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Dans cet article, nous mettons en regard des travaux d’agronomes, portant sur l’organisation des territoires d’exploitations agricoles, avec une méthode de modélisation développée en intelligence artificielle le raisonnement à partir des cas. Nous essayons de montrer, à travers l’exemple du projet ROSA, que la rencontre de ces deux domaines peut s’avérer fructueuse, tant pour l’agronomie, à la recherche de méthodes qualitatives d’appréciation de la complexité, que pour l’informatique, confrontée à des problématiques nouvelles. En particulier, nous soulignons que cette rencontre conduit à un processus concret d’élaboration conjointe de connaissances. This paper brings together the work of agronomists, dealing with the organization of farming territories, with a modelling method developed in artificial intelligence, namely the case-based reasoning. We try to show, through the example of the ROSA project, that the meeting of these two research fields can be profitable, as well for agronomy, searching for qualitative methods in order to better appreciate complexity, as for computer science, confronted with new modelling problems. In particular, we stress that this meeting led to a concrete process of joint knowledge building. En este articulo, se relacionan trabajos de agrónomos sobre la organización territorial de explotaciones con un método de modelización desarrollado en inteligencia artificial, el razonamiento basado en casos. Se trata de demostrar a través del ejemplo del proyecto ROSA, que el encuentro de esos dos campos de investigación, la agronomía y la informática, puede revelarse fructífero, tanto para la agronomía, en la búsqueda de métodos cualitativos de apreciación de la complejidad, como para la informática, enfrentándose a problemáticas nuevas. En particular, se enfatiza que este encuentro conduce a un proceso concreto de elaboración conjunta de conocimientos.

La batata es uno de los cultivos tradicionales del Partido de San Pedro (Buenos Aires, Argentina), con historia y representatividad económica. En 2017 se comenzó un relevamiento anual de la superficie de cultivo, las variedades plantadas y la cantidad de espacios de acondicionamiento (lavaderos). Este trabajo muestra cuatro campañas de relevamiento de información, que refleja un incremento de la superficie plantada. EEA San Pedro Fil: Ibern, Danila Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Marcozzi, Paula. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina

La batata es uno de los cultivos tradicionales del Partido de San Pedro (Buenos Aires, Argentina), con historia y representatividad económica. A partir de una publicación de 2003 (Barsky) que sistematiza información histórica, en 2017 se comenzó un relevamiento anual de la superficie de cultivo, las variedades plantadas y la cantidad de espacios de acondicionamiento (lavaderos). Este informe muestra una actualización de la superficie hasta la fecha. EEA San Pedro Fil: Ibern, Danila Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina

International audience; A lot of national and international effort has been made to promote sustainable agricultural production systems in drylands. However, success has been seriously limited due to lack of thorough characterization of the impact of the diversity of farm household types on productivity, resource-use efficiency and economic and nutritional status. This study applied hierarchical ascendant classification to a random sample of 286 cereal-producing farm households in Morocco and identified distinct household typologies. It also carried out an analysis of trade-offs between economic, nutritional and environmental factors induced by the production decisions of the different farm household typologies. Our analysis identified three dominant farm household typologies in the production system, namely: (i) intensive predominantly-vegetable farming households with high input intensities, (ii) semi-intensive cereal mono-crop farming households with moderate input intensities and (iii) extensive mixed cereal-legume farming households with low input intensities. Extensive mixed cereal-legume farming households exhibited the highest resource-use efficiency and high biodiversity. These benefits, however, came at the expense of a much lower farm income and limited food supplies relative to the other two systems. These results show that, as is the case for many dryland regions, all three farm types showed precarious conditions for one or more of the sustainability-related indicators.

