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As many contaminated agricultural soils can no longer be used for food crops, lignocellulosic energy crops matter due to their ability to grow on such soils and to produce biomass for biosourced materials and biofuels, thereby reducing the pressure on the limited arable lands. Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench, can potentially produce a high biomass suitable for producing bioethanol, renewable gasoline, diesel, and sustainable aircraft fuel, despite adverse environmental conditions (e.g. drought, contaminated soils). A 2-year field trial was carried out for the first time in the northern France for assessing sorghum growth on a Cd, Pb and Zn-contaminated agricultural soil amended with humic/fulvic acid, alone and paired with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Sorghum produced on average (in t DW ha -1 ): 12.4 in year 1 despite experiencing a severe drought season and 15.3 in year 2. Humic/fulvic acids (Lonite 80SP®) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi did not significantly act as biostimulants regarding the shoot DW yield and metal uptake of sorghum. The annual shoot Cd, Pb and Zn removals averaged 0.14, 0.20 and 1.97 kg ha -1 , respectively. Sorghum cultivation and its metal uptake induced a significant decrease in 0.01 M Ca(NO 3 ) 2 -extractable soil Cd, Pb and Zn concentrations by 95%, 73% and 95%, respectively, in year 2. Soluble and exchangeable soil Cd, Pb and Zn would be progressively depleted in subsequent crops, which should result in lower pollutant linkages and enhanced ecosystem services. This evidenced sorghum as a relevant plant species for phytomanaging the large area (750 ha) with metal-contaminated soil near the former Pb/Zn Metaleurop Nord smelter, amidst ongoing climate change. The potential bioethanol yield of the harvested sorghum biomass was 5589 L ha -1 . Thus sorghum would be a promising candidate for bioethanol production, even in this northern French region., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Grasslands are essential habitats for preserving arthropod communities in agricultural landscapes. The environmental state of grassland, their farming practices, and land cover heterogeneity in landscape around grassland are three factors that influence ground-dwelling grassland arthropod communities. However, the impact of the intensity of farming practices at the landscape scale has not yet been fully explored. In this study, (i) we studied complex relationships between environmental variables that describe the local conditions (i.e., grassland environmental state and farming practices) and land cover heterogeneity (i.e., land cover and landscape-wide intensity) of our study area in north-east France; and (ii) estimated the relative effect weight of landscape-wide intensity compared to other local and landscape variables on arthropod communities. We identified 14 taxonomic families, with Lycosidae, Carabidae and Staphylinidae as the families most represented in communities. We have highlighted a positive correlation between the different variables of landscape-wide intensity, as well as a positive correlation between sampled grassland intensity and the quantity of grassland in the landscape. Using Partial Least Squares Path Modelling (PLS-PM) analysis, we observed a positive effect of landscape-wide intensity on arthropod abundance-activity in grassland, indicating a potential concentration effect in the grasslands surrounded by an intensive landscape. Also, we have shown that the effect of landscape-wide intensity was at least as strong as that of other local and landscape variables. Our study is one of the first to consider land cover and farming practices simultaneously at the landscape scale. We demonstrate the importance of considering farming practices at the landscape scale to explain the state of ground-dwelling arthropod communities, and the need to take them into account when designing landscapes that are favourable to biodiversity. We argue that further studies are needed to explain the mechanisms involved in the relationship between arthropod communities and farming practices at the landscape scale., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This paper assesses the environmental ambition of 2023-2027 Common Agricultural Policy in France. Since conditionality and agri-environment-climate measures are only marginally improved relative to the previous period, attention is focused on the new environmental instrument of the eco-scheme that in France targets the whole farm. Results suggest low environmental progress since almost all French farms would reach the standard level of the eco-scheme by one of the three access paths with unchanged farming practices, and 85% of them would reach the superior level. The percentage of farms at the superior level would be lower for farms specialized in annual crops than for cattle farms. We then show that the payment difference of €20 per hectare between the standard and superior level is probably insufficient for farms specialized in cereals, oilseeds and protein crops to offset the additional cost of the change in farm practices required to move from the standard to the superior level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has recently been observed, that a change in the crop spectrum happened during the so-called Middle Neolithic in France at ca. 4000 BC. An agricultural system based on free-threshing cereals (naked wheat and naked barley) seems to shift to one based on glume wheats. This is a major change for traditional farmers and this paper aims to shed light on its possible causes. Here we describe the results of new investigations in a key area for the understanding of this process: the NW Mediterranean arch, where free-threshing cereals are the main cultivars since ca. 5100 BC. New data confirm that the shift towards glume wheats is also observed in some sites of the NE of the Iberian Peninsula and that among the glume wheats that spread at ca. 4000 BC we should not only consider emmer and einkorn but also Timopheevi's wheat. Stable isotope analyses indicate no major decrease in soil fertility or alterations in local precipitation regimes. The agricultural change may be the result of a combination of the spread of damaging pests for free-threshing cereals and presumably new networks being developed with the North-eastern part of Italy and the Balkans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how food planning