durabilité des Exploitations Agricoles‐Analytic Hierarchy Process study in the northern region of Vietnam

Sustainability Viewed from Farmers’ Perspectives in a Resource-Constrained Environment

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