International audience; Although Sierra Leone aims to improve the livelihoods of its rice-farming households, the effect of specific policy changes on diverse households remains an open question. This study presents a household model that simulates strategies of production and consumption for rice-farming households in Sierra Leone. It accounts for non-separability between household production and consumption decisions, accounts for resource constraints, and uses a risk-adjusted measure of welfare. The model simulated the effects of three policy scenarios seeking to improve food consumption and calculated production, consumption and socio-economic indicators. The scenarios included: 1) subsidizing rice seed costs, 2) subsidizing palm oil production costs, and 3) subsidizing the conversion of lowlands into land suitable for rice production. The model was applied to four representative rice-farming households in northern Sierra Leone that differed in their land resources and rice consumption. The four household types included: 1) Upland_intensive, 2) Lowland_intensive, 3) Upland_extensive, and 4) Lowland_extensive. Results show that extensive lowland-based households had the lowest rice consumption (54 kg capita−1 year-1) and caloric intake (843 Kcal capita−1 day−1) in comparison with the other household types. Subsidizing rice seed costs in the lowlands, compared to the baseline scenario, improved rice consumption across the households by 15–34%, and farm income by 12–57%. Regardless of the scenario, differences in caloric intake, in comparison to the baseline scenario, were less than differences in rice consumption, thus indicating substitution effects between the different foods (vegetables, cereals, oils, and sweet potatoes). A maximum caloric increase of 16% was achieved by subsidizing palm oil production costs. Subsidizing lowland conversion for rice cultivation improved rice consumption mainly through the subsidy’s positive effect on rice production, which in turn effected self-consumption. Depending on the scenario, the increase in household income was mainly because of an increase in upland rice area, an increase in rice sowing rates, an increase in cash, or a specialization in lowland rice combined with planting a cash crop.

El Observatorio de la costa noreste bonaerense para el desarrollo y la sostenibilidad del sistema agroalimentario realizó una encuesta como parte de su consolidación y para conocer situadamente las características propias y el impacto de las medidas de cuarentena aplicadas en el corredor San Nicolás-Zárate para relevar posibles cambios ocurridos en las prácticas y perspectivas de productores del territorio, durante el tránsito de la pandemia de Covid 19. EEA San Pedro Fil: Piola, Mariana. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Delprino, María Rosa. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro; Argentina Fil: García, Leonardo Martín. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural Zárate; Argentina Fil: Ros, Patricio Guillermo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Nicolás; Argentina Fil: Marcozzi, Paula. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Ibern, Danila Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Albarracin, Fedra Susana. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Glaría, Oscar Juan José. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Nicolás; Argentina

International audience; In Tunisia, the development of the irrigation within the water scarcity context, remains one of the crucial issues of agricultural activity. The phenomenon of climate change is likely to make the problematic while threatening the country's food security. Thus, water use efficiency is essential to overcome these constraints and to preserve productive and sustainable agricultural activity. This work aims to optimize the water irrigation use and to increase the production of the durum wheat (DW) through improving irrigation practices. For this, a field survey was carried out with a sample of 43 farms from the Siliana region. In order to collect the required data, we have focused on the DW activity during the agricultural compain of 2015 in terms of the applied doses of water and fertilisers as well as the crop rotation. . Using CROPSYST, a crop model has been developed. The model was calibrated and validated to replicate the DW activity during three consecutive crop years 2015, 2016 and 2017. Three strategies of varied mix in terms water irrigation and fertilizers doses were simulated, The results showed the improvement of the yield by 9% that allowed an improvement of the water productivity up to 8.2 kgha-1mm-1. Given these results the Gross Margin may increase by 3% up to 11%.

International audience; One of the challenges of eco-efficient agriculture is the development of operational farming practices to increase the level of agricultural production, maximize the efficiency of resource use and reduce environmental impacts. Based on the efficiency frontier concept and the decomposition of resource use efficiency, we used a three-quadrant framework allowing to carry a functional analysis of the cropping system. Using a data envelope approach, we established boundary curves which represent the maximum achievable performances (yield, N uptake) when N is the only limiting factor. This framework has been first implemented and tested using published data from 112 agronomic situations of rainfed durum wheat in experimental fields in northern Syria and then further applied on a data set of 245 agronomic situations of durum wheat in farmers’ fields in two grain-producing regions of Tunisia. The results demonstrated the impact of preceding crops: durum wheat following legumes or vegetable showed a higher potential for N uptake but with only a minor effect on its conversion into grains. This positive effect of diversified rotation on potential N uptake by durum wheat is partly of-set by increased N uptake gaps in farmer’s fields indicating a higher effect of other limiting factors.

La batata es uno de los cultivos tradicionales de San Pedro (Buenos Aires, Argentina), con historia y representatividad económica. La falta de información sistematizada en los últimos años requiere un abordaje integral e incremental como fundamento de nuevas políticas públicas orientadas al desarrollo del sector. Este trabajo recupera la información histórica disponible y releva algunos indicadores actualizados como la superficie, los productores involucrados, la existencia de lavaderos y las variedades que se cultivan. EEA San Pedro Fil: Ibern, Danila Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Hansen, Laura. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro. Agencia de Extensión Rural San Pedro; Argentina Fil: Piola, Mariana. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria San Pedro; Argentina