policies address the reterritorialization of agricultural activities (RAA), a crucial component of local food systems. While food planning as an integrated local policy promoting local food systems has gained increasing research attention, most of the research has been urban-centric, resulting in a limited understanding of how it includes RAA. This paper fills this research gap by assessing 39 food planning projects in France, where the state defines food planning by national law and supports local projects. Through document analysis and semi-structured interviews, RAA-associated food planning policy goals, instruments, and agri-food professional actors' involvement are identified. The empirical findings highlight the central role of RAA in French food planning projects; it either serves as the primary motivation behind these projects or evolves into a substantial component as the projects develop. A wide range of policy instruments with local innovation to support RAA are identified, with more frequent use of informational and economic than regulatory and coercive instruments, and more focus on economic development than on ecological transition. Minority and majority farmers' organizations are involved in food planning processes with varying degrees of engagement across territories, reflecting local governance strategies. The analytical methods in this study may contribute to future research to better comprehend RAA in local food policymaking. The systematic overview of RAA-associated food planning measures also offers insights to policymakers in other contexts regarding food policy design. The paper concludes by arguing that food planning extends beyond urban food supply; it also presents an opportunity to leverage RAA for rural revitalization and transformation, in terms of production models, rural-urban links, and local governance. • Systematic analysis of 39 projects offers an overview of French food planning. • French food plans favor economic and informational over regulatory measures. • Food planning instruments prioritize economic development over ecological transition. • French food planning engages diverse actors; both major and minor farmer groups participate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semi-natural habitats (SNHs) are essential to biodiversity and agroecological conservation. The impact of agricultural policies on the development of SNHs is a matter of substantial importance. This study conducted a comparative analysis to examine the variations of SNHs' quantity, landscape quality, and ecosystem services resulting from the differentiated agricultural policies in China and the EU from 1990 to 2020. The Yangtze River Delta region (YRD) in China and France was selected as the study area. The results revealed that France exhibited a higher proportion of SNHs, along with improved connectivity and diversity in its plains, whereas SNHs in the YRD were limited in quantity and characterized by unstable landscape structure and ecosystem services. Both the YRD and France experienced a shift in the declined SNHs towards higher altitudes. There was noticeable landscape fragmentation and degraded ecosystem services in the hilly areas of YRD and the high plains of France. The agricultural policies of the EU achieved limited success in protecting SNHs, while China's agricultural landscapes were rapidly losing SNHs due to the absence of policy support. Based on these, the paper puts forward some countermeasures and suggestions for developing SNHs in China and the EU. Our study contributes to the global effort for agroecological conservation. • Comparative analysis of SNHs in China and the EU from 1990 to 2020. • Both YRD and France experienced a shift in declining SNHs towards higher altitudes. • Limited success of EU agricultural policies in SNH protection over three decades. • Rapid loss of SNHs in China's agricultural landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proponents of short food supply chains (SFSC) have lauded their environmental benefits. Nevertheless, most studies on SFSCs have focused on their climate impact, while the synthetic pesticide use by farmers participating in SFSCs has received little research attention. In this study, we investigate the effect of farmers' involvement in different SFSC channels on synthetic pesticide use and crop yields. This study relies on data obtained from the 2020 French agricultural census and a 2018 French national survey on the phytosanitary practices of representative market gardeners. This paper uses a multinomial endogenous treatment effect model in order to account for endogeneity. We demonstrate that the effect of SFSC participation on farmers' synthetic pesticide use varies depending on the type of SFSC channel employed. Farmers who sell part of their vegetable crops through direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels use significantly fewer synthetic pesticides than those who only sell their crops through long food supply chains (LFSC). However, there is no evidence that farmers involved in direct-to-retailer (DTR) channels use significantly fewer synthetic pesticides. In addition, we have not found any evidence that SFSC participation decreases crop yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agro-climatic indicators (AgcIs) provide a suitable tool to evaluate the implications of climate change on agriculture by simplifying plant–climate interactions. However, developing reliable AgcIs requires high-quality historical climate datasets. Consequently, reanalysis products (RPs) are frequently used as a potential reference dataset for observed climate in agricultural studies. This study aims to compare five RPs (ERA5, ERA5-Land, SCOPE Climate, FYRE Climate, and RFHR) at reproducing observed AgcIs over France. The RPs are evaluated against the SYNOP meteorological data over the 1996–2012 period, focusing on six AgcIs specific to apple, maize, and vine crops. The findings show that RPs perform well in reproducing temperature-based AgcIs, with some slight discrepancies in areas with complex topography. However, all RPs tend to overestimate precipitation amounts and to underestimate dry days, leading to a poor performance in reproducing precipitation-based AgcIs. This study emphasizes the need for a thorough evaluation of the RPs in developing both temperature-based and precipitation-based AgcIs, especially if findings are intended to support operational agricultural decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]