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It is usually believed that the position of farmers along the agro-food supply chains is weak, and this circumstance leads farms to achieve modest prices for their products and, in turn, capture only a small share of the added value. Such a situation substantially limits farms’ efforts to adequately remunerate the resources employed, including contract and hired labor. This article argues that, while the unfavorable position of farms is a valid concern, it is also crucial to consider how the efficient use of resources employed in agriculture impacts their remuneration, by means of price mechanisms. An empirical analysis conducted on a FADN sample of farms producing processing tomatoes over the years 2014–2018 reveals that the product price which allows for adequate compensation of hired agricultural labor decreases with increasing efficiency. At the same time, all other things being equal, for price levels above the theoretical one, the profit of the farms increases and the possibility for fairer wages as well.

Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) is one of the most important microeconomic surveys in Europe. It collects information suitable for use in performing structural and socioeconomic analysis of the agricultural sector in all the Member States. Contents and purposes have evolved over the time depending on the informative needs of the EU Commission and CAP’s priorities. As a part of the Green Deal, CAP is expected to contribute to the environment, climate change and biodiversity objectives beyond 2020. In this new framework, one initiative launched inside the Farm to Fork Strategy has been the change of name from fadn to Farm Sustainability Data Network (FSDN) including variables related to the environmental and social aspects of farming. Like in other EU countries, the information collected by the Italian FADN exceeds that required by the EU regulations, allowing to some extent consideration of special characteristics of national agriculture. However, further variables could be added or changed, gathering them directly from the farmer, by including the existing database or through targeted questionnaires on fadn sub-samples. The new survey will maintain and improve the current role of FADN, reinforcing the analytical and political relevance of the network by adding further dimensions of sustainability. The discussion is on-going at EU and National level and this paper is a contribution to this debate. It gives a description of the environmental and social data gathered by the Italian FADN together with a consideration regarding about the opportunity and the possibility to enhance the system in view of the future period under evaluation. The switch to FSDN will require an effort from the Member States in terms of IT infrastructure, economic resources, new ways of collecting data and staff involved in data collection and the verification process.