Agriculture is a co-evolutionary process between society and nature. Agroecology is an environmental science which focuses on ecosystem-culture and society-nature interactive systems, the effect of human intervention in the transformation of ecosystems. The central objects are agroecosystems and the units of study are production units. These production units are conceived of as agricultural systems and are found in the crossroads of multiple interactions between biophysical, socioeconomical, cultural, and production components, which must be analyzed with an integrated concept. In the present study, a characterization and typification of the citrus agroecosystems of the department of Meta were pursued (Colombia). The pertinence of implementing the methodology designed by the Latin-American Center for Rural Development (Centro Latinoamericano para el Desarrollo Rural-RIMISP) was evaluated, grouping the variables with a focus on an analysis of livelihoods. A survey and interview were defined as methods of collecting the primary information in the municipalities of Puerto López, Villavicencio, Granada, Lejanías, Guamal and San Martin, where 78.4% of the citrus area of the department is found. This study involved the selection and definition of the evaluation variables, validation and adjustment of said variables, collection of primary and secondary information, and the application of multivariate statistical analysis techniques to conform and characterize the recommendation domains or groups. The more important results indicated that it is possible to increase knowledge of the interrelations that exist between the different components of farm agroecosystems and their relationship with the principal agroecological structure. The existence of six agricultural groups or recommendation domains was established, with some productive characteristics very similar within the group but very heterogeneous to the outside of the group, with particular necessities.

Potato has multiple benefits and thus can play a vital role in ensuring food security in Ethiopia. However, for diverse reasons, its productivity is low. The farming systems in Ethiopia in which potato is grown, are predominantly mixed farming systems. Most of the research in Ethiopia is focused on crop-specific constraints and thus there is limited research in which the interrelations between crop and livestock management practices are investigated. There is also not enough research focused on combined analysis of soil nutrient and animal feed balances and agronomic and socioeconomic efficiencies at farm level. This study assessed production constraints and agronomic and socioeconomic sustainability of the farming systems in South Ethiopia and explored the possible synergetic options to alleviate major constraints. More specifically, the study intended to quantify the variation in input and output among farms, to identify constraints hindering expansion of potato production, to evaluate the sustainability of the farming systems at farm level, to identify constraints of sustainable intensification, and to explore synergetic solutions for the major constraints. Different research approaches were used ranging from lab analysis, household surveys, group discussions, to farm surveys. Results showed that constraints related to input and product use in potato production vary across households indicating a need for a pluriform advisory model recognizing (and building upon alleviation of) the diversity of constraints identified in this analysis. The sustainability of the farming system is constrained by low agricultural productivity, low soil fertility, poor labour efficiency and limited economic return associated with improper crop rotation, inappropriate soil fertility management practices, shortage of animal feed, labour- and economically inefficient farm practices and labour shortage. However, there is ample scope to overcome the major constraints and simultaneously to optimize farm management. The core messages of the study can be summarized as follows: 1) the current potato production is characterized by low productivity and economic returns due to various socioeconomic, agronomic and biological factors; 2) the soil fertility is low and there is uneven distribution of nutrients over plots with relatively high fertility levels in the homestead areas; 3) the current labour shortage can be attributed to mainly inefficiency of agricultural management practices and labour migration to towns for economic reasons indicating that the farming system is not sustainable in terms of labour; 4) considering the direct return from animal production, most of the farms had very low gross margin with the current management system and this reduced the overall operating profit of farms. The low return from animal rearing was offset by the relatively high profit from crop production indicating the benefit of mixed farming system in sustaining agricultural production; and 5) each farm can have a wide range of optimized solutions mainly through introduction of improved technologies and subsequent redesigning of the farm managements. In general, the findings of the current study indicate that it is worthwhile to assess the sustainability of agricultural production in different farming systems and agro-ecologies of Ethiopia. In addition, the combined effect of introducing improved agricultural technologies and subsequent reconfiguring the farm management is very crucial to increase and sustain agricultural production.

Seit dem erstmaligen Auftreten der Infektion mit dem neuartigen Orthobunyavirus, dem Schmallenberg-Virus, im Spätsommer 2011 wurde eine rasche Ausbreitung der Infektion in Deutschland und vielen anderen europäischen Ländern beobachtet. Viele Aspekte der Epidemiologie der SBV-Infektion waren anfangs unerforscht. Wie bei anderen zunächst unbekannten Infektionserkrankungen ist die Bestimmung und Bewertung von Risikofaktoren für die Verbreitung dieser Erkrankung erforderlich, um effiziente Maßnahmen für die Reduzierung des Infektionsrisikos von SBV entwickeln zu können. Im Rahmen dieser deutschlandweiten Fall-Kontroll-Studie zur SBV-Infektion wurden von November 2011 bis Februar 2013 in 7 Bundesländern retrospektiv Daten erfasst, um Risikound auch Schutzfaktoren für das Vorkommen von SBV-Infektionen bei Rindern und Schafen auf Betriebsebene zu bestimmen. Bei Betriebsbesuchen wurden mittels eines standardisierten Fragebogens Angaben zum Betriebsmanagement, zur tierärztlichen Betreuung und Überwachung, zu Bestandsbesuchen von Personen mit engem Tierkontakt, zum Krankheitsgeschehen sowie zur potentiellen Einschleppungsursache und Weiterverbreitung gesammelt. Darüber hinaus wurden Proben für die Ermittlung der Seroprävalenz entnommen. Die nach Abgleich der serologischen Ergebnisse falsch eingestuften Kontrollen machten eine Anpassung der Falldefinition für eine bessere Trennschärfe zwischen Fall- und Kontrollbetrieben notwendig. Der schnelle Einzug und die Verbreitung dieser neuen Viruserkrankung innerhalb Deutschlands spiegelten sich auch in der Schwierigkeit des Auffindens SBV-freier Betriebe und schließlich in der Verteilung der Fälle und Kontrollen in Untersuchungsgebiet wider. Folglich wurden in den Betrieben im Zentrum der Epidemie hohe Intraherdenprävalenzen festgestellt, während in peripheren Gebieten weniger SBV-exponierte Betriebe gefunden werden konnten. Im Rahmen der Risikofaktoren- Analyse wurden 73 auswertbare Variablen aus 7 Kontrollund 33 Fallbetrieben bei den Rindern und 63 auswertbare Variablen aus 16 Kontroll- und 29 Fallbetrieben bei den Schafen auf ihre Signifikanz hin zunächst bivariat und dann multivariat getestet. Die statistische, bivariate Analyse mittels des exakten Tests nach Fisher ergab für 7 Variablen bei den Rinderbetrieben und 5 Variablen bei den Schafbetrieben signifikante Unterschiede zwischen den Kontroll- und Fallbetrieben. Aus der multivariaten Auswertung gingen schließlich je Tierart drei finale Modelle hervor, deren Variablen sowohl in der bivariaten Analyse als auch im logistischen Regressionsmodell einen Erklärungsbeitrag zur Zielvariablen leisteten. Bei den Rinderbetrieben ergaben sich für die Variablen „zeitweise Stallhaltung“, „eigener Bulle“ und „Zukauf von Tieren“ positive Assoziationen zur SBV-Infektion. Für die Variablen „Wanderschafherden im Gebiet“ und „ganzjährige Stallhaltung“ konnte anhand der statistischen Signifikanz ein protektiver Effekt festgestellt werden. In der multivariaten Modell-Analyse erklären „Zukauf von Tieren“, „Wanderschafherden im Gebiet“ und „ganzjährige Stallhaltung“ kombiniert am besten das Vorkommen der SBV-Infektion. Bei den Schafbetrieben zeigten innerhalb der bivariaten Auswertung „Haltung von Geflügel“, „Haltung von Haarschafen“ und „Ganzjährige Bedeckung“ statistisch signifikante Unterschiede zwischen den Fall- und Kontrollbetrieben auf. In der multivariaten Analyse leistete das Zusammenspiel aus „Fruchtbarkeitsstörungen der Muttertiere“, „Regelmäßige Tierarztbetreuung“ und „Haltung von Geflügel“ den höchsten Erklärungsbeitrag zur Zielvariablen. Im Rahmen der vorliegenden Fall-Kontroll-Studie konnten keine Hinweise auf einen Zusammenhang zwischen einer SBV-Infektion und der Betriebsnähe zu feuchten Gebieten oder zur Behandlung mit Repellentien und Insektiziden zwischen Fall und Kontrollbetrieben festgestellt werden., Since the first occurrence of infection with this new orthobunyavirus in late summer 2011, the Schmallenberg virus (SBV) infection has spread rapidly in Germany and in many other European countries. A multitude of epidemiologic aspects of the SBV infection had initially been unexplored. As for many other firstly unexplored infectious diseases, an identification and estimation of risk factors for the spread of this very disease is required in order to develop efficient measures to decrease the risk of infection. In the context of this case-control study of SBV infection in Germany, data has been analyzed retrospectively from November 2011 to February 2013 from 7 federal states in order to identify potential risk and protective factors of SBV infection on cattle and sheep farms. During farm visits, standardized surveys with questionnaires were used to generate data on farm management, veterinary visits and monitoring, herd visits by people with close animal contacts, occurring diseases and potential causes of invasion or retransmission. Furthermore, samples were taken to determine the seroprevalence. After the match of the serologic results had led to falsely categorised control cases, the case definitions had to be adjusted to achieve a better distinction between cases and controls. The fast spread and retransmission of this new disease in Germany was also reflected in the difficulty of finding SBV-free farms at the time of the visits and in the distribution of cases and controls within the investigation area. Accordingly, farms close to the epidemiologic centre showed high intraherd prevalence, whereas farms in peripheral regions were less exposed to SBV. In the bivariate and multivariate analyses of risk factors of this study, 73 variables were tested from 7 control and 33 case farms in the cattle sector, while 63 variables were checked from 16 control and 29 case farms in the sheep sector. Bivariate analyses based on the Fisher exact test resulted in 7 variables for cattle and 5 variables for sheep showing statistically significant differences between case and control farms. From the multivariate analyses, 3 models were derived for each of the two species. Its underlying variables played an important role to explain the target variable by bivariate analysis and using logistic regression models. For cattle farms, the variables “temporary indoor housing”, “own bull” and “purchase of new animals” revealed positive associations with SBV infection. The variables “migrating sheep herds” and “all-year indoor housing” showed a protective effect on a statistically significant level. The best multivariate model explaining the occurrence of SBV infection consisted of the variables “purchase of new animals”, “migrating sheep herds” and “all-year indoor housing”. For sheep farms, the variables „keeping poultry“, “keeping hair sheep” and “all-year coverage” revealed statistically significant differences between case and control farms in the bivariate analysis. In the multivariate analysis, the combination of “fertility disturbances of ewes”, “regular veterinary care” and “keeping of poultry” explained the target variable in the best way. This case-control study did not indicate a correlation between SBV infection and the proximity of the farms to wetlands or to the use of repellents and insecticides.

SYSTEM : équipe CONSYST « CONception de SYSTèmes de culture »; International audience; In Sierra Leone, several international organizations are trying to help the government improve the productivity of its rice farms, which currently have the lowest rice yields in West Africa. However, the various programmes attempting to increase rice production, and consequently rice self-sufficient food production, are handicapped by an absence of thorough studies explaining the way rice farmers take the available socio-economic, technical and natural production factors into account when making their decisions. The purpose of the current article is to assess rice production performance on smallholder rice farms in Sierra Leone. To achieve this goal, an agronomic and socio-economic survey was carried out among 180 rice farmers in the district of Bombali in Northern Sierra Leone. The survey, combined with a specific statistical analysis, made it possible to assess production strategies for rice farms according to various discriminant parameters (family size and composition, fallow duration, seeding density, labour availability, ecosystems, share of oil palm, distance from field to farm...). This analysis revealed that the rice smallholder farms that perform best are those growing rice under two ecosystems together with oil palm. Those farms have more income to purchase rice seed in years when production is low or if they have large families to feed. However, subsistence rice farms with one exclusive ecosystem will probably not be sustainable and they will not be able to satisfy their households' future rice needs.

Grassland habitats were studied on twenty farms on the area of the Radlje ob Dravi administration unit, in the transect from Kozjak to Pohorje at different altitudes. The aim of the study was to investigate how environmental and socio-economic parameters influence the diversity of plant species and, consequently, the conservation of grassland on acid soils, which are rare in Slovenia and are therefore more protected. The socioeconomic structure of farms was studied on the basis of an inquiry carried out on farms. Part-time farms prevail; the average age of farmers is 56.5 years, and 30% of farmers has no education or just elementary school. The relationship among the environmental, socio-economic parameters and floristic structures of grasslands was studied using canonic-correspondence analysis. The impact of 16 parameters was analysed, of which six were determined not to be statistically significant. The occurrence of chosen plant species was analysed in relation to environmental and socioeconomic parameters. The efficiency of agro-environmental subsidies in relation to plant species diversity was evaluated. It was determined that the education and age of farmers influence the intensity of farming and consequently have an impact on the diversity of plants species and the conservation status of grasslands.

Melkveebedrijven, die stijgen in antibioticagebruik, zaten aanvankelijk op een heel laag niveau. Ze zijn meer droogzetters, middelen tegen mastitis en overige middelen gaan gebruiken. Dalende bedrijven doen het tegenovergestelde. Dalers zijn actiever in het aanpassen van de bedrijfsvoering, vooral huisvesting, het management rondom droogzetten en selectie van koeien. Stijgende bedrijven hebben een hoger celgetal dan de dalende bedrijven.

Chapter 12; International audience; Chemical contamination of fresh produce through pesticide spraying is considered a minor risk for consumer health. As a result, significant responsibility in food safety may be shifted to the private sector by public agencies. The involvement of the private sector is even greater when fresh produce is sold to safety-conscious consumers, given the high exposure of retailers' commercial reputation. This chapter focuses on public and private management of food safety risks, and the determinants thereof in the fresh produce industry of two contrasting Mediterranean countries: Morocco and Turkey. Based on expert surveys and face-to-face interviews with a large number of tomato growers, it provides insight into how and why different players are managing and controlling safety risks. A clear distinction is made between firm-scale factors at growing and shipping levels and country-wide factors, especially recent developments in markets and regulatory institutions. Both significantly influence the level of safety management in greenhouses, the adoption of good agricultural practices and integrated pest management. All factors should be taken into consideration simultaneously to understand the respective contributions of public and private operators in the safety risk management of the fresh produce chain.

International audience

In livestock-intensive regions of Europe, on-farm application of manure and other fertilisers is being increasingly regulated to protect aquatic environments. This study examined collaborative arrangements between intensive livestock farms in Denmark with surplus manure and farms requiring crop nutrients, in order to manage the manure resource at landscape scale and comply with environmental regulations. The extent of collaborative arrangements for manure among Danish farms was explored at national scale using registry data. This showed that in 2009, 50% of all farms in Denmark, managing 70% of the area, were involved in manure exchange, indicating that collaborative arrangements are widespread. Based on this analysis, a sample of 1500 livestock farmers who had provided manure to others was selected for a survey to determine the nature of the manure arrangements in terms of which farmers make partnerships with, and how the arrangements function in practice. Multivariate analysis (multiple correspondence analysis and cluster analysis) of 644 respondents was used to identify specific types of manure partnerships. The vast majority of respondents knew their partner before they established the arrangement, either through family, neighbours or their local or professional network. These different social relations played an important role in defining four types of partnerships, differing in e.g. burden sharing of manure transportation and spreading, frequency of communication and transport distance. The four types identified provide additional information about decision-making on manure allocation, which to date is mainly based on spatial-economic models.

Agriculture is a co-evolutionary process between society and nature. Agroecology is an environmental science which focuses on ecosystem-culture and society-nature interactive systems, the effect of human intervention in the transformation of ecosystems. The central objects are agroecosystems and the units of study are production units. These production units are conceived of as agricultural systems and are found in the crossroads of multiple interactions between biophysical, socioeconomical, cultural, and production components, which must be analyzed with an integrated concept. In the present study, a characterization and typification of the citrus agroecosystems of the department of Meta were pursued (Colombia). The pertinence of implementing the methodology designed by the Latin-American Center for Rural Development (Centro Latinoamericano para el Desarrollo Rural-RIMISP) was evaluated, grouping the variables with a focus on an analysis of livelihoods. A survey and interview were defined as methods of collecting the primary information in the municipalities of Puerto López, Villavicencio, Granada, Lejanías, Guamal and San Martin, where 78.4% of the citrus area of the department is found. This study involved the selection and definition of the evaluation variables, validation and adjustment of said variables, collection of primary and secondary information, and the application of multivariate statistical analysis techniques to conform and characterize the recommendation domains or groups. The more important results indicated that it is possible to increase knowledge of the interrelations that exist between the different components of farm agroecosystems and their relationship with the principal agroecological structure. The existence of six agricultural groups or recommendation domains was established, with some productive characteristics very similar within the group but very heterogeneous to the outside of the group, with particular necessities. La agricultura es un proceso de coevolución entre las sociedades y la naturaleza, la agroecología es una ciencia ambiental, en donde se privilegia el estudio de las complejas interacciones ecosistema-cultura o sociedad-naturaleza; es el efecto de la intervención humana para transformar los ecosistemas, su objeto central y unidad de estudio son los agroecosistemas y la unidad productiva respectivamente. Estas unidades productivas conceptualmente se conciben como sistemas agropecuarios complejos, y se constituyen en el lugar donde se presentan múltiples interacciones entre los componentes biofísicos, socioeconómicos, culturales y productivos, los cuales deben ser analizados bajo un concepto integrador. En el presente trabajo, se avanzó en la tipificación y caracterización de los agroecosistemas citrícolas del departamento del Meta (Colombia); se evaluó la pertinencia de implementar la metodología diseñada por el Centro Latinoamericano para el Desarrollo Rural-RIMISP agrupando las variables con el enfoque análisis de medios de vida. Se definió la encuesta y la entrevista como medios de captura de información primaria, en los municipios de Puerto López, Villavicencio, Granada, Lejanías, Guamal y San Martin, donde se concentra el 78,4% del área citrícola del departamento. El trabajo investigativo comprendió la selección, definición de las variables a evaluar, validación y ajuste de las mismas, recolección de información primaria y secundaria, y la aplicación de técnicas de análisis estadístico de tipo multivariado para la conformación y caracterización de los grupos o dominios de recomendación. Los resultados más importantes indicaron que es posible ampliar el conocimiento de las interrelaciones que se presentan entre los diferentes componentes del agroecosistema finca y su relación con la estructura agroecológica principal. Se estableció que existen seis grupos de agricultores o dominios de recomendación, con unas características productivas muy semejantes al interior del grupo y muy heterogéneas al exterior de los grupos, con necesidades particulares.

Two case studies are presented here of nitrogen (N) dynamics in potato/maize systems. Contrasting systems were investigated from (1) the highland tropics of Dedza, Malawi in southern Africa and (2) the northern temperate Great Lakes region of Michigan. Formal surveys were conducted to document grower perceptions and N management strategies. Survey data were linked with N budgets conducted by reviewing on-farm data from representative farms in the targeted agroecosystems and simulation modeling to estimate N losses. Potential N-loss junctures were identified. Interventions that farmers might accept are discussed. The Malawi system uses targeted application of very small amounts of fertilizer (average 18 kg N ha-1) to growing plants. This low rate is on the steep part of plant response to N curve and should serve to enhance efficiency; plant growth, however, is generally stunted in Malawi due to degraded soils and weed competition. Very limited crop yields reduce N efficiency from a simulated 60 kg grain per kg N to an actual of ~20 kg grain per kg N (at 40 kg N ha-1applied). Legume-intensified systems could improve growth potential and restore N use efficiency through amelioration of soil quality and transfer functions and from biological fixation N inputs. In the Michigan system, N efficiency is enhanced currently through multiple, split applications of N fertilizer tailored to plant growth rate and demand. Fertilizer N rates used by growers, however, averaged 32% higher than recommended rates and 40% higher than N removed in crop product. Application of 50 kg N ha-1to cover crops in the fall may contribute to the apparent high potential for N leaching losses. Careful consideration of N credits from legumes and residual soil N would improve N efficiency. Overall, N budgets indicated 0 to 20 kg N ha-1loss potential from the Malawi systems and tenfold higher loss potential from current practice in Michigan maize/potato rotations. Best management practices, with or without integration of legumes, could potentially reduce N losses in Michigan to a more acceptable level of about 40 kg N ha-1.

ASG heeft onderzoek gedaan naar de verwachte ontwikkeling van de melkveehouderij in Nederland. Daarvoor zijn berekeningen uitgevoerd voor een bedrijf met 600.000 kg melk, dat wil groeien naar 1.000.000 kg melk, dus van 75 naar 125 melkkoeien. Hierbij zijn 4 groeiscenario’s met elkaar vergeleken, omdat het gros van de melkveehouders inzet op groei

Melkveebedrijven, die stijgen in antibioticagebruik, zaten aanvankelijk op een heel laag niveau. Ze zijn meer droogzetters, middelen tegen mastitis en overige middelen gaan gebruiken. Dalende bedrijven doen het tegenovergestelde. Dalers zijn actiever in het aanpassen van de bedrijfsvoering, vooral huisvesting, het management rondom droogzetten en selectie van koeien. Stijgende bedrijven hebben een hoger celgetal dan de dalende bedrijven.

L'objectif de ce papier est de déterminer, à partir d'une enquête menée sur 98 exploitations agricoles, les facteurs de développement de culture du maïs au Burkina Faso et notamment l'influence du système coton sur cette production de maïs. Deux régions caractérisées par un système coton différent, la Zone Ouest et la Sissili, sont analysées., The objective of this paper is to determine, from a survey of 98 farms, the factors in the development of maize cultivation in Burkina Faso and in particular the influence of the cotton system on the production of maize. Two regions with different cotton systems, the West Zone and Sissili, are analysed

Com base em informação recolhida através de inquéritos, caracterizou-se a exploração cunícola da região Ribatejo e Oeste e avaliou-se o grau de cumprimento de boas práticas de produção, bem como a sua consequência nas taxas de mortalidade e de rejeição de animais para abate. Estas taxas foram ainda avaliadas em função da temperatura ambiente média registada, nos meses de verão, no interior dos pavilhões de crescimento e engorda. A exploração cunícola, com dimensão média de 400-600 fêmeas, apresenta um tecido empresarial envelhecido e com baixo nível de escolaridade. A totalidade das explorações cumpre a legislação respeitante ao equipamento mínimo exigido e ao seu dimensionamento. Também a generalidade das explorações cumpre boas práticas de produção. As taxas de mortalidade e de rejeição de animais registadas encontram-se dentro dos valores de referência, mas com grande heterogeneidade entre explorações. Entre as boas práticas na exploração cunícola, e cuja situação de incumprimento foi associada a maiores taxas de mortalidade e de rejeição de animais, destacou-se o incumprimento de vazio sanitário, utilização de vestuário e calçado adequados e realização de análises periódicas à água. Registaram-se temperaturas ambiente elevadas, que ultrapassaram substancialmente os valores recomendados, tendo estes sido associados a uma taxa de mortalidade superior.Survey data are used to describe rabbit farming in Ribatejo e Oeste and to assess good farming practice compliance and its impact on mortality and abattoir condemnation rates. Relationship between these rates and summer average recorded indoor temperature in grower-finisher sheds was also investigated. Rabbit farms have an average 400-600 does. The farmer population is aging and has a low education level. All farms comply with minimum equipment and space legal requirements. Good farming practices are generally adopted. Mortality and abattoir condemnation rates are within reference values but show large between-farm variation. Nonobservance of a depopulation period, inadequate clothing and footwear and the absence of periodic water analyses were the bad farming practices with highest impact on mortality and abattoir condemnation rates. Indoor temperatures considerably higher than recommended have been observed and were associated with higher mortality rates.

De Agro vertrouwensindex geeft op reguliere basis een beeld van de stemming onder agrarische ondernemers in Nederland. Naast het sentiment van de ondernemers wordt ook gevraagd naar de ontwikkeling in enkele belangrijke bedrijfsfactoren, zoals kosten productie, opbrengstprijs, omzet en winst. Deze website geeft daardoor elk kwartaal een actueel inzicht in de stand van zaken in de agrarische sector en een vooruitblik op de korte en de wat langere termijn. Beleidsmakers en bedrijven hebben door de Agro vertrouwensindex een actueel, wetenschappelijk en representatief beeld van de sector in handen. Door de vooruitblik is het mogelijk in te spelen op ontwikkelingen en hier het beleid op af te stemmen. Inzicht in de impact van beleidsbeslissingen, wijzigingen in inkomens- of concurrentiepositie kunnen met deze agro vertrouwensindex worden gevolgd. Door coördinatie met vertegenwoordigers van het landbouwbedrijfsleven en kennisinstellingen uit verschillende EU-lidstaten onder de vlag van Copa-Cogeca, de Europese belangenorganisatie van land- en tuinbouw ondernemers en hun coöperaties, worden resultaten van de agro vertrouwensindex vergeleken met de ontwikkelingen in andere EU-lidstaten.

National audience; Agro-ecological innovations are needed to reduce the impacts of current intensive agricultural practices on biodiversity and ecosystems. Whereas many published studies focus on the biophysical impacts of such innovations at field level, few attention has been given to the analysis of the potential of adoption of these innovations at farm and regional levels. In order to reduce the gap between on station and in silico innovation and farmer’s adoption process, we developped an interdisciplinary method based on the combination of simulations models and on farm surveys to assess ex ante the potential of adoption of agro-ecological innovations by farmers.

De provincie Zeeland heeft het LEI verzocht inzicht te geven in de bedrijfsomvang van neventakken in de varkens- en pluimveehouderij en de bijbehorende grondoppervlakte van de bedrijfstakken. Met deze informatie kan de provincie beleid ontwikkelen ten aanzien van de bedrijfsstructuur in de landbouw in de provincie. In deze notitie wordt per sector (varkenshouderij en pluimveehouderij) hierop ingegaan. Eerst wordt ingegaan op de omvang van neventakken en vervolgens op de benodigde grondoppervlakte per bedrijfstak. In de berekeningen is rekening gehouden met de laatste stand van de wetgeving ten aanzien van leefoppervlakten, zoals die per 2010/11 voor vleeskuikens, per 2012 voor leghennen en per 2013 voor varkens van toepassing is. Er is uitgegaan van gangbare houderij, niet van biologische houderij.